The racial and ethnic identities of Afro-Latinos. LIB 133 American Culture, Identity and Public Life2018

The racial and ethnic identities of Afro-Latinos
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Word count: 828 words
LIB 133 American Culture, Identity and Public Life2018
Prompt # 2
In Mirta Ojito’s, “Best of Friends, Worlds Apart” Ruiz chose to identify as an Afro-Cuban, to navigate the black-white distinction in America. There are no in-betweens that the blacks mostly categorize him as Cuban and whites see him as simply black. The Afro-Cuban identity is linked to Ruiz’ background as both black and Latino, yet being black are associated with African Americans and he does not look like the stereotypical Latino/Hispanic. The growth in the population of Afro-Latinos has increased the diversity of blacks in the US. For Ruiz, the Afro-Cuban identity allows him to choose beyond the alternative to the black and white options and Hispanic can be a person from any racial background. According to Ojito, the color of the skin influences the lives of Ruiz and Valdes more directly in the US affecting who they relate with and where they live despite having been friends in Cuba.
In the social construction of race and ethnicity, the cultural categories are highlighted more than the genetic diversity in human beings. Race is a less useful marker to explain differences since race has been used to differentiate people along ethnic and racial identities. In any case, ethnicity and race are generally based on phenotypic traits and cultural differences and in the case of Ruiz and Valdes the most noticeable difference is that Ruiz is black and Valdes white in America, but these differences were not distinct markers while in Cuba (Ojito 1). People tend to identify and categorize others based on languages, religions, stereotypes, and race. The lived experiences of Ruiz in Miami diverge from that of Valdes as context and societal relations influence their interactions and how other people perceive Afro-Cubans.
Racial prejudice and discrimination against people of African heritage is still present in the US and for African Americans blacks are identified based on their history in the country. For the whites, the distinction is between whites and others are based on skin color and Ruiz is black regardless of being Afro-Latino. For Ruiz claiming only be black would ignore that he comes from a Spanish speaking country and t claim his multiple identities he considered himself Afro-Latino. Whites have historically grouped people of sub-Saharan African descent together and even the one-drop rule highlighted that having at least one known African ancestors meant that one was no longer white. Negotiation of identities in the US is an ongoing process and there are complexities in explaining Latina identity that whites and African –Americans have distinct perspectives on Afro-Latinos in the US.
While R...