Black Ethnicity: Political Attitudes, Identity, and Participation in New York City
Black Ethnicity: Political Attitudes, Identity, and Participation in New York City
by Christina M. Greer
The steady influx of black immigrants in the last half century has redefined what it means to be "African American" in the United States today. For the first time in U.S. history, more Africans are entering the country than during the slave trade. In New York City alone, the major destination for this migration, 1 in 3 blacks are foreign born. Lending itself to an already complicated discourse about race in America, the arrival of "new blacks" raises interesting questions about the historical significance of nationality, country of origin, and ethnic backgrounds and forces us to reevaluate existing racial paradigms of black identity.
In particular, the transformation of the black population underscores an equally profound change in the American political landscape. My current research focuses on the strong implications of black immigration for the future of black public policy and representation. By exploring the concept of groupness among blacks living in New York City, the project seeks to understand the significance of ethnicity, immigration, and transnational identity for blacks in America. The end goal is to quantitatively measure and build upon literature that explores immigration, changes in group public opinion and participation, and tensions among diversifying populations.
Rather than simply assuming that black Americans are a monolith, a more nuanced appreciation would engender different and important political messages. If black ethnic groups are in fact behaving in politically similar and relevant ways, the stayed color line for blacks in America would appear to be politically relevant. But it is more likely that the data will show distinct attitudinal, participatory, and acculturation differences across black ethnic groups that challenge an all-inclusive black identity. These differences would speak to the salience of ethnicity, immigration, integration, and assimilation for understanding political differences across black ethnic groups.
In order to better understand the intersection of race and ethnicity, my work employs similar frameworks used in understanding Latino and Asian immigrants. Among these groups, most social scientists recognize the political participatory and public opinion distinctions present among Cuban, Dominican, and Mexican populations as well as the distinctions among Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino groups living in the United States. Just as these ethnic group populations have recognized cultural and historical distinctions, including different ways and means of incorporation and assimilation (or lack thereof) into U.S. society, they also maintain a sometimes complex overarching racial identity once in the United States. If substantial ethnic diversity does exist among black populations residing in New York City, differing political attitudes and electoral behaviors may illustrate distinct needs of each group when incorporating into the American political system.
To date, much of the social science scholarship on race has focused on black-white and now black-white-Latino distinctions. Because of these inter-racial paradigms, the heterogeneity existing within the black diaspora has gone relatively undocumented, leaving many questions unanswered concerning intra-racial black political incorporation, identity, and modes of electoral participation. Are there significant differences in identity among ethnic groups classified as "black" once residing in the U.S.? Will participatory distinctions in voting, campaigns, and election processes exist among black ethnic groups? And lastly, will black immigrants have more of an impact on overall government efficacy than native-born blacks? The elevation of tensions between native-born blacks and Afro-Caribbean and African immigrant populations signals the need for more subtle inquiry.
A number of resulting studies have documented Afro-Caribbean populations expressing disillusionment with assimilation pressures in the United States and with being labeled "African American" instead of inheriting the racially neutral "American" identity that their white immigrant counterparts enjoy. These immigrants, who may self-identify in national terms, such as "Jamaican" or "Haitian," find that upon entering the country, they become "black," sharing an identity with millions of people with whom they may have almost nothing in common. Because of this racial characterization, they have had to assimilate themselves into American society in different ways than white immigrants. Shunted from the dominant racial group in society, Afro-Caribbean and African immigrants often struggle to distinguish themselves from their native-born black counterparts, to establish an identity that is separate and unique. They often perceive that their immigrant status, despite its inferior position in American society, is nevertheless better than being grouped with African Americans. Social scientists have found that for this reason, black immigrant groups seek to remain "immigrants" even after they have assimilated into American society.
Despite their self-identification as anything but "African American," the physical characteristics that native-born and foreign blacks appear to share reinforce the tendency to view them as one and the same. This tendency, along with the inequities in both group's access to resources, has led to varying forms of in-group superiorities, elements of ethnocentrism, and overall group hostilities across black communities-native and foreign. However, the competition among black groups jockeying for anything but last place in the social order has also created a link, a bond, or even an understanding of the role of blackness in American society. Due to the systemic racism that has occurred and, to the surprise of many black immigrants, still occurs throughout the United States, a sense of black racial solidarity is nevertheless apparent.
My project compares and analyzes the opinions of black ethnic groups using original data from a survey conducted with members of the Social Services Employees Union-Local 371 in New York City. New York City was an ideal location to administer the survey due to its present day and historical influxes of black immigrants. Because of the wealth of economic and entrepreneurial opportunities, ethnic social networks, and the abundance of native-born black populations in close residential proximity, New York City was an opportune location to conduct the survey. The survey consists largely of questions pertaining to immigrant issues, political representation, feelings and attitudes toward other racial and ethnic groups, and political participation. The National Election Study (NES) and the National Ethnic Politics Study (NEPS) served as guides for designing the survey, and the General Social Survey (GSS), the U.S. Census, and the Multi-City Study of Urban Inequality will be used to support its findings.
The impetus behind creating a survey that was separate and distinct from surveys such as the NES and even the GSS was largely founded upon the fact that they have sparse populations of native-born black Americans and dismal sample sizes of black ethnics in their data sets. When using NES and GSS, one must pool resources, often times from several years, in order to formulate adequate sample sizes and significant results. The use of national surveys will aid in my analysis of labor unions, class distinctions, black attitudes toward government spending and attentiveness, and electoral participatory patterns. The two-year time intervals of the NES and GSS data sources will also provide background analysis for the progression of attitudes and opinions of the populations in the study.
Preliminary results have indicated that there are indeed significant participatory differences in voting, campaign, and election processes among groups classified as "blacks." So what does all of this mean for the future of black politics? The black population in America is changing. Steady migration of black immigrants is continuing from small Caribbean islands and large African nations. It is imperative that social scientists and scholars document this growing shift in order to understand the present motivation and attitudes of blacks currently in this country. Race is still relevant in America. My project's aim is to unfold the relevance of ethnicity as well.
Although black-white interracial divisions have largely dominated the landscape of American political thought, the complexity of the black population should not, and I argue, can not be underestimated. A better understanding of who actually comprises the black population must be assessed before current scholars can understand the extent to which whites, blacks, Latinos, Asians, and other populations express distinct and varying attitudes and opinions. The historical moment must be documented and analyzed, for the future will present an even more complex picture than the present.
For more information on this study, contact Christina Greer.
