Effects of Racism on Assimilation for the African Immigrant

Racism in the United States affects immigrants in so many ways. In the case of African immigrants, among other things, it interferes with the assimilation process. Most African immigrants do not experience racism in their home countries and therefore it becomes a culture shock for them to experience racism when they arrive in this country. Yetty Shobo made reference to this by stating that, "While many may have never experienced racism in their homeland, they are confronted with the starkness of this reality in their host country as their ascribed physical features may create additional obstacle in their quest for up0ward mobility" (Shobo, 2005). In most African countries the differences they experience are ethnic-based which means people are separated by the languages they speak or the regions they hail from. Upon arrival into the United States, the color of their skin becomes the determining factor of what kind of experience they will have as they assimilate into this society. Min Zhou identified three multidirectional patterns of assimilation - upward mobility involving acculturation and econom9ic integration into normative structures of middle class Americans, downward mobility involving acculturation and integration into the underclass and economic integration into middle class America with delayed acculturation and purposeful preservation of immigrant groups' values (Zhou, 1997). Black immigrants have an assimilation pattern which is downwards; meaning that their assimilation pattern is towards the minority and less privileged population in this country. Yetty Shobo stated in her article on African immigrants that, “Classic assimilation theory proposes that immigrant groups become increasingly like the native-born or m... ... middle of paper ... ...strong ethnic networks among African immigrants can be a source of social capital which will promote children's positive adjustment through the provision of support and control" (Shobo, 2005). This suggestion will be helpful to future African immigrant because they will have a support group to ease them into the American society, thereby reducing the culture shock and the effects of racism on their assimilation. Works Cited Katende, C. (1994). Population Dynamic in Africa. Ph.D. diss. University of Pennsylvania Shobo, Y. (2005). African Immigrants: Patterns of Assimilation - Past Research and New Findings. Population Association of America, 2005 Annual Meeting, Session 109: Immigration and Diversity 2-5. Zhou, M. (1997). Segmented Assimilation: Issues, Controversies, and Recent Research on the New Second Generation. International Migration Review 31: 975-1008