Afro-American settlement in Africa
Encyclopedia
The history of Afro-American settlement in Africa extends to the beginnings of ex-slave repatriation
to Africa
from European colonies in the Americas.
, Caribbean
, and Black British
slaves to Africa occurred mainly during the late 18th century to mid 19th century. In the cases of Liberia
and Sierra Leone
both were established by former slaves who were repatriated to African within a 28 year period.
However, other ex-slaves were repatriated from other European territories and colonies. The Tabom people
are descendants of Afro-Brazilian ex-slaves who were either voluntarily or forcefully deported to Africa (some of them being deported following the Bahia
Malê Revolt
in 1835); they constitute a minority ethnic group on the coastal regions of modern-day Ghana
and Togo
.
supported a project for African-American immigration to Liberia later in his lifetime. However, it declined by the end of the 19th century following a string of hoaxes and fraudulent activities associated with the movement.
The Back-to-Africa movement achieved popularity again with Jamaican activist Marcus Garvey
and his UNIA-ACL
, who advocated racial pride amongst African-Americans in the United States and pressed for repatriation of slave descendants to Liberia and Sierra Leone. The movement fell apart by the end of the 1920s, but influenced both the black supremacist Nation of Islam
and the Rastafari movement
; the latter, a Jamaican which saw Haile Selassie I, the emperor of Ethiopia
, as a reincarnation of Jesus
and Marcus Garvey as a patron saint, managed to secure a settlement in Shashamane
, which exists to this day and constitutes around 200+ individuals out of an urban population of 95,000+.
, Ghana, which has over 1000 Afro-American residents, primarily originating from the United States, who reside in the country on work permits, with a few on permanent resident status. Accra has long attracted Afro-American tourists since the country became the first African country to gain independence from the United Kingdom
in 1957, and the government has made controversial overtures to gain more Afro-American residents and tourists.
Repatriation
Repatriation is the process of returning a person back to one's place of origin or citizenship. This includes the process of returning refugees or soldiers to their place of origin following a war...
to Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
from European colonies in the Americas.
Ex-slave repatriation
The immigration of African AmericanAfrican American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
, Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
, and Black British
Black British
Black British is a term used to describe British people of Black African descent, especially those of Afro-Caribbean background. The term has been used from the 1950s to refer to Black people from former British colonies in the West Indies and Africa, who are residents of the United Kingdom and...
slaves to Africa occurred mainly during the late 18th century to mid 19th century. In the cases of Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
and Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
both were established by former slaves who were repatriated to African within a 28 year period.
However, other ex-slaves were repatriated from other European territories and colonies. The Tabom people
Tabom People
The Tabom People refers to the Afro-Brazilian community in Accra. The Tabom People is an Afro-Brazilian community of former slaves. When they arrived in Accra they could speak only Portuguese, so they greeted each other with “Como esta?” to which the reply was “Ta bom”, so the Ga people of Accra...
are descendants of Afro-Brazilian ex-slaves who were either voluntarily or forcefully deported to Africa (some of them being deported following the Bahia
Bahia
Bahia is one of the 26 states of Brazil, and is located in the northeastern part of the country on the Atlantic coast. It is the fourth most populous Brazilian state after São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, and the fifth-largest in size...
Malê Revolt
Male Revolt
The Malê Revolt is perhaps the most significant slave rebellion in Brazil. On a Sunday during Ramadan in January 1835, in the city of Salvador da Bahia, a small group of black slaves and freedmen, inspired by Muslim teachers, rose up against the government...
in 1835); they constitute a minority ethnic group on the coastal regions of modern-day Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
and Togo
Togo
Togo, officially the Togolese Republic , is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, on which the capital Lomé is located. Togo covers an area of approximately with a population of approximately...
.
Post-slavery settlement
Following the end of slavery in the Americas, numerous movements for African-American settlement in Africa sprung up and fluctuated in popularity, many of them involving Liberia. African American abolitionist and Army officer Martin DelanyMartin Delany
Martin Robinson Delany was an African-American abolitionist, journalist, physician, and writer, arguably the first proponent of American black nationalism. He was one of the first three blacks admitted to Harvard Medical School. He became the first African-American field officer in the United...
supported a project for African-American immigration to Liberia later in his lifetime. However, it declined by the end of the 19th century following a string of hoaxes and fraudulent activities associated with the movement.
The Back-to-Africa movement achieved popularity again with Jamaican activist Marcus Garvey
Marcus Garvey
Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Jr., ONH was a Jamaican publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, and orator who was a staunch proponent of the Black Nationalism and Pan-Africanism movements, to which end he founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League...
and his UNIA-ACL
Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League
The Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League is a black nationalist fraternal organization founded by Marcus Garvey. The organization enjoyed its greatest strength in the 1990s, prior to Garvey's deportation from the United States of America, after which its...
, who advocated racial pride amongst African-Americans in the United States and pressed for repatriation of slave descendants to Liberia and Sierra Leone. The movement fell apart by the end of the 1920s, but influenced both the black supremacist Nation of Islam
Nation of Islam
The Nation of Islam is a mainly African-American new religious movement founded in Detroit, Michigan by Wallace D. Fard Muhammad in July 1930 to improve the spiritual, mental, social, and economic condition of African-Americans in the United States of America. The movement teaches black pride and...
and the Rastafari movement
Rastafari movement
The Rastafari movement or Rasta is a new religious movement that arose in the 1930s in Jamaica, which at the time was a country with a predominantly Christian culture where 98% of the people were the black descendants of slaves. Its adherents worship Haile Selassie I, Emperor of Ethiopia , as God...
; the latter, a Jamaican which saw Haile Selassie I, the emperor of Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
, as a reincarnation of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
and Marcus Garvey as a patron saint, managed to secure a settlement in Shashamane
Shashamane
Shashamane is a town in central Ethiopia. It is located in the Misraq Shewa Zone of the Oromia Region. The city lies on the Trans-African Highway 4 Cairo-Cape Town, about from the capital of Addis Ababa...
, which exists to this day and constitutes around 200+ individuals out of an urban population of 95,000+.
Ghana
Another Afro-American settlement is concentrated in AccraAccra
Accra is the capital and largest city of Ghana, with an urban population of 1,658,937 according to the 2000 census. Accra is also the capital of the Greater Accra Region and of the Accra Metropolitan District, with which it is coterminous...
, Ghana, which has over 1000 Afro-American residents, primarily originating from the United States, who reside in the country on work permits, with a few on permanent resident status. Accra has long attracted Afro-American tourists since the country became the first African country to gain independence from the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in 1957, and the government has made controversial overtures to gain more Afro-American residents and tourists.