An Existential Dilemma for the Black American Identity

By the 2020s, in spite of centuries after the Emancipation Proclamation (in 1863) and decades or generations of Black empowerment, there is still something fundamentally missing in the Black American identity, because the latter has failed to substantially "de-colonize" the violent colonial legacy (like the ruthless importation of Black slaves, not just the near-extermination of Native Americans) in the Thirteen British Colonies (and later the United States) in early American history.

Photo: unsplash.com by Jp Valery jpvalery, PDM

A good beginning for a long-term solution (de-colonization) is to understand in what ways the "average" Black American mindset has lost its average Black "African" roots, with the resultant effect of "inferiority complex" among Black Americans (involving both "self-hatred" within the oppressed and "anger" or "hatred" towards the oppressor, which vary in degree from person to person), on "average."

Although this essay uses the case of Black Americans for analysis, the logical implication is much broader, since the same reasoning can be applied to Black communities around the world (outside sub-Saharan Africa), be they in Central America, South America, the Caribbean, Northern Europe, Southern Europe, North Africa, the Oceania, and the like.

1. Introduction: The Concepts of Averageness and Blackness

As a start, to understand how the "average" Black American mindset has lost its average Black "African" roots, it is important to first clarify the meanings of "average"-ness and "Black"-ness.

First, the word "average" (above) refers to the "central tendency" of values or observations in a set of data (in statistics), such that each sample contains "outliers" (as "dispersions") both above and below the average value (be it the mode, medium, or mean). In practice, this means that any generalization about a group does not exclude deviant (at times extreme) cases on both ends of a data set. In the current context, any generalization concerning an attribute of the Black American identity refers to its "central tendency," while taking into account of different observations deviating from it (as in "standard deviations"). For instance, the more "extreme" the "outliers" in a sample are, the more they "skew" the "average" of a sample (or population).

Second, the word "Black" (above) refers to different populations of Blacks in different regions, such that they are not monolithic as a race. For instance, there are Black "Americans" (different from Black "Africans" or Black "Europeans" or Black "Asians") — just as there are "Black" Americans (different from "white" Americans or "Asian" Americans or "Hispanic" Americans in the United States) and "Black" Africans (different from "Arabic" Africans in North Africa or "Asian" Africans in East Africa or "white" Africans in Southern Africa), Therefore, in this essay, the term "Black American" differs in meaning from the term "African American" (both of which are often incorrectly used interchangeably due to political correctness) -- just as the term "Black American" differs in meaning from the term "Black African."

With these 2 conceptual clarifications in mind, the analysis begins with the similarities between "Black" Americans and "Black" Africans, which can illuminate what "Black"-ness means. Then, the analysis will address the differences between Black "Americans" and Black "Africans," which can show how "Black Americans" have largely lost their "Black African" roots in the last centuries. And this is very important, because no amount of slavery reparations (in woke politics) or no extent of Black empowerment (in the civil rights movement) or no number of forced resignations (in cancel culture) can fully restore the loss of this Black "African" roots in the United States, until the de-colonization of the "Black American" identity is completed. Otherwise, the resultant effect of "inferiority complex" among Black Americans (involving both "self-hatred" within the oppressed and "anger" or "hatred" towards the oppressor, which vary in degree from person to person) under the old yoke of "colonized" identity (traceable back to the history of slavery in the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States) would continue, on "average," unto the future.

2. Similarities between Black Africans and Black Americans

On the "comparative" side, there are major similarities between Black Africans and Black Americans, on "average."

Any researcher who spent years studying Blacks in the United States and Blacks in sub-Saharan Africa cannot fail to notice some main similarities between the 2 groups, on "average," of course.

2.1. The first main similarity between Blacks in the United States and Blacks in sub-Saharan Africa, on "average," has to do with what I call the "joy in carefreedom," which cherishes more the "joy of life" (or "la joie de vivre") in life outlook, such that it does not focus as much on a "strong work ethic" for "ruthless competition" to race to the bottom, with the subsequent tradeoff like a material condition of relative "backwardness" (as already discussed in my 2023 essay titled "The Double-Edged Sword of Slavery Reparations in Woke Politics" — and in my earlier books on the "achievement-carefreedom principle" in my theory of "existential dialectics").

2.2. The second similarity between Blacks in the United States and Blacks in sub-Saharan Africa, on "average," has to do with what I call the "excellence in arts and sports," which reveal their natural talents in dancing, music, comedy, boxing, football, and the like, such that they are less focused on the "excellence in intellectual endeavors" like mathematics, physics, chemistry, engineering, philosophy, chess, and the like (as already discussed in my 2006 book titled "Beyond Nature and Nurture" and other subsequent books of mine on genetics, physiology, and neuroscience). As an illustration, just consider how "hip-hop" is highly popular not just among Black Americans but also among Black Africans.

In both cases (of similarities), there is a relative trade-off in each choice (meaning both "advantages and disadvantages," in my theory of "contrastive advantages" in the 2006 book titled "Beyond Nature and Nurture"), such that there is no universal preference for any life outlook (e.g., "carefreedom" vs. "work ethic") or for any mental aptitude (e.g., "talent in boxing" vs. "talent in mathematics"). Consequently, firstly, what is "good" (or "bad") for each choice is relative to the proponents (or opponents) of that choice -- and, secondly, whatever a person or a group chooses to do, on "average," has to face the consequences of that choice (i.e., its relative trade-off).

