Caught Between Two Worlds: Demetria Lucas Gives A Little Context for ‘Not African Enough For Africa’
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After we ran Demetria Lucas’ article Not African Enough In Africa, the comments section (predictably) opened up some old wounds and divides. While many–from all over the Diaspora–understood Lucas’ experience of feeling “foreign” in a land she hoped, perhaps naively, would feel like “home,” others read her piece as yet another example of Americans exerting their class privilege on a foreign land.
The article also seemed to reignite tense feelings between some Africans and African-Americans who felt the other side would never be able to relate to their particular struggles.
It is for this particular reason that I, like Lucas, tend to stay away from writing about such subjects because bridging the gap seems increasingly impossible, while widening the divide appears to be inevitable.
On her blog, Lucas explained how:
I stayed away from similar topics. I knew the issues discussed were a deep problem. And I didn’t have a solution or see a way of effectively talking it out or through it, especially when, just like the Clutch post, people were reading what they wanted to see, not what was there. So I figured the topic was better left alone.
Despite the potential for disaster, Lucas says she wrote Not African Enough in Africa to break down the myth many black Americans have about our ancestral home. Many of us speak about Africa as our home, this place with which we will have an instant connection because of our shared history, and yes, our skin color, but the realty is that the rift between black Americans and Africa is as long and large as the centuries we’ve been in this country. Despite our need/want to fulfill the longing for our homeland, approaching any trip to Africa expecting we’ll instantly feel a kinship with people on the continent sets us up for failure.
Lucas explains:
Many Black Americans suspend logic to imagine there’s a place on the other side of the Atlantic where they “belong” since so many don’t feel that happens here. The desire for a place where you feel like you just are allows for logic to be defied. People do it in bad relationships and over absentee fathers every day. I don’t understand why it’s so surprising in this context. It’s not logic. It’s not ignorant. It’s hope for something better than the hand you’ve been dealt, an idea that keeps you going much like Christianity’s promise of suffering in life and getting your rewards at the pearly gates. If you don’t have that, then what?
The mythology and reality that allow for the suspended logic are literally the first 500 words of “Not African Enough in Africa”. The next 700 expose the knee-slapping joke that’s been had on Black Americans who hold up all of Africa and any part of Africa as our specialized Motherland. We’re Americans who are Black and that’s all. The story was in no way an indictment of what’s wrong with South Africa or Africa in general (if I thought it sucked specifically or generally, I’d just say that.) I could have spoken greetings in all 10 of South Africa’s other official languages (and none of them would have enabled me to answer a question about sunglasses) and I could have been in Ghana or Nigeria, or Tanzania or any other country in the world and I wouldn’t “fit” because squares don’t fit in circles. That there are Black Americans who are willing to try is an indictment of what’s wrong with America, a problem that I only picked up on when I got to South Africa and realized no, really, this “I’m so American” feeling isn’t just what happens when I travel thru the UK and Europe. That’s really just what I am, no hyphen necessary to pay homage to roots that were severed. My bad, I was bamboozled, maybe I just wanted to be.
As a traveler, I admit to feeling the same way, of wanting to blend seamlessly into the background of whatever black community I happen to be in at the moment. But as an American, with all of the privileges it carries abroad, this isn’t always possible. Do I keep trying? Sure. I love people, and especially black folks. But like Lucas I’m no longer under the impression that I will immediately “fit” or feel at home with people who look like me.
Check out the rest of Demetia Lucas’ piece about Not African Enough In Africa on her Belle In Brooklyn blog.
Umm… y’all still don’t get it. SMH!!
1) “Despite the potential for disaster, Lucas says she wrote Not African Enough in Africa to break down the myth many black Americans have about our ancestral home.”
South Africa is NOT our ancestral home!! Let’s get that straight once and for all! Our ancestors were taken from mostly West Africa, and some from parts of Central Africa (i.e. Cameroon). Many Black American visit West Africa, especially Ghana to get an understanding of their ancestral roots and they are welcomed with open arms. Therefore, South Africa is not fam.
2) This article, like other articles speak of Africa as a “country” instead of a continent. One African country does NOT represent the entire continent of Africa. Too many black people are on that Palin-ish.
3) “But like Lucas I’m no longer under the impression that I will immediate “fit” or feel at home with people who look like me.”
Why would you think you would “immediately fit” or feel at home in the first place??!!! You don’t know the language, nor the culture. So to have that expectation doesn’t make sense. Africa is like a long-distance cousin. You know y’all are related some how, some way… but you haven’t met. But once you meet, you familiarize yourself with your long-distance cousin, because at the end of the day you know that’s your family. That’s the outlook/expectation people should have.
I agree with you strongly.
Well said.
To address points 1, 2, and 3 that you made:
I think the other article made it clear that she was keen on going to any country in Africa. And she explained the rationale behind why she happened on S. Africa. The article was an explanation of a learning experience. There are certain things you can only learn (or learn better) by traveling and experience.
