African Diaspora Research Articles

Black Meta Mode

This paper explores metamodernism traced via the Black Diaspora, providing theoretical foundations, historical context, and visions for its application in contemporary society. Serving as an abridged introduction to the concept of Black Metamodernism, and contextualizing it within the broader metamodern project, I begin with the “Black Metamodernist Manifesto,” outlining core principles and underlining its role as a socio-political movement fostering the integration of cognitive dissonance through diunital, both-and cognition. I posit that Black metamodernism utilizes diunital vision-logic to integrate cognitive differences, offering a pathway to Black Liberation and beyond. I contextualize metamodernism as Black beyond Race, positioning it as a tool for embodiment amidst contemporary societal contradictions. The paper culminates in a call for a Black Metamodern Aesthetic, a culturally functional artistic expression rooted in survival with socio-economic, and geo-political awareness.

Migration and pathology: a comparative reading of fragmented selves in Brian Chikwava’s Harare North

ABSTRACT The paper is a comparative reading of dissociation and spirit possession as worthwhile tropes of analyzing the fragmented selves to lay basis of interpretation of similar works with African and Western cultural heritages. In spite of availability of critical works on pathological consequences of othering on African immigrants, this comparative reading is absent. Some literary scholars interrogate the clinical trope and point out the need to incorporate both the clinical and spirit possession tropes, whereas most literary scholars focus on clinical madness as a consequence of othering, this paper extends it to spirit possession among migrant characters. The article adopts postcolonialism and concepts from diverse fields to enable comparison of the clinical and possession tropes with reference to Brian Chikwava’s Harare North (2009). The study is anchored in ideas of scholars from different disciplines such as depth psychology (dissociation) and anthropology (spirit possession) as theoretical bases of interpretation. To ensure a flawless interaction of these theorists who occupy different academic disciplines, I foment an interdisciplinary exegesis by adopting Ato Quayson’s ‘Calibrations’ theory, which is a fine-tuned tool for textual close reading that ‘oscillates’ rapidly between different domains – the literary-aesthetic, the social, the cultural, and the political.

Abstract 4141453: The Pandemic influenced the Self-care of African Immigrants with Diabetes and Hypertension

Background: Self-Care is essential for chronic illness management. Self-Care comprises three domains: Self-Care maintenance (daily behaviors to maintain health [e.g., medication adherence]), Self-Care monitoring (surveillance for changes), and (3) Self-Care management (prompt response to symptoms). The COVID-19 pandemic challenged self-care in some populations, but little is known about how it influenced the self-care of African immigrants living in the US with chronic illnesses such as hypertension and diabetes. Methods: Using a qualitative descriptive design, we enrolled a purposeful sample of 24 sub-Saharan African immigrant adults with self-reported symptomatic hypertension or diabetes. Participants who spoke English were enrolled between March 2020 and September 2021. Individual audio-taped interviews were transcribed and analyzed. Inductive and deductive thematic analysis was guided by the Theory of Self-Care of Chronic Illness. Results: Participants were mean=59 years (range 40-72). Most were Nigerian (n=16), male (n=16), married (n=17), living with family (n=21), highly educated (n=21), and reporting enough income to meet their needs (n=21). Five major themes were identified: (1) Being especially careful in following COVID-19 precautions (e.g., use of facemasks). (2) A focus on self-care maintenance (e.g., healthy diet, staying active while at home). Fear of COVID-19 increased medication adherence. Participants were diligent in taking medications as prescribed due to fear of COVID-19. (3) Close monitoring for symptoms. (4) Trouble reaching providers to discuss symptoms. (5) Access to resources. Participants reported loss of health insurance/jobs and lack of provider access, which impacted their ability to perform self-care. Conclusions: COVID-19 increased focused attention on self-care but also created barriers for sub-Saharan African Immigrants. Most impacted was self-care maintenance. Interventions to promote self-care in this population should leverage heightened vigilance to self-care and address challenges around access to resources.

