| Publication |
2005.
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| Summary/Abstract |
This article presents the case of Cape Verdeans living in Boston, Massachusetts, as a community faced with the dilemma of constructing social identities within a racialized society. The Cape Verdean diaspora community of Boston is one that is fragmented into two distinct sectors of "Cape Verdean Americans" and "Cape Verdean immigrants." Through an analysis of "identity narratives," this article illustrates how Cape Verdeans' diasporic identity formation is constructed out of processes of negotiation and contestation. In determining whether Cape Verdeans living in Boston associate more with their cultural group or other larger racialized groups whom they resemble (e.g., African-Americans, Latinos), this article reveals how diasporic identities are not merely a given, but are a matter of heated debate. The Cape Verdean diaspora of Boston provides an interesting example of how immigrants of African descent are actively reshaping the boundaries of racial categories by creating a space for cultural differentiation. The self-identification practices of Cape Verdeans are not unlike those of many other racially and ethnically defined immigrants in the United States, who continue to relocate to the United States, permanently or temporarily, due to personal choice, economic necessity, political persecution, ecological escape, and familial reunification. This article demonstrates how racial and ethnic categories are expanding and thus challenging our common sense notions of race, ethnicity, and culture.
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