OPINION: Do Caribbean people see themselves as African?

From another angle. Africans don’t usually identify with Afro Caribbean culturally. But we in the Caribbean do recognize African traits in some aspects of Caribbean life like music, religious beliefs, food and names we give children.

Caribbean people are a diverse and vibrant community: Blacks, whites, browns, Chinese, Asians and Mediterranean. We get characterised in other places as Jamaican, e.g. when the folks in London associate Caribbean people with crime. That is wrong. To claim that Kamala Harris was the first Black Vice President was also incorrect. She could have also been the first woman of mixed race, with brown and white heritage, from India.

Sadly, speaking from an Antiguan perspective, we do not. Many pay lip-service to the inescapable fact of our origins, our African beginnings. Africans in Antigua coming straight from the motherland are despised and looked down upon by the black population that currently reside here. There is, at one end of the spectrum, a comical group of aging savants from the early seventies, privileged boys and girls who had the privilege of attending universities in the West Indies, Canada, the US, and England who returned home with a drop of black consciousness influenced by the formidable BLACK CONSCIOUS MOVEMENTS sweeping the USA and Great Britain at that time. They donned African attire, grew beards and with clenched fists shouted “Black Power”. What these boys and girls in essesnce did, or were trying to do was to create a special, exclusive space for themselves in an environment still largely controlled and influenced by a decadent colonial structure. They made no real effort to connect with the masses, to teach, educate, liberate, awake any real African consciousness among the masses. The
annual celebrations of Emancipation Day were marked by this pathetic group in exclusive
wine and cheese get together at Betty’s Hope, leading slave plantation back in the day. And all this while the masses celebrated their interpretation of Emancipation, miles away , jumping and jamming, drinking rum, having “fun” totally oblivious to the elitist Emancipation taking place elsewhere . And there emerged another group, pre-dating by a few years this nonsensical one mentioned earlier – the Rastafarians. This group, influenced greatly by the music emanating out of Jamaica, especially Reggae, the African Liberation movements in South America, the USA, Britain AND Jamaica struck a responsive chord at grassroots levels throughout the Caribbean. The influence of Rastafarianism spread like wildfire throughout the Caribbean and in Antigua. This result struck great fear among the neo-colonialists and their elite puppets as they launched destructive act after act in effort to squash any and all mention of Africa – the motherland. Rastafarians were strpped of their basic human rights and were outlawed by at least one neighboring country whose law enforces were given the authority to “shoot on sight” any Rastafaian. They became associated with ganja smoking, ganja peddling and prosecuted mercilessly. All efforts failed, but it left a legacy of non- inclusion for Rastas who are still seen only as drug peddlers, potential thieves, criminals, but the only group that continues to declare AFRICA as our Motherland. Small wonder, then, that the large majority of Antiguans and Barbudans continue to distance themselves from any initiatives promoting our Motherland, Africa.

Well, as per me, myself: I wasn’t born in Africa; but Africa was born in me. Thus, I am African: Yesterday, today and tomorrow. I ask of no permissions from anyone to to be so defined. As by anyone’s else. You can’t decide to define, and make me over.

No! Most see themselves as Europeans who’s forcing themselves to be united states of America citizens as they all LOVE there MASTER’S that even trying to look like them and even talking li

We all Africans!…until some Nigerians show up on a raft

No, I’m Caribbean. Not black enough for black people or white enough for white people. Just a medium brownie. There were people of every hue in my family and microcosms of racial issues affected some of the family with one or two lighter ones living more privileged lives and some darker ones hating them but also extending that hatred to others who never had any special privilege or harmed them. Identity issues and residual bitterness ruined some family relationships. While people were busy fighting they did not progress in life. On the other hand, some family members got along just fine and treated one another with love no matter the hue and lived great lives. So, my personal experience is that too much preoccupation with race is detrimental to peace and progress while seeing one another as human leads to a better life. Have never viewed rastas badly. Admire their commitment to nature although I don’t agree with the smoking and religion completely. Never been to Africa but respect the sufferings of my African ancestors. Inherited a few good African practices but don’t consider myself African. Africa seems to have its own identity and economic issues from its own colonial past so they can’t save us. Don’t see the point in clinging to the past. Take the best ideas from every part of the world and move forward.