Afro-American peoples of the Americas

Afro-American peoples of the Americas

Regions with significant populations
Throughout the Americas
United States	42,020,743[1]
Brazil	14,517,961[2][3]
Haiti	8,500,000
Colombia	4,944,400[4]
Jamaica	2,700,000
Panama	2,500,000
Cuba	1,034,044[5]
Dominican Republic	1,029,535[6]
Canada	945,665[7]
Puerto Rico	879,121
Peru	861,427
Venezuela	181,154[8]
Languages
English, Portuguese, Spanish, Haitian Creole, French, Papiamento, Dutch, English creole and many others
Religion
Christianity, Rastafari, Afro-American religion, Islam
Related ethnic groups
African diaspora

Afro-American peoples of the Americas is used to refer to people born in the Americas with predominantly Sub-Saharan African ancestry. Most are descendants of people enslaved and transferred from Sub-Saharan Africa to the Americas by Europeans, to work in their colonies, mostly in mines and plantations as slaves, between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries. At present, they constitute about 18% of the population of the Americas, with the largest concentrations by percentage of population in Haiti (92%), Jamaica (91%), Barbados (90%), Turks and Caicos (90%), Dominica (87%), The Bahamas (85%), Dominican Republic (84%),^[9] Saint Lucia (83%), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (66%), Bermuda (55%), Cuba (50%), Puerto Rico (46%), Belize (35%), Trinidad and Tobago (34.2%),^[10] Brazil (20.5% mixed + 7% Black), Panama (21%), United States (13.6%),^[1] Colombia (10.52%),^[4] Uruguay (4%),^[11] Canada (2.9%),^[7] and Venezuela (2.8%).^[8]

Afro-American history

After the United States achieved independence, came the independence of Haiti, a country populated almost entirely by Afro-Americans, the second American colony to win its independence. After the process of independence, many countries have encouraged European immigration into America, thus reducing the proportion of black and mulatto population throughout the country: Brazil, United States, Dominican Republic, etc. In the Casta system, imposed by the Spanish Empire in their American colonies, the son of black and European was called a mulatto, and the son of black and Amerindian was called zambo, among many other denominations for further mixes.

Afro-American population today

From 21st to November 25 of 1995, the Continental Congress of Black Peoples of the Americas was held. Afro-Americans still face discrimination in most parts of the continent. According to David D.E. Ferrari, vice president of the World Bank for the Region of Latin America and the Caribbean, Afro-Americans have lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, more frequent and more widespread diseases, higher rates of illiteracy and lower income than Americans of different ethnic origin. Women, also the subject of gender discrimination, suffer worse living conditions.

Even in countries like Brazil, with 6.9% of phenotypically Black population and 43.8% of pardo (mestizo), poverty is common. It is nevertheless important to note that the´Pardo category includes all mulattoes, zambos and the result of their intermixing with other groups (which is not sufficiently Subsaharan-looking to be negro and not sufficiently European-looking or Levantine-looking to be branco), but it is independent of African descent, with most White Brazilians having at least one recent African and/or Native American ancestor and Pardos also being caboclos, descendants of Whites and Amerindians, or mestizos. There are more definitions on the differences and social disparity between blacks, "non-white non-blacks" and whites in Brazil in the Black people article section.

According to various studies, the main genetic contribution to Brazilians is European (always above 65%, and an American one found it as high as 77%), and Pardos possess an intermediate degree of African descent when compared to the general White Brazilian and Afro-Brazilian populations (the previous mostly with some detectable non-white ancestor and the latter highly miscegenated) and exhibit a greater Amerindian contribution in areas such as the Amazon Basin and a stronger African contribution in the areas of historical slavery such as Southeastern Brazil and coastal Northeastern cities, nevertheless both are present in all regions, and that physical features did not correlate with detectable ancestry in many instances.^{[12][13][14][15][15][16][17]}

On November 4, 2008, the first afrodescendant U.S. president, Barack Obama, won 52% of the vote, following positive results in states that had traditionally been won by Republican presidents, such as Indiana and Virginia.

Notable Afro-American peoples of the Americas

• Barack Obama - American Politician
• DaMarcus Beasley - American Soccer player
• Serena Williams - American Tennis player
• Domingo Sosa - Argentine Soldier
• Carlos Posadas - Argentine Musician
• Arturo Rodríguez - Argentine Boxer
• Ramiro Castillo - Bolivian Soccer player
• Robinho - Brazilian Soccer player
• Margareth Menezes - Brazilian Singer
• Zezé Motta - Brazilian Actress
• Edem Awumey - Canadian Writer
• Archie Alleyne - Canadian Musician
• Kevin Hanchard - Canadian Actor
• Jean Beausejour - Chilean Soccer player
• Jackson Martínez - Colombian Soccer player
• Elcina Valencia - Colombian Teacher
• María Isabel Urrutia - Colombian Athlete
• Abelardo Barroso - Cuban Singer
• Bebo Valdés - Cuban Pianist
• Laz Alonso - Cuban Actor
• Giovanny Espinoza - Ecuadorian Soccer player
• Alex Quiñónez - Ecuadorian Olympic sprinter
• Melvin Brown - Mexican Soccer player
• Lupita Nyong'o - Mexican Actress
• Giovani dos Santos - Mexican Soccer player
• Devern Hansack - Nicaraguan Baseball pitcher
• Rudel Calero - Nicaraguan Soccer player
• Mario Bazán - Peruvian Athlete
• Jefferson Farfán - Peruvian Soccer player
• Cayetano Alberto Silva - Uruguayan Musician
• Rubén Rada - Uruguayan Singer
• Carlos Andrés Sánchez - Uruguayan Soccer player
• Oscar D'León - Venezuelan Musician
• Pablo Sandoval -Venezuelan Athlete
• Morella Muñoz - Venezuelan Singer

Related bibliography

• Ethnic domination and racist discourse in Spain and Latin America.Dijk, Teun A. van. van. Gedisa Editorial SA ISBN 84-7432-997-3
• Gender, class and race in Latin America: some contributions.Luna, Lola G. Ed PPU, SA ISBN 84-7665-959-8
• Gender, race and class "color" desensientes Latinas. Impoexports, Colombia, Yumbo

See also

• African African-American
• Afro-Latin American
• Afro-descendent
• Foreign-born Afro-Americans
• Afro-Caribbean

References