Benefits Of African American Co-Culture

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The benefits and my experiences of my mini-ethnographical study on African American co-culture.
My two-page mini-ethnographical research paper on the co-culture of American Americans only barely touched the tip of the iceberg of my experiences and what I have learned about African Americans during my research and post research. I chose to study the co-culture of African Americans because of its significant historical roots in our United States society. While I gained insight into this culture values, norms, and social practices by applying Edward T. Hall’s High and Low Context Cultural taxonomy factors in analyzing my discoveries. I also learned more about African American history such as, one, chattel enslavement – these types of slaves could …show more content…

slaves were classified as actual property that could be bought, sold, traded or inherited. This meant that family could and were often separated from each other (makes one wonder about the pathological generational effect this has had and continues to play a part on the psyche of African Americans). Two, it is my belief that most people do not consider the fact that, after the civil war, many African Americans were forced to continue to work as slaves due to the peonage laws in the United States at the time. Then the new wave of laws made specifically for African Americans – Black Codes, Pig laws, Loitering laws caused an influx of chain gang slaves who were forced work in mines, on roads and steel mills for no pay, oftentimes till death. Still others were forced to work as share-croppers on their former master’s land. When they would try to leave the land (upon realizing there was no money in it), they would be brought back by force and be subjected to horse whippings, beatings and lynching. Three, I also learned about historically black colleges and universities institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of primarily serving the African-American community (because the overwhelming majority of predominantly white …show more content…

As a result, my thinking and perception was shaped and influenced by many of the negative stereotypes of African Americans that has been perpetuated in our society at large (this is where education can be a great liberator of falsehoods and misconceptions). I have come to appreciate Professor Marie’s Intercultural Communication course, for the class has broaden my critical thinking skills and stretched my thinking and understanding. Finally, how do I think this information will be of use to me? True understanding and teamwork will not begin to occur until individuals begin to speak up about address and embrace the controversial topics of race and culture. Setting aside the problem of racism and covering it up by saying that everyone is the same, does not eliminate the issue. Trying to patch up issues around the world dealing with culture and racism only provides a quick, short lasting solution, for when the temporary patch falls away, the problems will have grown twice as big. All it does is temporarily set aside what we know is still there.

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