Moving out of the Market: Retirement and West African Immigrant Men in the United States

Abstract

In this paper we explore the later life plans and goals of a group of male West African traders. As the world becomes more socially and culturally integrated, the challenge of understanding the culturally divergent statuses of older men and women becomes paramount. We compare and contrast American and West African views about aging and later adulthood. Data for this research were gathered over an almost 15 year period of ethnographic field work in New York City. We interviewed more than 76 men from Niger who had lived and worked in the United States for between five and 15 years. Analysis of the data revealed similarities and differences in the aging trajectories among our participants as well as between our participants and the results of the record of aging research among Americans. Similarities included concerns about health, a desire to spend time with family and friends, and the importance of spirituality or religion. Primary differences focused on concerns about economic and social entanglements in America as well as the desire for physical activity, independence and autonomy.