TableTalk: Afro-Europe or “No, where do you really come from?” A conversation with Trina Roach (left on the photo) and her guest Lillian Ogbogoh (right) on blogtalk radio.
They discuss issues of national and cultural identity, and compare and contrast how those issues are viewed differently from country to country. Is there one black (European) way to act?
Trina Roach is an African American living in Germany and Lillian Ogbogoh is a British Born Nigerian (as she calls herself) who lives in London and has lived in the US.
Some of the topics they covered
• How do you self-identify?
• How do you experience “community” amongst other people of African descent where you live?
• How is that sense of “community” expressed in different places in the Diaspora?
• How does the question of “critical mass” influence the lives of people of African descent where you live?
• What role does day-to-day racism play in your life?
• How well-represented are people of African descent in public life?
• What importance was placed on knowledge of Black/African History during your upbringing?
• What can we do to empower children of African descent living in Europe?
Thanks so much for the support!
ReplyDeleteTrina Roach
You're welcome!
ReplyDeleteVery interesting show. I know defining oneself can be hard sometimes when both or the various societies one lives in don’t quite accept you or you find it hard to fit in. Lillian was a great guest. I’m Nigerian but I lived for over 10 years in the UK and now live back in Nigeria. Sometimes when I meet people who have Nigerian parents and were born in the UK and have never been to Nigeria ever but still call themselves Nigerian, I tell them they are Black British. I know why they call themselves Nigerian but as far as I’m concerned they are Black British. Because that’s where they grew up and got a significant part of their cultural references. They have Nigerian ancestry but they are not Nigerian. Because when many of them go to Nigeria for the first time they realise what I’m talking about because they find it hard to fit in.
ReplyDeleteAnd this can be played out across many nationalities etc. It’s fluid debate.
Thanks for your comment. You said "sometimes when I meet people who have Nigerian parents and were born in the UK and have never been to Nigeria ever but still call themselves Nigerian ... they have Nigerian ancestry but they are not Nigerian."
ReplyDeleteWhy can't they can be both? Black British and Nigerian. They may not have a Nigerian passport, but from a cultural perspective they are Nigerian.
Besides, it’s better to include people then to exclude them. :)