Did Africans Contribute more to America than Just Physical Labor and Tolling of the Land?

February 1, 2024

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Africa has contributed so much to the culture of America. By bringing the enslaved people here and trying to force them into a culture unknown to them, America in reality adopted their culture and pieces of it still exist today. There is a myth that Africa was a savage land filled with no structure and people of no academic skill. There is a myth that the only contributions made by African slaves was to the development and maintenance of the land and crops.

African knowledge and culture is intertwined in the European and American Anglo-Saxon culture and remnants still exist today. Not only did the slave trade steal the people of Africa, but their culture along with them only to rename it as theirs. We read a passage this week by Joseph E. Holloway titled, What Africa Has Given America. This was enlightening because it showcased the culture that the Africans brought along with them from their land that is now ingrained in our American culture.

Africans were really smart. They healed the sick by preparing medications from roots and herbs which they were doing in African before they came. They also brought over their inoculation practices which helped to make vaccines for rattlesnake bites and smallpox. Africans brought over their folklore from East and West Africa and built the basis for what we now call Bugs Bunny. Did you know that the cartoon originated from African folk lore as well as Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox? A lot of these African folklore stories laid the foundation for Chicken Little and the Uncle Remus Stories.

Also Africans culture contributed to the food we eat. Black-eyed peas first came to the New World as food for slaves during the Transatlantic slave journey. This food spread from Jamaica to the West Indies, and then finally arriving in Florida in 1700. Black-eyed peas became one of the most popular foods in the South, as well as okra, which is called gumbo in Africa. Even the peanut originated from Africa. The peanut, which was called pinder and goober in Africa, was first brought to Africa by the Portuguese because it originated in South America. However, it made its way to North America via slaves coming into Virginia. The peanuts were used to feed the slaves on the middle passage. In Africa, peanut stew, soup, and gravy are an important part of every meal. Did you know that the peanut was brought here by African slaves?

There is so much more to learn about African slave contributions. Stay tuned to my blog for more interesting and surprising revelations.

Thanks for stopping by!