Intro Black Diaspora Research Paper
Western society left an imprint in the African American culture within the America’s, it affected the religious practices, music, and language of enslaved African’s used from the moment they stepped foot in the America’s. These affects are even felt in present African America culture within the music that we listen to, the foods we eat, and the way our churches function. Even though the main goal of the white slavers was to completely subdue African culture, they were not successful. The transformation that the African culture went through allowed for African’s incorporating their indigenous cultures in the force fed western culture they inhabited.
The main thing that was affected by western society was the African religious practices. With the invasion of the Europeans and the Americans, Judo-Christianity and Catholicism were sure to follow. African’s were not allowed to hold onto their traditional spiritual practices forcing them to accept the ideas of the Judo-Christian and Catholic faiths. Africans did not give up their own faith but blended their faiths into the religion being pushed onto them. From this new form of spirituality that they created within their communities, African Americans had covertly continued to practice the key aspects of their indigenous traditions; as shown through the practices of Voodoo in New Orleans and within the traditions of the Black Churches of today. They used spirituals, formally named Negro Spirituals, to communicate messages and to sustain them, through the harsh treatment. According to Jesus “Chucho” Garcia’s article “Demystifying Africa’s Absence in Venezuelan History and Culture,” “African cultures in the Americas, rather than quaint but superficial folklore, are cultures of resistance based on African philosophical principles that we must rediscover, that persist and reshape themselves as time passes and as changes occur in our communities.” (this may need to be fixed) Garcia describes the African culture as a “culture
The main thing that was affected by western society was the African religious practices. With the invasion of the Europeans and the Americans, Judo-Christianity and Catholicism were sure to follow. African’s were not allowed to hold onto their traditional spiritual practices forcing them to accept the ideas of the Judo-Christian and Catholic faiths. Africans did not give up their own faith but blended their faiths into the religion being pushed onto them. From this new form of spirituality that they created within their communities, African Americans had covertly continued to practice the key aspects of their indigenous traditions; as shown through the practices of Voodoo in New Orleans and within the traditions of the Black Churches of today. They used spirituals, formally named Negro Spirituals, to communicate messages and to sustain them, through the harsh treatment. According to Jesus “Chucho” Garcia’s article “Demystifying Africa’s Absence in Venezuelan History and Culture,” “African cultures in the Americas, rather than quaint but superficial folklore, are cultures of resistance based on African philosophical principles that we must rediscover, that persist and reshape themselves as time passes and as changes occur in our communities.” (this may need to be fixed) Garcia describes the African culture as a “culture
Bibliography: " 6 Indigenous African Religions (Spiritual Cultures) Practiced in West." Assata Shakur Speaks!. http://www.assatashakur.org/forum/spirituality-connect-your-center/1189-6-indigenous-african-religions-spiritual-cultures-practiced-west.html (accessed November 27, 2012). Handwerk, Brian. "Voodoo a Legitimate Religion, Anthropologist Says." Daily Nature and Science News and Headlines | National Geographic News. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/10/1021_021021_taboovoodoo.html (accessed November 27, 2012). "The History of Hip Hop Music." Aces and Eighths | A Resource For Musicians and Music Lovers. http://www.acesandeighths.com/hip_hop.html (accessed November 27, 2012). grimthor. "The Effect of Black Music on Social Change in America - InfoBarrel." InfoBarrel - Crowdsourcing Information | Make Extra Money Writing. http://www.infobarrel.com/The_Effect_of_Black_Music_on_Social_Change_in_America (accessed November 27, 2012). -------------------------------------------- [ 2 ]. 1 Santeria is a system of beliefs that are a merging of the West African Yoruba religion with Roman Catholicism and Native American religious practices and principles, most popularly practiced within the Afro-Caribbean communities. 2 Candomble is a mainly Afro-Brazilian practiced religion that also finds its roots within West African traditional religions and then blended with Roman Catholic practices, they blended the Orishas of the Yoruba faith the various saints of Roman Catholicism [ 3 ]. 3 Pop culture is ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images, and other things that are preferred by any given culture, especially with the Western culture in the early to mid 20th century. It is heavily influenced by the mass media, the collection of ideas that floods the everyday lives of society. [ 4 ]. 4 Vodun is an indigenous organized religion that is from the coast of West Africa from Togo to Nigeria. 5 Obeah is a term used in the West Indies to refer to folk magic, sorcery, and religious practices derived from Western Africa. Obeah is practiced mostly in Caribbean countries such as Trinidad and Tobago, Dominica, Barbados, Belize, and The Bahamas. 6 Palo or Las Reglas de Congo are a group of closely related religions or denominations, which developed in the Spanish colonies of the Caribbean amongst the central African slaves of mostly Bantu ancestry. 7 The Ausar Auset Society is a Pan-African religious organization founded in 1973 by Ra Un Nefer Amen for the purpose of providing members a societal framework through which the Kemetic spiritual way of life can be lived and to promote Rosicrucian values. .