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Regular Poster
Username: Kathleen_cross
Post Number: 40
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 | | Posted on Thursday, October 28, 2004 - 05:22 pm: | |
Kola you said:
"And MY FEAR is that those little boys may someday find ETHIOPIA...and be shocked to discover that they're not welcomed."
I hear you LOUD and CLEAR.
And, you have correctly pointed out the propensity of Black Americans to lump AFRICA into one, amalgamated source of identity. (Which is a departure, at least, from so many of our transplanted ancestors who have angrily informed us: "I ain't no damn African"
The question I have is: Is Randall's reference to Ethiopia a CONSCIOUS desire to be distanced from the original West African mother (phenotypically the EXTREME NON-European) or is it a reflection of his AMERICANNESS (and therefore said out of ignorance of the complex relationships/dissensions between African nations due to their relative phenotypic distance from the original West African mother?)
And if Chris's reactions to West Africans that you picked up on (which may very well be subconscious responses based on his own painful experiences as a dark-skinned black american man) were pointed out to him so that he could examine them... I wonder if it might place him on a straighter path toward self-discovery and genuine self-love?
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