3. Differences between Black Africans and Black Americans

On the "contrastive" side, there are major differences between Black Africans and Black Americans, on "average."

Any researcher who spent years studying Blacks in the United States and Blacks in sub-Saharan Africa cannot fail to notice some main differences between the 2 groups, on "average," of course.

3.1. The first main difference between Blacks in the United States and Blacks in sub-Saharan Africa has to do with what I call the "relative colonized anger, hatred, and violence."

On the one hand, in the United States, because of the dehumanized legacy of "slavery in America," any social problems involving Blacks (be they in education, employment, business, imprisonment, health, and the like) can quickly degenerate into a public debate on "racism" (be it "individual," "institutional," or both), which is often followed up with emotional outbursts (like "anger") and behavioral tendencies (like "violence") in a way which are, on "average," non-natural, to the point of indulging in a "victim complex" or "victim mentality" (in clinical psychology). This "blame game" has much to do with the dehumanized legacy of "slavery in America," such that Blacks in the states, on "average," cannot control their emotional outbursts and behavioral tendencies in the "proper balance" of reasonableness, because the Black mindset has been so much "deformed" by force in the process of "colonization" during past centuries of "slavery in America" (in the Thirteen Colonies and beyond), with the resultant effect of "inferiority complex" among Black Americans (involving both "self-hatred" within the oppressed and "anger" or "hatred" towards the oppressor, which vary in degree from person to person, of course).

This has resulted in a Black "identity" in the United States which has little "African"-ness in it, because Blacks, on "average," do not speak Black "African" languages (except English, which is European), do not believe in Black "African" religions (except Christianity like the "Black Church" and Islam like the "Nation of Islam," with "non-Black" gods to worship), do not eat Black "African" food (except American cuisine, like "hamburger," "American barbecue," and the like), do not know "African" folklores (except American founding myths like "Christopher Columbus," "Jamestown," "pilgrims," "founding fathers," and the like), do not cherish Black "African" festivals (except American holidays like "Thanksgiving," "Independence Day," "Black History Month," and the like), do not watch Black "African" films like those in "Nollywood" (except American films like those in "Hollywood"), do not have Black "African" marital and family ties (except occasional news about "Blaxit," like sensational stories of some Black Americans returning to Africa for the dream of a racism-free new life), and the like.

On the other hand, in Black Africa (i.e., sub-Saharan Africa), because of the dehumanized legacy of "European colonialism," any social problems involving Blacks (be they in education, employment, business, insecurity, health, and the like) can quickly degenerate into a public debate on "European colonialism" (and now "post-colonialism"), which is often followed up with emotional outbursts (like "anger") and behavioral tendencies (like "violence") in a way which are, on "average," non-natural, to the point of indulging in a "victim complex" or "victim mentality" (in clinical psychology). This "blame game" has much to do with the dehumanized legacy of "European colonization," such that Blacks in sub-Saharan Africa, on "average," cannot control their emotional outbursts and behavioral tendencies in the "proper balance" of reasonableness, because the Black mindset has been so much violently "deformed" in the process of "European colonization" (and now "post-colonization"), with the resultant effect of "inferiority complex" among Black Africans (involving both "self-hatred" within the oppressed and "anger" or "hatred" towards the oppressor, which vary in degree from person to person), on "average."

This has resulted in a Black "identity" in sub-Saharan Africa which has been substantially robbed of its "African"-ness, but not in the "excessive" degree facing the Black "identity" in the United States, because Blacks in sub-Saharan Africa have retained much of their local cultural heritages after independence from former colonial powers in the past decades (which are something that "Black" Americans do not have, on "average"). This is so, even though many Black African countries still have not yet totally freed themselves from European colonial bondages, as many of them, on "average," still speak European languages (like "French" in Western and Central Africa), believe in colonial religions (like Islam in Western Africa and Christianity in Eastern Africa), use colonial currencies (like "CFA francs" in Western and Central Africa), rely on colonial textbooks in education (like Western educational sources), and the like. For this reason, there has been a powerful movement known as "pan-Africanism" in sub-Saharan Africa to get rid of these "colonial" and now "post-colonial" baggages for a greater Africa.

3.2. The second main difference between Blacks in the United States and Blacks in sub-Saharan Africa has to do with what I call the "relative colonized loss of compassion and hospitality."

On the one hand, in the United States, because of the dehumanized legacy of "slavery in America," Blacks have lost the Black African consciousness of social and political norms (except the American social and political tradition embedded in the United States Declaration of Independence like "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" -- as well as the U. S. Constitution, especially in relation to the Bill of Rights, the 13th Amendment to abolish slavery, and the like). Black "American" social and political identity, on "average," is therefore "individualistic" (especially "liberal-democratic") and "materialistic" (especially "capitalistic") in the modern Anglo-American tradition.