Cultural Conflict: Second generation African immigrant children in the United States

It was estimated in 1996 that there were 24.6 million immigrants in the United States (U.S Census Bureau 1998) what Portes (1990) and Rumbaut (1995) have termed today’s immigrants the “permanent unfinished society” of immigrants. It is this “unfinished society” of immigrants’ that contemporary African immigrants are a part of. Since the end of forced migration in the mid eighteen hundred only a small number of African immigrants have been able to come to United States compared to other groups of immigrants. For instance, from 1820 to 1993 America took in only 418,000 African immigrants according to Immigration and Naturalization records, while 345,425 Asians came to America just in 1993 (Adugna, 1998). Two thirds of all African immigrants currently in the United States arrived after 1980. According to the 1990 census, African born immigrants numbered 364,000. The authors of this paper speculates that the reasons as to why the number of African immigrants in the United Stated was and still is relatively small compared to other immigrants from other continents, is the difficult process of obtaining a visa to emigrate into the United States and the long and expensive journey that is in many ways beyond the reach of many African families.

Ubuntu, African Ancestrality and Its Resignifications in the African Diaspora

ABSTRACT In this text, I reflect on the African cosmovivencias of Ubuntu and the place of the ancestors within those cosmovivencias. I also approach the resignifications that Ubuntu and ancestrality have had in the African Diaspora. I show how ancestrality is present both in Ubuntu and in the cultural, religious, and traditional manifestations, which express the resignifications of the African cosmovivencias of Ubuntu in Latin America. To support my argument, I bring examples of cases that I consider to be experiences of these cosmovivencias. For Africa, I mention Ubuntu (South Africa) and the instances of the figure of “Kimbilikiti,” a common spirit of the Lega ethnic group (eastern DRC); the ancestral ritual for good fishing, practiced jointly in Uvira (also in east DRC); and the figure of “Abashingantahe” (wise men, judges), in Burundi. For Latin America, I bring up the experiences understood as “suficiencias íntimas” and “vivir sabroso” in Colombia and the African rooted religions and the quilombola communities. All these cases have the African ancestry in common.

Epistatic effects of IGHG and FCGRIIB genes on the development of Alzheimer’s disease in African Americans

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) have identified a large number of susceptibility genes, but most of AD heritability remains unexplained, implying the existence of additional genes. Furthermore, the majority of the GWAS have been conducted in people of European descent, and the genes important for AD susceptibility in people of African descent have been underexplored. In this hypothesis-generating prospective cohort study, we genotyped 191 African Americans (AAs) from three longitudinal cohorts on aging for the IgG3 allotype GM6, which is expressed exclusively in people of African descent, and assessed its interaction with IGHG, FCGRIIB, and HLA-DRB1 genes. Cox proportional hazards modeling showed that GM6 by itself was not significantly associated with AD development. However, there was evidence of epistatic interaction: The risk of developing AD associated with GM6 positivity was significantly different (p = 0.0098) in non-GM17/GM17 participants compared with GM 17/GM17 participants. Specifically, in non-GM17/GM17 participants, the risk of AD was over fourfold higher in GM6-positive participants compared with GM 6-negative participants (HR = 4.63). Similarly, risk of developing AD associated with GM6 positivity was marginally different in non-FCGRIIB TT participants compared with FCGRIIB TT participants. In non-FCGRIIB TT participants, the risk of developing AD was over twofold higher in GM6-positive participants compared with GM6-negative participants (HR = 2.44). This is the first report suggesting that immunoglobulin GM allotypes might play a role in AD etiology among AAs; however, since this was largely a hypothesis-generating study, replication in larger cohorts would be required to confirm this finding.

How Do You Say Your Name? Difficult-to-Pronounce Names and Labor Market Outcomes

We test for labor market discrimination based on an understudied characteristic: name fluency. Analysis of recent economics PhD job candidates indicates that name difficulty is negatively related to the probability of landing an academic or tenure-track position and research productivity of initial institutional placement. Discrimination due to name fluency is also found using experimental data from prior audit studies. Within samples of African Americans (Bertrand and Mullainathan 2004) and ethnic immigrants (Oreopoulos 2011), job applicants with less fluent names experience lower callback rates, and name complexity explains roughly between 10 and 50 percent of ethnic name penalties. The results are primarily driven by candidates with weaker résumés, suggesting that cognitive biases may contribute to the penalty of having a difficult-to-pronounce name. (JEL A11, J15, J23, J44, J71)

Du Bois and the wounds of the First World War

W. E. B. Du Bois occupies a singular place in classical sociology as the most prolific African American scholar of his times. This article demonstrates the profound impact the First World War had on Du Bois’s life, intellectual work and political evolution. While viewing the roots of the war through the lens of the global color-line and Europe’s imperial exploitation of Africa, he nevertheless believed it represented a possibility for the expansion of democracy for people of African descent and African Americans in particular. In the aftermath of the war, Du Bois attempted to reckon with its historical and sociological meaning by writing a book, which he ultimately never completed. Du Bois’s failure to finish what would have been one of his most important works represented the failure of the war itself and his inability to effectively marshal the tools of social science to make sense of the conflict, personally, and intellectually. The war ultimately shaped the trajectory of Du Bois’s scholarship and political radicalism in ways unlike any other sociologist in the 20th century.

