Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Early adolescence is when many physical, biological and psychological changes occur. At this critical time adolescents begin to question their identity and their place in the world (Erikson, 1963; Tatum, 1997). Tatum (1997) argues that “for Black youth, asking ‘Who am I?’ includes thinking about “Who am I ethnically and/or racially’” (p. 53)? For West African immigrant adolescent girls, the question of who they are ethnically and racially is further complicated by the fact that they are also trying to find their place in American society where some people may assume that they are African-American and identify as such, without taking into consideration the role that their West African immigrant backgrounds play in their ethnic identity formation.
This study set out to examine how home and school experiences shape the ethnic identities of young immigrant girls and what their stories might teach us about their educational and socio-cultural needs. An analysis of the data generated through focus group and personal interview transcripts, field notes, participant and researcher journals revealed one theme that consistently appeared throughout the data: the girls’ experiences with African-American stereotypes of Africans versus the girls’ stereotypes of African-Americans and the impact on participants’ choice of ethnic identity

Publication Type: Individual Presentation
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: The Afrocentric vision is to assert “the existence of an African culture, personality and genius." One of the processes to accomplish this vision is to give agency to African people. Although this goal is easily agreed to, it is not always clear what agency is being given to African people. Agency can be understood as giving people consciousness of their self, their history, and their culture. Agency can be an academic exercise of researching African phenomena and retelling stories of the ancestors that have been buried by European oppression. Agency can also be acting on cultural beliefs, rules and values to reconstitute culture. African Agency is inherently linked to African Culture – and African culture must have African Agency to survive and prosper. In addition to the previous agencies of consciousness, research, and action, there are the African agential components of spirituality and phenomenal time. This paper furthers the concept of spirituality in agency as explained by Ama Mazama, and adds the component of phenomenal time in agency explained by “aspectual be” found in Ebonics.

Publication Type: Individual Presentation
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: This paper will discuss what it has meant to be “black” for black immigrants and their descendants in twentieth century US. The following three objectives are to be covered: (1) Providing the historical background, based on dissertation research on New England immigrants from the African Diaspora, specifically Cape Verdean and Caribbean immigrants; (2) Exploring the current tenor of this ongoing controversy, for instance the early debate over Barrack Obama’s identity and the changing nature of ‘black’ college/ graduate students—many of whom are enrolled in Black Studies courses; and (3) Discussing the critical implications of this research for contemporary academia and laying out suggestions for how this debate may inform scholars’ research agendas as well as teaching. (For complete version of abstract, email me at aminahpilgrim@yahoo.com)

Publication Type: Individual Presentation
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: What is cultural identity? Who is an African American? Who defines it and for whom? How do we do this? If you were asked “who is an African American?” what would be your answer? Perhaps some people may think it is easy, but is it? In today’s multicultural America, where immigration patterns and immigration and naturalization services have changed the demography, how do you define people who are foreign-born Africans but American citizens? How would you define a Caribbean-born individual who is also an American? Who can name who? What experiences, culture, community, beliefs, values, and history define an African American identity? Increasingly the issue or question of who is an African American has dominated conversations and academic discourses especially in seminars, blogs, conferences and the media. This paper will explore these questions/issues, and the cultural identity divide between foreign-born African Americans and native-born African Americans. Specifically, the paper will examine the issues and questions about who is an African American, the African American-ness, the African American identity, the myths and misconceptions about the relationship between foreign-born African Americans and native-born African Americans and who can and should be defined as African American. This paper hopes to advance conversations on issues of the African American identity and the relationships between foreign-born and native-born African Americans.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: No other issue in the North-South divide has generated an intense and controversial contestation than the subject of Debt Relief Initiatives for the poverty stricken countries in the developing world, generally referred to as the "Third World" States, an absolute majority of these countries are in sub-Saharan Africa. The insurmountable debt burdens have continued to shackle and cripple the economic developmental aspirations of both the governments and pauperized masses in many of the contemporary African nation states.The conventional paradigms of developmentalism have consistently emphasized the imperatives of neo-liberalism, with a premium placed on the centrality of free market fundamentalisms, democratic governance, privatization, property rights, rule of law, political accountability and the ubiquity of the phenomenon of globalization. Yet, it is an inescapable fact that the above theoretical perspective is in reality confronted with the daunting and perplexing predicament of wide spread poverty, acute misery index, rampant political instability, elite malfeasence, "black market" and informal economies that are juxtaposed with often,clandestine, and collusive sensibilities that condusive for the entrenchment of a "fleecing culture" and the subversion of state institutions for private gain.Therefore, the legitimate, international political economy of capitalism and globalization are confronted by the existence of a dubious,but subsidiary network of operatives with pillaging mentalities that are conducive for organized crime, warlordism and the imposition of the rule of impunity over the pauperized,and terrorized citizens in several of the so called "fragile states or failing institutions" in modern sub-Saharan Africa, even in the current post-cold war era period of international relations.Although an overwhelming majority of African States have seeimgly established formal systems of political pluralism and democratic-electoral governments, the disconcerting problems of abject poverty, malnutrition, food insecurity, chronic and excessively high levels of unemployment, HIV/AIDS pandemic,religious-sectarian schisms, civil wars and episodic societal convulsive upheavals constitute the crux of Africa'a human capital-developmental predicaments. This paper seeks to analyze and provide a theoretical perspective on the nature, dynamics and effects of extractive industries on the quest for economic development and the improvement of the human condition in modern African States,that is predicated within the context of the ongoing "War on terror" international security regime, and the more pervasive discourse of neo-liberalism, globalization,the "Washington Consensus" and their impacts on the challenges of Africa's developmental prospects and predicaments. The concrete case studies from Nigeria, South Africa, and Democratic Republic of Congo serve to contextually illuminate and thus,comparatively analyze and examine the multi-dimensional effects and dynamics of the extractive industries in these countries,in the strategic areas of the economies, dealing with petroleum, gas, gold, diamonds, precious gemstones,timber and environmental degradation.Inspite of the diverse casde studies, a commonly shared and inescapable reality of the dispossessed, deprived,disprivileged and destitute citizens in modermn African countries remains the same. Simply put, but powerfully compelling, the question in various languages is this: "What About Us ?"