Creating Africa in America. Jacqueline Copeland-Carson

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Creating Africa in America - Jacqueline Copeland-Carson Contemporary Ethnography

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       Creating Africa in America

      CONTEMPORARY ETHNOGRAPHY

      Kirin Narayan and Paul Stoller, Series Editors

      A complete list of books in the series is available from the publisher.

       Creating Africa in America

      Translocal Identity in an Emerging World City

      JACQUELINE COPELAND-CARSON

      University of Pennsylvania Press

      Philadelphia

      Copyright © 2004 University of Pennsylvania Press

      All rights reserved

      Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper

      10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

      Published by

      University of Pennsylvania Press

      Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-4011

      Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

      Copeland-Carson, Jacqueline.

      Creating Africa in America : translocal identity in an emerging world city / Jacqueline Copeland-Carson.

      p. cm.—(Contemporary ethnography)

      Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index.

      ISBN: 978-0-8122-1876-3

      1. African Americans—Minnesota—Minneapolis—Social conditions. 2. African Americans—Minnesota—Minneapolis—Ethnic identity. 3. African Americans—Services for—Minnesota—Minneapolis. 4. Cultural Wellness Center (Minneapolis, Minn.) 5. Community life—Minnesota—Minneapolis. 6. Minneapolis (Minn.)—Social conditions. 7. African Americans—Social conditions—Case studies. 8. African Americans—Ethnic identity—Case studies. 9. Community life—United States—Case studies. 10. African diaspora—Case studies. I. Title. II. Series.

F614.M59N44 2004305.896'073776579—dc22 2003070544

       For Patricia Copeland, Jurene Jones, and Virginia Aiken, three family ancestors who continue to inspire and sustain me

      Contents

       Preface: On Life Betwixt and Between

       Prologue to a Diasporan Journey

       Part I. Reimagining North America’s African Diaspora

       1. “Africa” in Minnesota

       2. Ethnographic Grounding

       Part II. Across Diasporan Space/Time: Who Is “African” in a Global Ecumene?

       3. “Three Parts African”: Blood, Heart, Skin, and Memory

       4. Organizing Across Diasporan Crosscurrents

       5. The African Body Resistant

       Part III. Creating “Africa”: A State of Mind/Body/Spirit

       6. Healing the Mind: Embodying an African Epistemology

       7. Healing the Body: Reactivating the African Habitus

       8. Healing the Spirit: Embodying an African Historicity

       Epilogue to a Diasporan Journey

       Appendix A: Research Design, Methods, and Documents

      Appendix B: Cultural Wellness Center and Powderhorn Photographs / Bruce Silcox

       Notes

       Bibliography

       Index

       Preface

      On Life Betwixt and Between

      My deceased grandmother, who was originally from South Carolina and moved to Philadelphia in her forties, was at least of partial Gullah heritage. An unschooled farmer who, as family legend has it, delivered her six babies on her own without the aid of doctor or midwife, she taught herself to read by memorizing the Bible. Grandma Aiken had a battery of sayings that could have filled a “good book” of her own. The family’s youngsters rarely knew exactly what Grandma was talking about. When I’d ask my mother to interpret what she was saying, she would just look down and, while shaking her head, say, “Chile, that’s just that old country Geechee English; don’t pay too much mind to it.” But I paid attention anyway and the meanings of many of her mysterious sayings have slowly revealed themselves to me over the years—I think once I had enough life experience to fully relate to what she was saying. Every time I saw her she would say to me with a hug and with earnest certainty, “How’s my lil’ school teacher?!” Eventually, Grandma’s nickname for me became School Teacher. I remember being initially a little perplexed about why she would call a six-year-old “School Teacher.” Over time I intuitively came to understand that for Grandma, who was largely denied opportunity because of Jim Crow, this was an act of aspiration and faith that my future might realize her deferred dreams.

      I continue to be driven by the visions of this woman who survived and accomplished much in conditions that I can barely imagine. In part because of her, and even though I didn’t grow up in the most privileged of circumstances, I always believed I could write books that people might read and maybe find in some way interesting.

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