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African Diaspora

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Question one is what is the African diaspora? (Who should be considered in the African diaspora? How is this like the black Atlantic and how is it different?). Students should use the Colin Palmer piece to answer this question.

In its most recognizable form, the African diaspora refers to the many cultures and societies abroad that exist throughout the world as the result of the historic movement, mostly forced, of native Africans to other parts of the globe. Most specifically, the African diaspora is the blanket term used to represent a confluence of events that led to the forced displacement of millions of innocent people. The term first originated in the 1950s and initial studies focused on the “dispersal of people of African descent, their role in the transformation and creation of new cultures, institutions, and ideas outside of Africa”. This cultural migration is responsible for many of the unique cultures that exist today, as is with the black Atlantic and the melding of cultures. A look at the waves of migration, both forced and willing, provides a framework to study the social, economic and humanitarian fallout of the African Diaspora.
Those who study the African Diaspora seek information that explains and places into context the globalized experience for blacks. This history is riddled with slavery, colonialism, exploitation and a system of global commerce that has impacted life for those of African descent. The impact of the African Diaspora is a study of cause and effect that shows the best and worst aspects of the human condition. A study of the African Diaspora navigates the building blocks of racist ideology that has resulted in “dominant ideas about African American and African diasporic cultures that either depict them as inferior”. The historic persecution and displacement of African peoples has had a profound impact on both domestic

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