Black intergenerational healing and well-being: Reimagining posttraumatic growth.

For Black people of the African diaspora, who have survived generational oppression including enslavement, and exist in persistently hostile environments in which anti-Black racism is structural and interpersonal, an expansive view of posttraumatic growth (PTG) is required to promote personal and collective healing. Using the intergenerational healing and well-being framework, the authors examine historical and contemporary examples of personal and collective healing among Black people to reimagine pathways to PTG. Implications for helping professions when rethinking PTG in the context of systemic anti-Black racism are presented. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Harnessing the diaspora advantage

As Africa strides towards attaining Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Agenda 2063 for inclusive development, harnessing both internal and external expertise is crucial. Yet, the continent's vast, highly skilled diaspora remains largely sidelined in education systems and knowledge economies. This paper explores the lived experiences of the African diaspora including professionals, innovators, entrepreneurs, and African stakeholders, including academics, university leadership, policymakers, and business leaders, using the coloniality lens to develop a framework for equitable and inclusive diaspora knowledge democracy. Data collection involved interviews with 25 diaspora professionals and 15 African stakeholders. Findings revealed a complex interplay of factors which constrain equitable and inclusive diaspora knowledge democracy which promotes diaspora contribution to Africa’s development. However, both groups expressed a strong commitment to Africa’s progress. The paper proposes a framework for collaborative approaches for dismantling colonial dividers through policy supported by building blocks such as incentives and support, knowledge exchange, engagement channels, and impact reviews. By positioning the diaspora as equitable knowledge democracy partners, Africa can accelerate research translation and fuel sustainable growth.

Dissonance and disobedience in Brazilian quilombola heritages

ABSTRACT This article discusses Brazilian quilombo heritage by focusing on three dimensions of the intersection between this heritage and emancipation: 1) the emancipatory power of heritage, 2) the possibilities that result from emancipating heritage from a consonant approach, and 3) the possibilities of emancipation from heritage. Quilombos are collective societies formed mainly by people of African descent who created independent communities outside the Brazilian slavery system. Using a case study based on ethnographic and archival research conducted at the Quilombo Campinho da Independência and the city of Paraty between 2015 and 2024, I begin by detailing the dominant heritage narratives in the town of Paraty and then examine how suppressed quilombo voices navigate these narratives in legal and metaphorical terms for emancipatory purposes. Ultimately, the article pushes for approaching heritage from multiple scales and angles.

Out of sight, into mind: a socioecological model-informed qualitative study on barriers and facilitators to hepatitis B care among West African immigrants in the Bronx, New York

BackgroundThere is a high burden of hepatitis B virus (HBV) in West Africa. Over the past 20 years, West African immigration to the United States (U.S.) has been increasing. Prevalence of HBV infection in West Africa has been reported to be as high as 5–10%.MethodsWe sought to understand knowledge and attitudes of and barriers and facilitators to HBV screening, vaccination, and treatment in a cohort of West African immigrants in the Bronx living with or at risk for HBV through a series of one-on-one qualitative interviews. We interviewed 23 West African immigrants and analyzed transcripts for recurring themes using Applied Thematic Analysis. We situated our analysis in the socioecological model (SEM) and adhered to the consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ).ResultsMultiple themes emerged, most prominently themes relating to HBV knowledge/awareness, trust in U.S. healthcare providers and the U.S. healthcare system, positive social support improving healthcare access, knowledge sharing, stigma towards those with HBV, issues concerning immigration status, insurance status, and access to healthcare services.ConclusionRaising awareness of HBV, addressing social and structural barriers such as stigma and health insurance, and improving access to culturally sensitive programs among West African communities are needed to increase HBV screening, vaccination, and linkage to care.