On the other hand, in Black Africa (i.e., sub-Saharan Africa), in spite of the dehumanized legacy of "European colonialism" (and now "post-colonialism"), Blacks, on "average," have retained much of their local social and political cultural heritages after independence from former colonial powers in the past decades (which are something that "Black" Americans do not have, on "average"), such that they look at the life world from the Black "African" lens of "co-existence with nature" and "communalism" often along ethnic and tribal lines. Blacks in sub-Saharan Africa, on "average," have a higher spiritual sentiment of "sharing," especially (though not solely) among ethnic and tribal groups, so that a big family with few people working can still survive without the need to beg and sleep on the street, insofar as the few breadwinners support the rest in a communal way of living. This largely explains why sub-Saharan Africa, in spite of having more "poorest" countries than other continents, does not have, on "average," the serious problem of "homelessness" (like living homeless on Los Angeles's "Skid Row") that one often finds in the United States, affecting Black Americans more, as a percentage of the general population.

This is so, again, even though many Black African countries still have not yet totally freed themselves from European colonial bondages, as many of them, on "average," still inherit the "European colonial" legacy of "liberal-democratic ideology" (at least on paper), while experiencing autocratism and widespread corruption (especially, though not solely, in the "Coup Belt," that is, the prevalence of coups d'état in West Africa, Central Africa and the Sahel region in North Africa).

4. Conclusion: An Existential Dilemma for the Black American Identity

Of course, the 2 similarities and 2 differences between Black Africans and Black Americans (in the above 2 sections) are not exhaustive (as there can be other examples), so they are used here solely for illustrative purposes. The important point to remember, however, is that there is not much Black "African"-ness in the Black American identity, because it has been robbed of its Black "African"-ness and has been so much "deformed" from its original roots, often by force, in the process of "colonization" during past centuries of "slavery in America" in the Thirteen Colonies and beyond (as already explained in Sec. 3 above). This is so, even though the loss is not "complete," because there are also major similarities between Black Africans and Black Americans, on "average" (as already explained in Sec. 2 above).

Yet, any person, or any group, cannot be wholly content, on "average" again, with its identity, if it is imposed externally from the outside (be it a consequence of "slavery," "colonization," "imperialism," "post-colonization," or else). Thus, a process of "de-colonization" is to take place for its proponents, but this is easier said than done. For instance, Black Americans are quick to call themselves "African" Americans, but name-calling cannot hide the fact that there is not much "African"-ness in the "African" American identity, because they have lost, on "average," many of the quintessential African qualities (e.g., Black African languages, Black African religions, Black African folklores, Black African family ties, Black African cuisines, Black African currencies, Black African communalism, Black African spirituality, Black African songs, and the like). To make things worse, some Black Americans display a sense of social and cultural superiority towards Black Africans when they visit the African continent, as this is a complaint which can be heard among Black Africans in sub-Saharan Africa, on "average."

This tall task of "de-colonization" for a fully liberated "Black American" identity will fall on the shoulders of Black Americans, because no amount of slavery reparations (in woke politics) or no extent of Black empowerment (in the civil rights movement) or no number of forced resignations (in cancel culture) can fully restore the loss of this Black "African" roots in the United States, until the de-colonization of the "Black American" identity is completed.

Only time will tell how far Blacks in the United States will succeed in completing this tall task. But should Blacks in the United States give up this tall task of "de-colonization" further down the road (due to its immense challenge), they would be condemned to continue living under the old yoke of "colonized" identity (traceable back to the history of slavery in the Thirteen Colonies and beyond), with its resultant effect of "inferiority complex" among Black Americans (involving both "self-hatred" within the oppressed and "anger" or "hatred" towards the oppressor, which vary in degree from person to person) in clinical psychology. This tall task is precisely a major reason for the hitherto failure of Black Americans to substantially de-colonize the Black American identity even in this day and age of the 21st century.

Thus is the existential dilemma for the Black American identity — unto the "post-human" future, when there will be no more "Blacks," "whites," "Asians," "Latinos," and so on that humans have known so far in history (as already untimely predicted and originally analyzed in my 1999 two-volume work titled "The Future of Human Civilization" and other books of mine since then, on what I called the "post-human future").

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About the author:

Dr. Peter Baofu is an American visionary and author of 180 scholarly books and numerous articles (as of July, 2023) to provide 146 visions (theories) of the human future in relation to the mind, nature, society, and culture -- and had been in 146 countries around the world (as of August 7, 2024) for his global research on humanity, besides knowing 10 languages with different degrees of fluency. His books are listed in top university libraries and national libraries around the world (including the Library of Congress in Washington, D. C.). He was interviewed on television and radio as well as by newspapers around the world about his original ideas and visions of the human future (search for "Peter Baofu" on YouTube). He was a U. S. Fulbright Scholar in the Far East and had taught as a professor at different universities in Western Europe, the Caucasus, the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia, South Asia, North America, and Southeast Asia. He received more than 5 academic degrees, including a Ph. D. from the world-renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.), was a summa cum laude graduate, and was awarded the Delta Sigma Pi Scholarship Key for being at the top of the class in the College of Business Administration, with another student.