Jamaican Culture: Migration To The United States

communities. In the United Sates, they were seen as black, members of a definite minority. The amount of education, the amount of income, and culture, didn’t erase ones blackness, as it would back home. Nor are whites sensitive to shade differences, as people are in Jamaica. Whatever their shade or achievements, Jamaicans were victims of racial discrimination in employment, education, and housing. For many Jamaicans, this was the first time that they became painfully aware that black skin was a significant status marker. New York Jamaicans are submerged in the wider black community of America. However, at the same time, Jamaicans distinguish themselves as different than the “indigenous” blacks. Therefore, the results are that their interactions with American whites are less painful. Jamaicans who came to New York City were not shocked by the racial situation, but were disillusioned when they found the city to be less glamorous and offering less economic opportunities than imagined.

African American’s somewhat silent non war revolution of migration to the North and Midwest of the United States which started roughly in 1915. The Great Migration of African American’s was sparked by work labor shortages during World War I. Until this point of mass relocation to the north and west, the majority of African Americans have primarily resided in rural areas of the south. Thousands of opportunities arose in large urban cities and towns across the Northern and Western United States. This migration is also said to have sparked the civil rights movements as well as shaped sports and music. These opportunities and the

Colin Ferguson was born January 14, 1959 in Kingston, Jamaica. His father Von Herman was the managing director for Hercules Agencies, a large pharmaceutical company. Mr. Herman was highly regarded and recognized as a prominent businessman in Jamaica (Montaldo, 2017). Ferguson had four brothers and afforded the privileges that wealth offers in an extreme poverty area. He graduated from Calabar High School in 1969 with a grade average that was ranked in the top third of his class (Montaldo, 2017). In 1978 his father was killed in a car crash and a short time later his mother died from cancer. He would then suffer the loss of the family fortune. At 23 years old Ferguson left Kingston, Jamaica and moved to the U.S. on a Visitor’s Visa (Montaldo, 2017). Jamaican culture is different than American cultures. A study completed in 1997 concerning 225 Jamaican adults, it was found that Jamaican men were considered coarse, reckless, aggressive, lazy, tough, arrogant, stern, disorderly, robust, rigid, autocratic, courageous, and hard headed (Carpenter & Walters, 2011).

The Great Migration was a massive movement of African Americans from the South to the North from 1863 to 1960. The largest spike in this migration occurred from about 1910 to 1920.

It seems that the word Immigration has took on a new meaning as for it once meant. Immigration is the action of coming to live permanently in a foreign country. It has always been a hot topic in our society because of all the controversy behind it, About whose land is actually theirs. It all starts in 1620, when the mayflower for the first time in history touches american soil, And changes the way history would unfold and the very way we live today. They came from England, searching for vast freedom from a corrupt, indigenous society seeking freedom of religion and the thought, ironically searching for the American dream before it became a phrase. They would stumble across humble , spiritual, and land loving givers who would eventually train these new pilgrims on how to live off the good god living land. Things would soon take a turn for the worst when disputes over land came abroad, this ended in a bloody battle leaving the pilgrims victorious with their new land. But history is always prone to repetitiveness once the 1700's came.

The continuities of the migration from the south to the north. At this time about 500,000 african american southerners migrated to the north for better opportunities including better rights and industrial jobs,but there was some components that were negatively the same as the south side. As african americans they still faced oppression. This form of oppression consisted of discrimination and racial profiling. Sooner or later the neighborhoods the increased with african american population became known as the ghetto. One overall component that continued to happen was the lynching of african americans. Although this was illegal in the north,many people of the caucasian ethnicity did not like the fact that many african americans were overpopulating

The island of Jamaica is very rich in culture and has many historic turnabouts throughout the years. The country has a rich and complex history including being the first country to have Arawak and Taino Indians settle there.

During the mass immigration era of America, an abundant number of people traveled to the urban industrial society of the United States in aspiration to seek job opportunities and better lives than the ones they left behind. These groups included the Poles, Italians, Chinese, Mexicans, Japanese, East European Jews, and the African- Americans. However, one of these groups mentioned was distinctly different from the rest: the African-Americans. They were already American citizens, who migrated to the northern American cities to free themselves from segregation, oppression, and harsh conditions they experienced in the South and obtain equal rights and opportunities. Although the African-Americans'

“The imposition of structural adjustment programs in the Third World since the 1970s has been characterized as a war against the poor, a process of [neo] recolonization” (Turner, 1994: 37). This statement is particularly applicable to the country of Jamaica. The island has been susceptible to a variety of neocolonial acts including the presence of multinational corporations, structural adjustment programs, and loan organizations that have sucked Jamaica’s economy dry. This neocolonial presence has devastated the population in more ways than one. It is apparent that neocolonialism has had and continues to have a large impact on society as a whole in Jamaica. This

The migration of European settlers and culture to North America is an often examined area. One aspect of this, however, is worthy of deeper analysis. The conquest of North America by Europeans and American settlers from the 16th to 19th centuries had a profound effect on the indigenous political landscape by defining a new relationship dynamic between natives and settlers, by upsetting existing native political, economic and military structures, and by establishing a paradigm where the indigenous peoples felt they had to resist the European and American incursions. The engaging and brilliant works of Andres Rensendez and Steve Inskeep, entitled respectively “A Land So Strange” and “Jacksonland”, provide excellent insights and aide to this analysis.

     The land of Jamaica is very small. The total land mass area of the island is 4,243 square miles. Stretching 146 miles from east to west and at its furthest points north to south, approximately 51 miles (Encyclopedia Americana, 2001, P 670). Within this area, the land is

Without The Great Migration, or the migration of African Americans from 1915 to 1970 from the south to the north, the north would have suffered economically (Wilkerson 8). Specifically, without the Great Migration, the north would have faced extensive job shortages, that would have eventually led to economic turmoil. One cause of The Great Migration was the need for southern African Americans to take industrial jobs in the north. Furthermore, during times of war, many men were removed from the workforce, meaning that the north needed additional workers to fill the now vacated spots. (The Great) The north needed the southern African Americans in order to fill these slots, and without them, the north’s economy would have suffered

The progression of people into and within the United States has had an essential impact on the nation, both intentionally and unintentionally. Progressions such as The Great Migration and the Second Great Migration are examples of movements that impacted the United States greatly. During these movements, African Americans migrated to flee racism and prejudice in the South, as well as to inquire jobs in industrial cities. They were unable to escape racism, but they were able to infuse their culture into American society. During the twentieth century, economic and political problems led to movements such as The Great Migration and The Second Great Migration which impacted the United States significantly.

There have been several regions of United States that have gone through cultural changes throughout time. The indigenous people on the East coast went through a cultural change when the pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock. The people that lived in the North went through a cultural change when the French entered by the St. Lawrence River bringing their Roman Catholicism religion. The people that were living in what is now Alaska went through cultural change when the Russians entered the area with their new language and orthodox religion. More recently, the people of Miami have gone through cultural changes since the Cubans have entered Southern Florida. To understand the migration of Cubans to Southern

Reggae music was a big part of Jamaican culture. Many artists practiced the style of reggae and some of the artists like Bob Marley influenced and showed people internationally all about this music. It originated around the time that Jamaica was being attacked by European countries like Spain and native people being taken into slavery. Bob Marley was born after the time of slave trading but whites still effected the native people and this is how he got his inspiration for his music.