The Africa Diaspora Is Broader Than We Think

             For more than a century, members of the African Diaspora in America and the Caribbean have made efforts to create linkages with our distant kin on the continent of Africa. This has gone beyond those who were born on the continent or their children who maintain familial ties. Those of us born outside of the continent often have tried to create and maintain connections with those of our people in Africa – sometimes successful, sometimes not.

            However, the Diaspora is far broader than just the United States, Canada, the Caribbean and Europe. Here in the United States, we do acknowledge people whose familial ties are from the Caribbean such as Vice President Kamala Harris, whose father was from Jamaica, or the late former Secretary of State Colin Powell, also of Jamaican heritage. We are sometimes fans of Caribbean-born entertainers, such as the late Jamaican singer Bob Marley, Barbadian singer Rihanna and Trinidadian singer Nicki Minaj.

            However, we are largely unaware of Diasporans from other parts of the world, especially from Latin America. The Diaspora populations in non-Caribbean parts of the Western Hemisphere are particularly large in Brazil (55,900,000, including multiracial people), Columbia (4,944,400), Venezuela (3,156,817), Mexico (1,386,556), Peru (1,200,000), Ecuador (680,000), Guyana (225,860), Suriname (200,406), Argentina (149,493) and Grenada (101,309).

            Some of us have visited the legendary Diaspora-rich cities of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (even though 8 of 10 residents of Salvador, Brazil are Diasporan), or Havana, Cuba, or hope to visit them in search of a connection to our African culture in this part of the world. But how many of us are aware of other cities on this side of the Atlantic Ocean with large Diaspora populations and culture from the continent?

            For example, Límon, Costa Rica, is considered the center of Afro-Costa Rican culture. In addition to the country’s beautiful landscapes, world-class beaches and plentiful and diverse fauna and flora, Límon offers an experience of the inherited customs of West Africa and the Antilles has definitively marked what Afro-Costa Rican culture is, both in architecture, food and music and its traditions.

            Then there is Esmeraldas, Ecuador. This city of roughly 650,000 people is about 70% Afro-Ecuadorian and maintains the cuisine, culture, and particularities of many African countries. Also, the city is home to breathtaking landscapes, again with outstanding beaches.

            Isla Cólon, Panama, has the highest level of Diasporans in that country with 48% being African descendants. This city also boasts inherited customs of West Africa and the as evidenced in architecture, food, music, etc., along with stunning landscapes, world-class beaches, and beautiful and diverse fauna and flora.

            When one thinks of visiting Mexico, you likely think of cities such as Acapulco, but Mexico has the fourth largest Diasporan population in Latin America, Cuajinicuilapa is one of several regions in Mexico with the highest population of people of African descent, with an estimated 229,661 Afro-Mexicans.

            We tend not to think of the Diaspora when the names of Central American countries are mentioned (although Mexico is considered part of North America), but there is much African tradition to be found in these countries, in addition to several South American countries other than Brazil.

            There is a truism that businesspeople come first as tourists and return later to do business. Since we tend not to visit these countries with an eye toward seeking African cultural enrichment, obviously we wouldn’t think of establishing connections with members of the Diaspora there who could be business partners. That means they and we are missing the potential for mutually enriching trade and investment opportunities. Who knows how much potential revenue is lost due to this lack of connections?

            There are Diaspora companies involved in sectors spanning agricultural processing to wellness products to fashion to technology. Innovation is growing across the global Diaspora, but there must be a means of identifying and accessing these innovators. Currently, there does not seem to be such a consolidated source of information and connection.

            If we remain out of communication and out of touch with one another, it will be as though we are operating partially blind with one hand tied behind our back. Certainly, connections among North Americans, Africans and Caribbeans has tremendous economic potential, some of which already is in place. However, more can be done if we can overcome language and cultural barriers and open our minds to new linkages where we didn’t expect them.

            Not only are their Diaspora producers of products and services in many more places than we may have thought, but there are Diaspora venture funds, logistical companies and marketing firms that can be the tide that lifts many more boats than occurs now. If you put all these connections together, the global Diaspora can make tremendous strides. This is not an appeal to exclusionary economics; rather, it is an effort to encourage the Diaspora to do all it can and meet potential non-Diaspora partners on a stronger basis. A hand up is much preferable to a handout.

            When the African Union made the Diaspora the sixth region of Africa in 2003, they did so not meaning just North America, Europe, the Caribbean and Brazil; they meant all the Diaspora. How will we access our brethren in the Middle East and the Pacific region if we cannot even reach them on this side of the Atlantic. In our effort to build global Diaspora economic strength, we must leave none behind.

            There are people descended from Latin America and the Caribbean who have succeeded commercially in North America, such as Rihanna, who not only is an acclaimed entertainer, but brought business skills from Barbados to this country, creating the multimillion-dollar Fenty Beauty cosmetics and the Fenty X Savage lingerie lines.

However, a lack of initial celebrity did not hamper Nailah Ellis-Brown, who started Ellis Island Tea, using a Jamaican family-inspired line of naturally sweetened hibiscus tea beverages. Her company is now one of the largest Black-owned beverage companies in America.

One must ask how many other descendants of Latin America and the Caribbean have become successful without acknowledgement of their heritage, and how many others operate in Central and South America without broader international clientele or investment for lack of notoriety or connections.

Perhaps the next time you visit these regions, you may discover products that could succeed if more potential customers knew about them and more financial and marketing supporters recognized the opportunities they present. At the very least, if you visit these countries with that I have described earlier, you might just enjoy the trip while you are there more than you would have previously and end up benefitting more in the long run.