Hey Lisa,
With all due respect I’m well aware that Africa is a continent made up of over 50 countries. I write about many of them every day here on Clutch. However, for the purpose of this brief article, I didn’t find it necessary to delineate over and over again that Africa is a continent. This is known. As a writer who assumes her audience is smart (as you all are) and can “get” what I’m saying without having to always say something like…”The continent of Africa” or “Africa with its many countries,” that is where I was coming from with this.
Also, I never mentioned anything about South Africa being our ancestral home. Black Americans tend to view the Continent of Africa (see what I did there?), the “Motherland”…as our home, not any specific country.
And yes…I think I admitted to being naive thinking I’d fit in with black folks all over the globe because we are black. I wasn’t even specifically speaking about Africa, as Demetria was…I meant black folks ANYWHERE (as I make it a point to find black faces when I travel, feel me?).
Anywho…thanks for reading and continuing the dialogue.
~britni
But the author does think that she can fit in with any non-Black person in the world, doesn’t she? What about the countless dumbass articles about fitting in with women other races of women on issues that relate to dating? What about dating White European men? Please man lol. That is retarded. Africa is your home, you are a POW, period. Your lying to yourself if you think otherwise. You ever heard of stockholm syndrome. Where someone who is a captive yearns to identify with their oppressor.
Please watch this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZj3-xZFLPA
And this is what is happening to some of OUR people in Africa, which will give you context into why Africans are disappointed that other Africas don’t speak their languages. And its funny because the mere fact that the woman was disappointed in the author not speaking an African language, proves that the woman EXPECTED you to be able to and to have the connection with her. The fact that she expected you to speak an African language just proves that she sees you as the same as her. Its not like she expected an Indian to speak her language. Don’t you see how you disprove your logic. Why can’t Africa have nostalgia? Negros are nostalgic over the Eifel Tower. You can’t have nostalgia over the place you were ripped from? You can’t hope to meet people who you were suppossed to be living amongst? I don’t understand the logic in that. Why wouldn’t you be “myopic” about going HOME? Tell me why Europeans are always going to Africa or why they have policies and military commissions on Africa, if it is not something to be enamored? Thats your HOME. You have to not know it for your people to continue to be poor. You have to be ignorant of this, in order for people to get YOUR RESOURCES for pennies on the dollar. It baffles me how quick African people on the continent and in the disapora are quick to throwaway the richest piece of land on the earth. Africa is your diamond. Please take it:
Please watch this video:
http://vimeo.com/30425676
I actually really appreciated the article, and I get so disappointed in the fact that people are so focused on what makes us different that they could not appreciate the diversity in experiences. I just read it, smiled, scrolled down the comments, frowned, and passed on with out commenting.
There are some differences between Africans and African-Americans that I think are kind of cool. For example, “cursing” can mean one thing to an African than it does to an African-American. When I went to do my hair in a Senelegase hair salon, an Af. Amer. customer got into a spat with the hairdresser. “Why are you cursing me? Don’t curse me!?” The Senegelese hairdresser shouted. The Af. American customer shouted back, “Ain’t nobody cursing you!!! Did I say a curse word?” (In American culture, cursing refers to specific bad four-letter words; in some African cultures, it is more like a threat, along the lines of “I’ma knock you out!” for lack of a better way to translate in English.)
It is a “language barrier” that leads to problems, that if both sides got each other, they would understand each other.
To reduce someone’s personal experience to something of “Oh, they just did not understand MY culture enough” is such a disservice to both sides. I personally would like to see more articles like this but…there is not enough people like me.
I believe this problem will be solved when some black Americans accept the United States as their homeland. That is the part I just can’t get?…and I am black and was born here just like the author. Being a child of immigrants may make a difference in how I feel about my beloved country, the United States? My parents & generations before them doesn’t know what segregation feels like, but that doesn’t mean they don’t experience the same things American born black people experience today. The difference is we don’t let that negatively affect how we feel about this great country that we call ‘home’ !!
I can care less about how the majority feels about black people in the U.S….this is my country and I won’t let anyone make me feel otherwise. I am in control of how I feel.
I saw nothing wrong with the comments that was annoyed with her article, because those comments too held truth. They weren’t ignorant to what she was trying to say in the article, though personally I think it was done poorly, some commenters including me felt it was mere utopian thinking she had in place and that in itself is wrong. Wanting a self of belonging is natural thinking you’ll find it if you di this or go here or love this person, is wrong all wrong and if the author was annoyed because people pointed out her naivety and felt, this is why I dont talk bout it, its silly in my opinion. So you were naive okay, learning experience -maybe you won’t find the connection or roots through those individuals who dismissed you, that just mean they weren’t meant to be that for you. But at the same time to go somewhere and automatic feel natural acceptance is not even thinking logically.
The responses tried to make her feel bad about being American in Africa, like she wasn’t supposed to like being being American and black at the same time.