The Voice is a Black British newspaper that has been active for decades. I checked it up today and was alarmed and disturbed to read the following story about Ian Wright. I have of course have commended Wright in the past because I think he represents. Keep reading the story to learn more. The author of the opinion piece is Dotun Adebayo who is a well-known journalist in Britain.
Adebayo writes:
If you continue reading the article, Adebayo goes on to talk about Wright in relation to Englishness and goes on to say that black people in Britain were black before they were British. It is a powerful piece but one that will fuck many people off in the UK of that I am sure. I don’t know when this is supposed to have happened and I am not sure if it is true because Ian Wright has denied it but it does hint to a major problem in Britain:
Why do so many black people *deny* or even stay away from their ‘blackness’? I am in no way part of the black police. I have been accused of being so ‘white’ by many of my own black people. However, I don’t let those unkind words pull me away from my heritage. Our blackness is part of who we are; can you be black and try and disassociate yourself with being black?
Fanon discusses alienation a great deal in Black Skin, White Mask. A lot of what he was discussing was in relation to being an assimilated Frenchman but this concept of alienation can wholly be applied today. Black people are alienated from one another. This case of poison ivy is what is keeping us apart because we do not want to be associated with one another.
Part of me wonders why. Why do so many people think African people and Caribbeans can’t marry? Why do people think these cultures are so binary when they both come from the same fountains?
I for one don’t want the sting of this poison ivy. I don’t see distinctions, just the fact that we can share so much. I saw a lot of this when I went to the Caribbean. Why can’t we just all get along?
Maybe this hits home for me because I have a Caribbean boyfriend. I am not sure. I just wish black people would get over their own prejudices!
Problem is Aurelia, is that also he could have said it because they are those of us who perhaps have lived here a little longer than our African brothers and sisters and for some reason think that that makes us BRITISH or White!! And it is toe cringing embarrasing.
And if you put my experience to Dotun, he will deny (perhaps, unfortunatley, in the same way Wright has ‘denied’ it) it but is has not stopped me from writing, marrying, etc. I still have to do my thing. Yes, you are right about a ‘new’ type of black. My kids hold passports to three countries, two of which are in Africa and because of coming from a bi-cultural background, they are exposed to not only traditional african soup but to rice ‘n’ peas, roti and pepper pot, and I think that’s cool/1
Plaintain, Thank you SO MUCH for adding your perspective.
Wow, I never figured Dotun would be so damn blind to actually say someone’s writing is ”white”. What the f–k? I was talking to a Black British friend of mine, great friend in fact and I told her about this allegation and she was adamant that Wright could not have said that cos he suffered racism when he was playing football too. I then realised that I had forgot that part of the equation. Until Wright comes out and says something, I am not saying ANYTHING against Ian Wright. I had no idea Dotun Adebayo was biased like that. Thanks for bringing your input.
I am going out with a Caribbean guy and he makes me truly happy. I know my family wont be extremely over the moon by him not being African but I don’t care. I love black people and black men are who I like!! I am noticing more inter-diaspora relationships between Africans and West Indians; it is so encouraging. It will end up creating a whole ‘new’ type of black person.
Thanks plaintain and come by again!!
There are several things I wish to say about this:-
1) You should also note that Dotun is a well known publisher. Once I sent some pieces to him and he had the nerve to say that my writing was ‘white’. That really hurt. If you read his book by his writer brother who wrote A Kind of Black, you will find that is he not particularly complimentary of West Indians. I’m not justifying the alleged by comments by Mr. Wright but just we all have hang- ups about the business of being black and defining what black is.
2) Yes, there is still tension between those of us whose backgrounds are Caribbean and those whose are African, and I think basically it is due to ignorance. Simple! Even when I go to the US, I am always horrified at the prejudice I get from African Americans who see me as something different when they learn that I am not an American.
3) As a Black Brit who is married to an African, yes, the prejudices (from both sides I may add) are deep. When we decided to get married, there were all kind of silences from both camps but we carried on irregardless and have not allowed it get in the way. However, this marriage happened some years ago and during that time I have witnessed more inter-relationships between Black Brit and Africans and I also should add more inter-tribal relationships also.
4) Why can’t we all get along? Until poverty is eradicated and equal rights are properly implemented then the tensions between us will be with us for a while.
Thanks for raising an interesting issue.
I have also heard about some Afro Latinos not wanting to call themselves “black” or associate with black people. I have read books and studied about Latin America and in some Latin American countries the emphasis is placed on the “Latino Culture” and not on “race.” Yet at the same time in some Latin American countries the racism against black Latinos and the Natives is extremely strong. I think for some Afro Latinos perhaps they feel they are “closer” to “whiteness” to the White Latinos and they feel superior to other blacks? Yet at the same time plenty of white Latinos make black Latinos feel inferior. I notice a lot of those Latin American award shows in the USA always ignore the musical contributions of black latinos and focus on whites. I have also noticed some so called Latino magazines ignore black Latinos as well.
This is a disturbing problem among black people,the fact that we do not see ourselves as equals.Too many of us believe we are better than each others. We have inherited the European nonsense. I find it ironic that we want others to view us as equals. It is the same thing between Africans, most Africans only associate with their own ethnic groups. Yorubans stick to Yorubans, Igbo to Igbos, Wolofs to Wolofs, etc. Why do many of us expect much better from non Blacks in their relations with us? I am from latin America, and some Afro Latinos do not identify as Blacks, period. We will continue to be disrespected and be the paupers of the world if we do not change and start behaving intelligently by creating agendas, solutions and joining forces together. I am tired of hearing our problems. It is time to do something about them. Saludos.
you are right, there are big differences between caribbean blacks and african ones. i relish the differences when they are good but i don’t like the backbiting. society will always remind us that we are black, so there is no point running away from that! your on point there!
Caribbean blacks and African blacks we are the same race but different cultures. I think its important not to ignore the cultural differences but to embrace them. I also believe that some blacks have an “interiority complex” that we don’t like talking about. Maybe some people have low self esteem too?
I think people want to “belong” so some black people try to “downplay” our blackness. I think its a foolish game to play because society will ALWAYS remind us that we are black.
this whole fallacy of race is really disappointing in general…i’m personally really trying to get away from it…its a challenge because everything is about race (or class) and i am very race conscious…so playing along that race does exist, i see a problem with allowing a spectrum of behavior or a dynamism (sp?) in the way people interact…the idea of saying that a black person is acting white or is not black enough, or my all time favorite, ‘oh her, she’s not really black..she’s african so that’s different’ highlights the closeminded way people approach life and interactions between people or unwillingness to accept something different (i think this led to the whole idea of race in general…that and fear)…not all black people will or want to walk around as though they are secondary citizens or constantly thinking about societal ills…just like all white people don’t walk around, unaware of their privilege…does that make them less white?…i think its a worthless waste of time to sit up and try and determine how black or white or green or hispanic, etc someone is based on some imaginary rubric that may have been created by God only knows…i’d rather just concentrate on living my life like its golden:)…interacting with whomever speaks to my soul and in a manner that is true to who i am…
It’s the same way stateside too. My Trini family advised me to be cautious about a Haitian guy I had a crush on. The things they said were so stereotypical. So, in England, do Caribbeans link up with other Caribbeans from different countries? I find that to be a rare occurance here.
AMEN! It hurts when we spend so much time hating ourselves we miss the bounty of opportunity to learn from each other. we have been spread across the four winds. Imagine the beauty and richness our lives would have if we could just learn not hate the skin we are in!
What a shame, that we Black people fall for this type of ignorance. I don’t understand it either. We have waaaaay to much in common but we have somehow allowed ourselves to focus on the minor differences.