Shumate 1

Whitney Shumate

Mrs. Shumate

English II

5 May 2017

The African Immigrant Experience in America

For generations, America has been seen as a safe haven for immigrants from across the

globe. While most who come here find freedom that was once unattainable, the political climate

in America since 9/11 has made the country less accessible, and even for those who manage to

move to the States, they find that it is not an easy task to gain social and economic mobility.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichies novel Americanah sheds light on the trials and triumphs that a

Nigerian immigrant, Ifemelu, experiences as she navigates what it means to be an African in

America. Ifemelus experience mirrors what is true for so many real-world African immigrants:

while these immigrants often move to America with the hope of achieving prosperity, they face

many difficulties navigating racial tensions and boundaries that do not exist in their own

countries.

An overwhelming percentage of African immigrants are fleeing persecution and violence,

but many are unprepared for the kinds of barriers in America that can impede their success. In

fact, many studies indicate that because of traumatic situations many African immigrants are

fleeing, they often suffer PTSD or other mental health difficulties while adjusting in the United

States more so than any other immigrant population (Adedoyin). So, not only do many Africans

have to overcome mental and physical illness, but also racism, unemployment, isolation,

vitiation, and acculturation (Adedoyin). Racism, which Martin Luther King, Jr. often referred

to as Americas congenital deformity, was not an issue for Africans in Africa, but skin color is
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a significant identifier in Americas social structure. For years, African immigrants found

themselves defiant against expectations for them to fall in line to the presumption of their

inferiority (Johnson). However, mounting tensions after 9/11 made the social climate more

difficult to navigate, and many Africans find themselves as outsiders.

Social tensions for African immigrants linger long after their move-- even into their

second generation in the States. For many African immigrants, one of the differences in culture

that has made life more difficult for them is the emphasis on individualism in US society

because they are coming from a cultural background that is more community oriented

(Afolayan). Even second generation immigrants have difficulty reconciling their identities. Some

immigrant cultures, especially in generations past, felt the need to shed their own identities in

order to assimilate and be successful. While African immigrants do find that their ties to their

home culture can impede their mobility, there is pressure within the African community to

retain ones African identity and to distinguish oneself from African Americans (Clark). In

fact. one of biggest fears for African parents is that their children would become Americanized

to the detriment of their African culture (Clark). African Americans have a social history to

which Africans cannot fully relate, and the physical similarities between them are not enough to

create a harmonious community.

The difficulties that African immigrants face in America are certainly not enough to deter

them from trying to start a life there. Current research details the social complexities that a

diverse nation faces, and Adichies novel further humanizes the African immigrant experience.

Creating a conversation about the problems faced by so many who try to find freedom is a

necessary step in creating a more harmonious and empathetic society, one where these challenges

can be overcome.
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Works Cited

Adedoyin, A. Christson, et al. "Religious Coping Strategies among Traumatized African

Refugees in the United States: A Systematic Review." Social Work & Christianity, vol. 43,

no. 1, Spring2016, pp. 95-107. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=a9h&AN=113172173&site=ehost-live.

Afolayan, Tobi E. "Coming to America: The Social and Economic Mobility of African

Immigrants in the United States." Inquiry (University of New Hampshire), Spring2011, pp.

6-11. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=a9h&AN=60705725&site=ehost-live.

Clark, Msia Kibona. "Identity among First and Second Generation African Immigrants in the

United States." African Identities, vol. 6, no. 2, May 2008, pp. 169-181. EBSCOhost,

doi:10.1080/14725840801933999.

Johnson, Violet Showers. "When Blackness Stings: African and Afro-Caribbean Immigrants,

Race, and Racism in Late Twentieth-Century America." Journal of American Ethnic

History, vol. 36, no. 1, Fall2016, pp. 31-62. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=118483499&site=ehost-live.