The Effects Of Colonialism On Modern African American Culture

The effects of colonialism in the United States is a reality that many African Americans face in their respective post-colonial societies. There is a thought that colonialism, slavery and racism no longer exist, however it is the complete opposite. African Americans are constantly confronted with the hateful nature and prejudice held against them through recurring acts of racial injustice and violence (Riley 2018). These points mentioned have arisen from a long history of slavery. Slavery occurred during colonialism in the United States and is an issue that still matters because there are those “who live with the burden of continued enslavement, the continuing assaults disguised as painful memories, the heinous misconceptions, the rampant criminalisation” (Riley 2018). All these factors coexist on an institutional and individual level and oppresses the individual to achieve and live a life in total freedom. With this said, this paper will rationalise African Americans as a post-colonial society, before assessing the 21st century climate in which African Americans are utilising popular culture as a tool for resistance.

The transatlantic slave trade saw the moving of black people of Africa to America resulting in the current collective, feeling like exiles and outcasts. When these people were forcibly removed from the continent, their societies were ravaged, upon which slave masters stripped them of their culture, language, customs and evidently so, as this paper will continue to discuss; their history. The University Steering Committee on Slavery and Justice (n.d.) measure that upon the ending of the transatlantic slave trade in the 1860s, there was a totalled “ten million to twelve million Africans” that had shifted into New World slavery with an unfortunate estimate of “two million more that died in the passage” (Allen et al. n.d.). It is essential to recognise that, this dehumanisation and degradation of the ‘black body’ gave rise to the hostility towards African Americans that we visibly see today. The assault that many endured to both their minds and bodies left them victim to an ordeal of physical and psychological trauma. One of the many depictions perpetuated by not only slave traders but historians and researchers of scientific racism was equating the black man to that of an ape. Staples (2018) posits that this “toxically racist ape characterization” was used to weaponise African Americans, whilst allowing the whites to continue to assert their covert power. Unfortunately, these false depictions allowed for the justification of slavery, lynching and the formation of Jim Crow. Many researchers and scholars have tracked the notoriety of the ever existing labels associated to apes and they have consequently made the leap to disgustingly racist films like “The Birth of A Nation”, that revel in placing slavery in a “halcyon light” and presenting “blacks as good for little but subservient labor” (Brody n.d.). Nevertheless, it is evident that it has seeped into all aspects of American popular culture and poisoned the minds of the American imagination. Further, these blatantly racist labels forces one to question not only the colonial desire to segregate race and disallow human equality, but the 21st century maintenance of it. The inherent danger here is, dismissing the space for African Americans to hold an active role in society and subordinating them to their colonial characteristics of being indolent and dense.

The labels that were so frequently associated with African Americans are most specifically controversial in the American criminal justice system, where the inhumane treatment of African Americans remains visible. Understanding these historical implications as a result of slavery, allows one to properly comprehend the root and kernel of the African American Civil Rights Movement, most specifically The Black Lives Matter Movement.

Police officers in the United States are frequently being absolved for the senseless killings of African Americans on the basis that they “fired their weapons out of fear for their lives” (Staples 2018). The tragedy of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, who was shot and killed by George Zimmerman in 2012 while innocently returning from a convenience store, is a prime example of this narrative. When contacting the emergency line of the police department, Zimmerman described him as being “up to no good, or he’s on drugs or something” (Munro 2015). According to research conducted by Goff et al. (2014), black children are perceived as remarkably older and more malicious than their counterparts. This long history of institutionalised racism and its degradation of African Americans have led the people of America today, on how to ‘falsely’ process ‘blackness’. The idea held by many white Americans that this post-colonial society should forget this extremely complex, historical issue is naive and selfish. Instead, African Americans rightfully so, deserve to openly discuss and confront the covert forms of discrimination they experience through having complete control of cultural production.

With this said, this paper will now delve into how this post-colonial society in 21st century popular culture, are successfully harnessing the means of cultural production and creating their own representation instead of being represented by others.

