Through history Black people have been persecuted simply because their skin happens to be a different color than that of the majority. That majority comes in all forms and sizes, but the one thing they all hold in common is that their skin is pale, they lack the melamine that their dark counterparts happen to be full of. This persecution happened in Africa, the U.S., and even in Germany. However, in Germany the persecution of Black people was ironic, it was only those that were essentially Black German citizens that the German people saw as their subordinate. Through images, rap artists, poets, and a report by the German government, it will be clear that if you were a Black German you were inferior, but if you were an American Black man you were seen as an equal or even a superior. The first problem that Black Germans face is that no one sees them as Germans. In 1910 Goerg von Doering wrote a report to the Colonial Office, speaking about the babies of White and Black couples, calling the babies, ‘mischlinge.’ In English this means, mixed blood, as in both German and native. This is controversial because in other countries, though you may be Black, your nationality is defined by where you are born. These children were born in German territory’s, so to the educated individual this seems to be an easy answer. But, the German government seems to not understand this, “mischlinge are counted with the native population and they don’t enjoy [any] privileges beyond those of the rest of the native population” (Doering). Our first instance of seeing the blatant disrespect that the German people show their own citizens. This can be further seen through the jobs that were given to Black Germans. In a picture of a German East African and three white German children. It is clear to see the racial divide between the two worlds that the Black servant and the children live in. The Black servant is pictured as pulling a cart with flowers all around it with the three children sitting in the back. The servants face is not facing us, but, the children are, with smiles. All parties are wearing white, but the uniform that the Black man is wearing is an indication of his inferiority. He even has a small white hat on his head, to top fulfill the gap between his white counterparts. He is a German citizen, but his skin makes him an outlier in the world of the White Germans. Interesting enough, when the Black American’s come to Germany during the war, they are admired. The German people are in awe of them. This can be seen in a picture of two Black soldiers, one of whom who is playing and two white, female Germans. The girl through their facial expressions show the difference of Black German and a Black
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It is almost as if the German people do not realize that theses Black Germans grew up beside them. In the same neighborhood, eating the same food, speaking the same language. It is more than just racism, it is dehumanization, everyone should have the right to say they came from somewhere. By taking that away from the Black Germans is worse because they may have ancestry in African but they are not from there either so they become people without a home. No one should have to go through that. One way that Black German do resemble Black American is that they conform to the majority social rules. El-Tayeb says in her book, “they are the minority generally perceived as being most “un-German” (61). Sometime Black Americans do things their way which is not always met with applause by the White majority of the U.S. However, when a Black American such as in the Toxi movie comes to Germany they are revered. In the movie Toxi’s father come and gets his daughter Toxi. In a picture of the scene the whole family surrounds Toxi’s father, gazing at him. They had never seen a man in cloths such as his and he happens to tower over them all. There is unbelief on their eyes because they realize he is their equal and might even be their superior. He is a Black man from America and immediate he gives respect. Something that a Black German would not
It is almost as if the German people do not realize that theses Black Germans grew up beside them. In the same neighborhood, eating the same food, speaking the same language. It is more than just racism, it is dehumanization, everyone should have the right to say they came from somewhere. By taking that away from the Black Germans is worse because they may have ancestry in African but they are not from there either so they become people without a home. No one should have to go through that. One way that Black German do resemble Black American is that they conform to the majority social rules. El-Tayeb says in her book, “they are the minority generally perceived as being most “un-German” (61). Sometime Black Americans do things their way which is not always met with applause by the White majority of the U.S. However, when a Black American such as in the Toxi movie comes to Germany they are revered. In the movie Toxi’s father come and gets his daughter Toxi. In a picture of the scene the whole family surrounds Toxi’s father, gazing at him. They had never seen a man in cloths such as his and he happens to tower over them all. There is unbelief on their eyes because they realize he is their equal and might even be their superior. He is a Black man from America and immediate he gives respect. Something that a Black German would not