Essay On The Influence Of Media On African American Culture

451 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: Role of media in maintaining stereotypes

From the beginning my elementary year and until the end of 7th grade year, I never understood my peer when it came about talking down on Nigerians which I am. I was a nice kid who enjoyed music, and making new friends. I never dealt first hand of the name calling but, my fellow classmates that were Nigerian did. Throughout junior high the name calling continued but, simmered down throughout the years. High school the name calling hasn’t been anything rude it’s actually been more that they seem to the power group of the school. By High school everyone wants to be friends and wants to attend the parties, wear the clothes, and enjoy the culture without truly knowing the culture. From being an African Booty Scratchers to African print being worn on American clothing. The native wear has been a large fashion in today clothing. National Geographic shows Africa to be in desert. The way media portrayals Africa shows how Africa seem to be an only in poverty. The television displays on commercials that asking you to donate money a day to help needy African children who will starve. Media has a interesting way on talking about Africans …show more content…

Many African can to America or were born here but raised in an African environment and African rules which make it more difficult for African youth to be more strict on when it comes to school, and image. Though it’s difficult to figure out who exactly is African because you can exactly point out whom and who isn’t African. Acknowledging our diversity and uniqueness of Africa shows how we treated each other equally. Failing to acknowledge the truth and existence of underprivileged Africans or Africans who live under different social norms is the worst kind of discrimination

Show More
Related

  • Andrew Larson 's The Student 's ' Ten Commandments '

    1505 Words  | 4 Pages

    Concerning the nature of myths, one can often find that they are built on broad generalization lacking the premises necessary to make a solid conclusion. Such was the same myths, Pier Larson sought to disprove in his essay “The Student’s ‘Ten Commandments’.” Larson discuss damaging and caustic stereotypes that have worked their way throughout history to create a narrative that often subordinates Blacks when promulgated by a more affluent European society . One myth in particular appears to be quite troubling for its contradictory nature-that being the myth: all Africans are Black. Additionally, to be African is to be Black, Africans are not culturally diverse, and that Africans share one, essentially unified culture. Not only do I find these troubling for their outright abasement of African culture, which is plain to see, but rather for the duplicitous logic that lead to the creation of such myths, and why they remain so harmful when they are continued to be spread in contemporary.

    Read More

  • The History of African Americans in Film

    2062 Words  | 5 Pages

    Minstrel shows were developed in the 1840's and reached its peak after the Civil War. They managed to remain popular into the early 1900s. The Minstrel shows were shows in which white performers would paint their faces black and act the role of an African American. This was called black facing. The minstrel show evolved from two types of entertainment popular in America before 1830: the impersonation of blacks given by white actors between acts of plays or during circuses, and the performances of black musicians who sang, with banjo accompaniment, in city streets. The 'father of American minstrelsy' was Thomas Dartmouth 'Daddy' Rice, who between 1828 and 1831 developed a song-and-dance routine in which he impersonated an old, crippled black slave, dubbed Jim Crow. Jim Crow was a fool who just spent his whole day slacking off, dancing the day away with an occasional mischievous prank such as stealing a watermelon from a farm. Most of the skits performed on the Minstrel shows symbolized the life of the African American plantations slaves. This routine achieved immediate popularity, and Rice performed it with great success in the United States and Britain, where he introduced it in 1836. Throughout the 1830s, up to the founding of the minstrel show proper, Rice had many imitators.

    Read More

  • Black Culture Appropriation Essay

    745 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Effects of African American Culture Appropriations on the Minority Black Culture The black culture is the minority culture in this instance and in most cases, it is dominated by the white culture which has imposed its ideas on them (Stuckey, 2013). When two different cultures come together, different types of cultural appropriations occur. These include transculturation, cultural dominance, and cultural exploitation. The appropriation between the white and black cultures, resulting in the African American culture, is defined by cultural dominance and exploitation.

    Read More

  • Cultural Differences Between Igbo And American Culture

    399 Words  | 1 Pages

    Growing up a Nigerian teenager can at times be a struggle. Differences between the Igbo and American culture can pose problems between Igbo parents and their children. It would be great for Igbo parents to embrace the difference between Igbo and American culture, as well as grant freedom and expression to the children that they raise.

    Read More

  • Overview of African-American Culture

    1882 Words  | 4 Pages

    It must be noted that for the purpose of avoiding redundancy, the author has chosen to use the terms African-American and black synonymously to reference the culture, which...

    Read More

  • African Americans role of Television

    2271 Words  | 5 Pages

    The roles African Americans play on television are not satisfactory. Though the roles have changed during the development of television, the current relationship is not representative of true African American people or their lifestyles. The question is how do the past roles African Americans play in television sitcoms compare to the current roles? How does this affect society’s perception of the African American in American culture? Throughout the history of television the roles and the representation of African Americans has developed with the changing cultural conditions. However, the representation of African American’s has not fully simulated into today’s society. What the average citizen views on his or her television does not accurately portray the African American’s influence on America.