The Black Lives Matter movement was initially formed with the intent “to build local power and to intervene in violence inflicted on Black community by the states and vigilantes” (Black Lives Matter, n.d.). It was initiated as a result of the deaths of innocent African Americans, including Trayvon Martin as previously mentioned, Michael Brown, Eric Garner and Freddy Gray (Chatelain & Asoka 2015, p. 54). It is unfortunate that this continues to happen but with the creation of social media, this tool has allowed for the wide dispersion of the movement. On any form of social media, viewers can see the protest as well as shared videos of police brutality firsthand. This coverage and awareness allow celebrities as well as civil human beings to take an active stand for what is right and actively involved in memory of those who have passed away. It brings in the good as it has brought out activism in individuals that are passionate about raising awareness and drawing upon this important issue.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback player Colin Kaepernick is a prominent figure known for his participation and activism towards the Black Lives Matter Movement. It first started off as he sat down during the playing of the ‘Star Spangled Banner’, the national anthem of the United States. This came unnoticed until Kaepernick’s second act of resistance as he refused to stand to sing the national anthem. Instead he took a knee to the ground as a protest to raise attention towards police brutality against people of colour in the United States as well as the racial oppression held against them (Coombs et al. 2017). The response from the public has been highly critical as they condemn his actions as “unpatriotic and un-American” (Martin & McHendry 2016, p. 89). Despite the fact that he risked his career and public image, he has received support from a wide range of groups and individuals from the public, including football players, celebrities and military veterans. This social movement inspired other types of athletes across different sports to kneel in solidarity and protest with Kaepernick. Ever since the beginning of this resistance, Kaepernick has insisted that “he did not want to talk about opting out of the national anthem celebration in the context of a football game, but instead he wanted to talk about national issues.” (Martin & McHendry 2016, p. 93). The term national issues equates to the Black Lives Matter movement. In an Interview with NFL Media reporter Steve Wyche, Kaepernick expresses ‘I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color…to me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder” (Wyche 2016). Kaepernick is one of a number of activists in popular culture that strategically uses their platform as a tool for resistance, paying homage to the senseless killings of young African Americans, both men and women. In addition, it displays how beneficial it is to have prolific figures stand in solidarity with the collective group of African Americans as it stresses their genuine and authentic testament of giving back to the community.

The representation and utilisation of African Americans in various forms of popular culture, including music, film and television, is of high importance. African Americans are poorly represented and thus this has created the need for African Americans to take over production to both dismantle and remove the many preconceived assumptions and stereotypes. It also encapsulates the idea that they can be responsible for their own representation rather than by others. The sitcom television series Black-ish speaks on a wide range of issues and injustices concerning the African American community. It follows a middle-class African American father and his family as he seeks to teach his children to learn and take pride in their heritage (Butler & Williams 2016). These lessons address relevant issues that are present in reality including racial profiling and police brutality. The creator of Black-ish, Kenya Barris’ intentions of the show was to “give White America a look inside the lives of an affluent Black family” (Vickers 2018, p. 7). It has been too common to see the media’s unwillingness to offer inclusivity and so this role reversal ultimately is a massive step in shaping attitudes towards African Americans for the better. The shows unique approach in a post-colonial world, dismantles the colonial ideology that African Americans are inferior and removes the myth that their identity issues are due to colonialism but more with the aftermath of colonialism.

Additionally, hip-hop and rap music is commonly used by young African Americans as an expressive tool to discuss the internal and external issues of repression and discrimination against their community (Hutchinson 2012). Like any other artists in a different genre, these artists write and produce songs based on their own life experience, the only big difference is the message conveyed is coming from a different context (Wilson 2018). There is a reason why the expression of this form of music include stories of violence, guns, drugs, gangs and criminal activity and it is because it is a reality for many. Therefore, it becomes the content of their music. Generally, rap music explores the idea of power and status and the notion of subjectification (Hutchinson 2012). This allows artists to use their creative space to push boundaries and challenge set frameworks of colonialism. As an artist, they like to represent their respective societies and use their influence to challenge social and political change. This is presented in Kendrick Lamar’s song “Alright”. Kendrick Lamar is a musician that vocalises the effects of violence in African American communities. In this song, he mentions police brutality through the lines “And we hate the po-po/ Wanna kill us dead in the streets for sho’” (Genius n.d). The term ‘po-po’ is a short term to describe police and it is used in a phrase that directly links with police brutality and therefore making the song an unofficial anthem for the Black Lives Matter movement (Manabe 2019). Rap and hip-hop music is undoubtedly an artistic form of oppression by which African American’s employ to assert injustice towards cultural and social identities.

A critical cultural study such as the one provided in this paper verifies the detrimental effects of colonialism in a post-colonial society and demonstrates how the minority are resisting the dominant ideologies that are discriminatory. The paper breaks down the large notion of popular culture which is largely used as a tool for resistance for deeply affected post-colonial societies. The current landscape of the United States and its treatment towards people of colour, especially of an African American descent is challenged by individuals who use mass media tools within popular culture to stand against the oppressive colonial past. With the help of these prominent figures, it is hopeful that the depiction and perspective of African Americans be changed for what they should be known and correctly process what ‘blackness’ truly is.