Close Encounters of the Archival Kind: Affect and Transnational Solidarities in African Diaspora Archives

Recent explorations of affect in the archives have focused on the experiences of users and particularly the distress archival collections could possibly cause them. Perhaps because they have, until recently, been trained to think of themselves as engaged in objective and neutral work collecting and preserving memory, archivists rarely reflect on or talk about their work, how they engage with the materials they manage, and how they personally feel about what they encounter in the course of their professional lives. Using an autoethnographic conceptual framing, this article uses four archival encounters in the Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture to reflect on affect in the archives invoked by archival work. Through these encounters, the article seeks to demonstrate archives of the African diaspora as both a locus of transnational African diasporic identities and solidarities, as well as a critical site for the (re)building of the same. Finally, it also hints at how such affective experiences can, in fact, further the cultural and political work of Black archivists and archives.

Duple Cacao-Chocolate and the Materiality of the Political Economy of Pleasure

AbstractThis article expands on Walter Rodney’s call to explore possibilities for redevelopment of the African diaspora due to its underdevelopment. Drawing on four experiences of rural everyday resistance in Colombia, Brazil, and Venezuela, it analyses fine-flavour cocoa (Theobroma cacao l.) ecologies, subjectivities, and economics in relation to craft chocolate production, commercialisation, and consumption. Our evidence suggests that farmers’ liberation projects occur beyond the ambivalence between oppression and emancipation. It is argued that emancipations are rather shaped by complex non-binary power dynamics with multiple tensions that resist the materiality of a racialised administration of pleasure and pain.

Xenophobia as the major plight of African immigrants in South Africa: the example of Epiphanie Mukasano's selected poems

ABSTRACT The attacks on African immigrants in South Africa have generated a lot of media attention both within and outside the country. This issue has not yet garnered enough critical attention in the field of literature, especially poetry. The purpose of this research is to analyse selected poems from Epiphanie Mukasano's collection Kilimanjaro on My Lap (2010) that discuss the hardships of African immigrants in South Africa. For the purposes of this study, this research uses migration theory. The research finds that racism and xenophobia are to blame for the country's immigration issues in the poems selected for the study. Asserting that the majority of immigrants are seeking protection due to upheaval in their home countries, Mukasano implores those who commit abhorrent acts of xenophobia and racism to have mercy on the immigrants. Consequently, Mukasano's answers to xenophobic assaults in the selected poems are addressed in this study. Mukasano makes an attempt to persuade the perpetrators of racism and xenophobia in South Africa that Pan-Africanism ought to be seen as a brotherhood rather than an enemy. Poems by Mukasano generally focus on the critical observation of people and their attitudes towards immigrants in general, regardless of their status, as well as the challenging consequences faced by black people. Protest poetry by Mukasano is vocal and engaged in challenging the status quo. Her tone, style, and use of poetic forms, which show how she gets her message across, show that she accomplished this successfully.

The relationship between leptin-to-adiponectin ratio and HOMA-IR and metabolic syndrome in five African-origin populations.

This cross-sectional study aims to assess the associations between serum leptin, adiponectin, leptin-to-adiponectin ratio (L/A ratio), and metabolic syndrome (MS) and HOMA-IR in five African-origin populations: Ghana, South Africa, Jamaica, Seychelles, and US. Clinical measures included serum glucose, insulin, adipokines, blood pressure and anthropometric measures. MS was determined using the Harmonized criteria. The final sample included 2087 adults. After adjusting for age, sex, and fat mass, L/A ratio, unlike HOMA-IR, was significantly associated with MS across all sites (p < 0.001). Within sites, L/A ratio was only associated with MS and HOMA-IR in the US (p < 0.001) and South Africa (p < 0.01), respectively. Leptin was associated with MS in South Africa only (p < 0.05) but was significantly associated with HOMA-IR across all five sites and within the US (p < 0.05). Similarly, adiponectin was associated with HOMA-IR in South Africa (p < 0.05) and with MS across all five sites (p < 0.001) and within each site separately, except Ghana. Our study suggests that individuals of the African diaspora in different geographical locations may differ in the determinants of MS. Future studies should investigate the determinants for the disparate relationships between MS, IS and adipokines across different African-origin populations.