    Read More

  • The Influence of the Media on American Culture

    1179 Words  | 3 Pages

    The media has been a part of the daily life of the American people for the longest time, because of this fact, the media influences the decisions and views of how people should live. One big part of the media that tends to start to develop a sense of how the day-to-day American should live is Disney. Since kids are the main source of Disney’s billion dollar industry children have become an important dimension of the social theory (Giroux 1999: 65). “Within this context, television emerges as a consumer-oriented medium that reflects advertisers’ desire to reach a young, upscale, and primarily White audience” (Goodale1999; Henderson and Baldasty 2003: 100). As a result other races and ethnic groups other than white Americans are often put aside when it comes to the social media view of how Americans should live.

    Read More

  • Africanisms in African American Culture

    759 Words  | 2 Pages

    Africanisms in America are a highly surveyed topic for the black community. Joseph E. Holloway describes Africanisms as “those elements of culture found in the New World that are traceable to an African origin” (Holloway 2). I believe, that africanisms are the traditions and cultural behaviors of African Americans that resemble the some of the same traditions and cultures in Africa. Which makes you ponder about what current elements does our culture use that ties back to Africa. Which in fact there are several africanisms that still exist. African Americans have retained an essence of Africa in their speech, hair care, clothing, preparation of foods, and music by over centuries of separation from the Dark Continent.

    Read More

  • African American Studies Essay

    1286 Words  | 3 Pages

    Next is John Henrik Clark, who refers to African America Studies as Africana Studies because he believes that Black tells you how you look, not who you are. He goes on to state that he calls African American Studies “a dilemma at the crossroads of history” (Clark 32). This is because European people knew history well enough to distort it and use it, as well as political weapons such as the gun and bible, to control the world. This is the reason why a look at African culture will show what Africana Studies are about or should be about. Africana Studies should embrace the Africans all around the world, in places like Africa, North and South America, the Caribbean Islands even those in Asia and the Pacific Islands. Clarke states that Africa is

    Read More

  • Jim Crow Laws Essay

    715 Words  | 2 Pages

    To wrap it up, African Americans lived an unfair past in the south, such as Alabama, during the 1930s because of discrimination and the misleading thoughts towards them. The Ku Klux Klan, Jim Crow Laws and the way they were generally treated in southern states all exemplify this merciless time period of the behavior towards them. They were not given the same respect, impression, and prospect as the rest of the citizens of America, and instead they were tortured. Therefore, one group should never be singled out and should be given the same first intuition as the rest of the people, and should never be judged by color, but instead by character.

    Read More

  • Slavery In Colonial America

    1702 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...on American soil, they were treated with disrespect and forced into a life of servitude and pain. However, they were able to change adapt and find hope even when it didn’t seem as though there was any to be found. The African American culture has been greatly shaped around what their ancestors were put through and the struggles that they endured. The pain and suffering that was inflicted among them will never be forgotten and will forever be apart of the African American culture.

    Read More

  • The Effects of Media on African American Females

    903 Words  | 2 Pages

    Can you imagine living in a world in which your beauty is not seen as beauty at all? Many black women wake up to this reality every morning. Living the life of an African American female is difficult because you do not fit into the Eurocentric paradigm in which you are forced to be reminded of daily. Media shows us as a people who we are and how we are supposed to be. Media affects black women in a negative way because it portrays black women in a negative way.

    Read More

  • Effects Of Industrialization On African American Culture

    289 Words  | 1 Pages

    The period of industrialization affected the life of average working American through massive alterations. They were unable to mixed their culture with other race and also suffered from minority subordination. Average of the working Americans was impacted by industrialization through unequal treatments (Cobb, 2004). The dominant minority group treated African Americans as people who were unacceptable in the society. In matter of fact, industrialization attributed to practice of racism such as facilitating minority subordination, removing power of the skilled trades as well as loss of culture. The reason is because during the period of industrialization, African America lost their culture. In addition, African Americans faced difficult situations

    Read More

  • Essay On Traditional African American Culture

    148 Words  | 1 Pages

    Traditions are practices/beliefs that are passed down from generation to generation. In traditional African societies, a kinship ties people through birth or marriage. There are two kinds of relationships in customary African tradition; those bound by blood, which are called consanguine, and those constructed by marriage, called affilial. There are four key descents that determine inheritance and marriage. However, the most common descent is patrilineal, which traces ancestry through one's father. While in America, we are vary tolerant of tracing our descent from both parents.

    Read More

  • Richard Wright's 12 Million Black Voices: Photo and Text

    1906 Words  | 4 Pages

    African-Americans’ lives are better. We have more opportunity and more equality. What we do not have, we fight for. Yet we still see the traces of the past sufferings of our people’s lives today. We still see those traces of racism they were subjected to being repeated in our kin’s lives.

    Read More

More about Essay On The Influence Of Media On African American Culture

Open Document