The black slaves of colonial American brought their own culture from Africa. Contributed greatly to the development of American’s own dance, music, art, food and clothing. When Africans were taken from their homeland and brought to America as slaves, they also brought with them their individual cultures, languages and customs. Culture defines people’s values, beliefs, and personal interests. Culture is important because it allows people to maintain their identity. During slavery, they were expected to adopt to their slave owners culture. My culture shares many similarities with others around the world; My parents are both from Sierra Leone and they brought their culture to America. They did not forget about family’s traditions and food. …show more content…
Slaves used music for a wide variety of purposes. Music was incorporated into religious ceremonies and celebrations; Drumming became used as a means of communication and establishing a community identity during that time. When slave masters discovered that drums could be used as a secret communication, they were banned. In the place of drums, they started hand clapping and tapping their feet. Vernacular dances such as breakdowns, shuffles, and jigs. African American music traces their roots of slave music. These songs with such element, such as rhythm patterns, off key notes. The incorporation of hums, moans, foot patting, and a strong rhythmic drive. The spirituals are typical working songs and often content stories and from the bible. The songs first become well-known outside the southern states. Music for African American were great since it was their way of expressions their feelings, and in some way gained strength to survive through the battle of slavery. On board slave ships during the middle passage, slaves were forced to dance. Slave captains believed that if they danced it would have reduced their pain and suffering. African American practice a number of religions, Christianity was the most popular religion. During slavery many African Americans were stripped from their belief and denied religious practice. Christian worship in secret meetings. These practices, including …show more content…
African sculptures include figures, masks, decorated boxes. Many early African sculpture were made of wood. African art consists mainly of sculptures, painting, fetishes, masks figures, and decorative objects. Sculptures are considered to be the greatest achievement for African art. A majority of the sculptures is done in wood, but are also made of metal, stone, terra-cotta, mud, beadwork, ivory, and other materials. Many ancient rock paintings have been found in Southern and Eastern Africa. Masks and fetishes are often used to scare off bad things such as evil spirits, witches or ghosts. Female slaves sewed colorful quilts to keep them warm. African American cultural attire was from west Africa. Kenta fabric is one of the popular style of fashion from t-shirt, bow tie and cummerbunds. Since the black art movement, traditional African clothing has been popular amongst African American for formal and casual occasions. In African American culture also involves a nice dress for worship in the black church. African American women are known for wearing vibrant dresses, and hats to church. African American women hair styles was usually tightly coiled curls, they strengthen their hair and natural hairstyles, such as braids, afro and
Customs-They carved wood and made pottery. Music-They created their own music and dance that they would do as a tribe for fun. Reasons the African Americans Colonized Texas One of the reasons the
They brought with them their style of call and response hymns and drum inspired rhythms. From years of being mistreated and used for slavery, music was one of the only remaining connections they had to their culture. Songs such as “The Buzzard
The contributions and cultural influences that slaves made have gone unappreciated throughout American culture. African culture, Southern food from songs to dances are not just present in today’s times but have had a huge effect throughout America. During the Middle Passage, slaves had to abandon traditional customs, rituals and cultural artifacts. They had to do this to get a ticket into the New World. However, slaves still used their customs survive and carry on in the New World.
To begin, African Americans had spiritual beliefs that eventually turned into Christianity, so they started to hold their own services. They added to the services with their culture by using gospel music. They would do things in services that white people would not conventionally do such as add things by yelling, "Hallelujah" in the middle of the gospel song or wave their hands and stomp their feet to show the importance of the service (Maultsby & Stewart 7 & 8). This shows how people of color were able to express their culture by adding things to the music and changing the way white people would normally worship at a church service. Secondly, African Americans used rap, gospel, spiritual, and jazz music to display the way the people from Africa sing and make music.
According to the Declaration of Independence, all men are created equal. But, that is not how society turned out to be. Immigrants, blacks, and women all faces discrimination throughout the 1800's. They were beaten, given poor jobs or sometimes no jobs, and not given the right to vote.
For instance, they “longed for the old-timey. We wore our hair in braids to show it. We made sweat lodges…” (Dimaline). This quote illustrates how they rely on their culture and traditions to maintain their identity, as it highlights how they use traditional practices to connect with their ancestors. Moreover, they
Slave music, particularly negro spirituals, played an important role in undermining white society and challenge the idea of slave docility. Slave spirituals conveyed the hardships of slavery and were used to not only as a way of communicating with other slaves, but also as a method of control over their slave labor. Slaves would change the tempo of the song to match the pace they wanted to work. If they wanted to get work done fast the song would be sung faster, if the slaves wanted to work
Over the years many of the African Americans music was either forgotten or was looked over with other musical traditions .When the slaves were going through harsh time they would turn to music to relive the pain they were going through and most of the
The emotions within the songs are unmatched by the literature that could be written on the struggles of the slaves. They bring out the true feelings of the slaves. The dynamics give listeners a sense of the true emotions within their songs. Without the ability to use different combinations of sounds, slaves would be unable to depict their feelings in a way that others would completely understand. W. E. B. Du Bois, in The Souls of Black Folk, speaks to the
The slaves found might in combining both with their African culture or tribal and folk customs. Their religion articulated their hardship and gave them hope by promising freedom in the afterlife. In spite of not being able to obtain instruments, they utilized their feet. Additionally, “patting juba” or jubilee beating took shape into dancing, which they would dance to partnered with songs. Struggling to rise above the plantations owners control of their bodies and ever present oppression, slaves fought utter subjugation though keeping their African roots
The traditions of African-American slaves, from the earliest of times in colonial America, were acts and words that endowed the future of their race with the essence of their past. From the earliest of our rice crops to the females, who provided their masters through repeated sexual abuses, slaves laid ownership to their portion of colonial American history. The key to maintaining the heritage of the early African family was a combined version of their ancient tribal religion and their master’s Christianity. In order to maintain a peaceful accord with their masters, slaves learned that diversifying songs and actions from African shores with slight adjustments in order to abide by the beliefs of their Christian masters. Examples of this
The African Americans of this time came together with the purpose of social change. Digging back into their roots to show the world just how beautiful it is. They chose to express their culture in writing, music, and art. One of the ways that African Americans expressed themselves was through writing and literature.
At night telling folk tales, doing dances and praying were the main reason why slaves did not commit suicide or harm themselves. They used these cultural remedies to assist them through their hardships. African Americans contributed to the economic and social development of America by becoming the engine for white men’s plantations. Without the work of slavery whites would have to work in their own fields instead they decided to get slaves and have the slaves do their work for them with no payment just cruelty. “African Americans…influenced the development of white culture.
My understanding of my ethnic culture is African American once was an oppressed group of people in the United States of America. African Americans were enslaved by Caucasian Americans and was treated as property. During the times of oppression, African American was not prohibited to read or write, to maintain stable family relationship and to have human rights. This traditions of the African American culture are emplace so the generations of African American can experience the rights other African Americans were
African America women contributed in the fight for abolition and women’s suffrage movement; the organizer was a former slave and an evangelical name Sojourner Truth. Certain African slaves coming from West Africa were Sufi Muslim that continued their belief during their voyage crossing the Atlantic Ocean as they were using their Islamic lunar calendar. The Islamic Africans were keeping their movements by watching the moon.