The Voices of Older African Immigrants on How They Cope with Social Isolation and Loneliness in the United States

ABSTRACT Objectives Up to 40% of older adults in the US, including older African immigrants, report experiencing social isolation and loneliness. Despite this prevalence, there is limited understanding of how they cope with these challenges. This study aims to contribute to a broader understanding of the coping mechanisms employed by older African immigrants in the face of loneliness and social isolation. Methods Using a qualitative approach, this study recruited and conducted semi-structured interviews with 11 participants aged 63–79. Results Four themes emerged from the data through a thematic analysis approach which includes a) Positive self-talk and adaptation: “I have to cope with it,” b) Technology/social media: “if I cannot interact physically outside, I go through social media/watch TV,” c) Intergenerational engagement beyond caregiving: “They [grandchildren] are my immediate constituency,” and d) Digging deep through faith: “Interactions have been mostly within the church.” Conclusions Older African immigrants may find strategies to cope with social isolation and loneliness, but additional support may be needed to strengthen their coping skills and enhance their social network with people outside of their families. Clinical Implications Intervention should focus on regular assessment and strengthening of their social network outside the family unit.

Roots tourism experiences, identity construction, social equity and social justice: a mixed methods approach

ABSTRACT The incidence of African diaspora’s pilgrimage to their ancestral motherland in Africa has recently increased. Indeed, initiatives such as the Black Travel Movement and Year of Return have increased the desire for black diasporans to ‘go back home’. Evidence in the literature illustrates that this homecoming is a deliberate effort towards identity construction. Using a mixed-method research approach (and W.E.B Du Bois’s sociological; terror management, and substantive identity negotiation theories), this study examined root tourism’s effects on identity construction, social justice, and equity using data from the Cape Coast and Elmina Castles in Ghana. The study’s key outcome shows root tourism’s power to influence social justice and human rights equality. Furthermore, the study discovered that terror management and substantive identity negotiation theories are limited in their relevance to non-Western contexts. This study demonstrates how managers of tourism firms can rightly position root tourism as a distinct tool for identity construction, social justice and social equity. The study also discusses its implications, limitations and future studies.

Social networks and stigma: The experiences of African immigrants living with HIV in the United States

Over the past two decades, research on the conceptualization, measurement, and refinement of stigma has grown extensively due to increasing recognition of stigma as a driver of adverse health outcomes. While these lines of research have generally recognized that stigma is enacted in social relationships, few analysts have characterized how the structure and composition of these relationships influence stigma, particularly among immigrant populations. In response, this paper integrates data from social network analysis and in-depth interviews to explore the experiences of and responses to stigma by African immigrants living with HIV in the United States.All participants reported that they anticipated, experienced, and internalized stigma within their personal networks. Many concealed their status and disclosed to only trusted associates, family members, and medical providers. Building on findings from previous studies, we found that the meanings and belief systems (particularly African cultural discourses that link HIV with mortality, immorality, retribution, and silence) matter for how stigma is assigned, enacted, experienced, and resisted. Our analyses also revealed that the structure of participants personal networks (i.e, the extent to which their associates were connected to each other, and how integrated/involved they were in these network relationships) intensified or diluted their exposure to stigmatizing discourses, depending on the composition (resourcefulness/quality) of their personal networks. Such network connections (i.e., social capital) translate into rewards if they are supportive and accepting, and costs if they stigmatize.By showing how individuals can use their social networks to stigmatize or support their peers, this study advances theoretical expositions on (1) how the meanings and belief systems held by individuals matter for understanding social network/structural processes,(2) how social networks shape how stigma is assigned, enacted, experienced and resisted,(3) the costs and downsides of social capital, which are often neglected through emphasis on its salutary impacts. Our findings underscore the need for interventions that leverage the salient properties of personal networks to understand, conceptualize, measure, and reduce stigma.

Understanding the Implementation of Law 10.639/03 through Aspects of Brazilian Society and the Education System

ABSTRACT This manuscript analyzes the development of African studies in Brazil in the context of the implementation of Law 10.639/03, enacted in January 2003, which constituted an important step for teaching about Africa and the African diaspora in schools. We will present information that helps to understand key characteristics of Brazilian society, using data provided by the Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística, with a focus on the functioning of the Brazilian educational system. In this context, it is important to highlight the role of public measures implemented in the 2000s that facilitated a more democratic education and addressed racial and social inequalities. Central to this agenda is the understanding of the implementation of Law 10.639/03, which mandated the teaching of African history and Afro-Brazilian peoples’ history throughout the country’s basic education system. The impact of this law was extensive and also affected higher education, which had to adapt to train professionals capable of implementing this mandate. However, as we argue, it is not possible to understand Law 10.639/03 in isolation; it must be studied in conjunction with other public policies, considering the Brazilian educational system and the societal interest in learning more about African history.