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Food A link in African American Culture

Food A link in African American Culture Food: A Link in African American Culture Four different people, four different lifestyles, all with at least one thing in common—their races (or so we have yet to discover). I began my interviews wanting to show the similarities and differences in eating habits and traditions with the African American perspective in mind. Although race is used as the combining factor in this situation, each individual’s lifestyle, cultural behavior, and even eating habits are all very unique. My interviewees consisted of four Americans, as mentioned before all of same race, with similar yet very distinct backgrounds. They range from a black Jew, to a “Jamerican,” to what I would call a “traditional southerner”, right on down to a modern day Muslim. They all agreed to fill me in and reveal to others the details of their personal history and family backgrounds. Geography, family tradition, and religion all play factors in what they eat as it always has dating back to ancestral times. I began with “JJ Alex;” a 20 year old African American male from the east coast. He is a middle class college student. JJ Alex sounds like your typical college student but he is far from typical. What singles him out from many of his other peers is his religion. You might ask, “How would his religion relate to his eating lifestyle unless he’s a Muslim?” “He couldn’t possibly be Jewish—or could he?” A black Jew—better known as a Seventh Day Holiness. His great grandfather was a Rabbi and the basic teachings in his religion are as followed: his faith believes the Sabbath (day of rest) to begin at sunset on Friday lasting until sunset on Saturday; some worshippers wear Yarmulke; his faith also follows the Old Testament of the Bible; and they wear the Star of David. These beliefs in the Judaic way of life absolutely affect the food that is prepared in his house. JJ Alex mentioned that in Judaism one does not eat of unclean animals, which of course entails the meat of a pig or even fish with no scales. So right away he totally disbanded the myth that all people of African American decent eat pork. He also excludes anything from his diet that contains any pork-derived ingredients. “Not in my house!” he says. Although he does stick to his Judaic diet, JJ Alex and his family do enjoy other foods as well. His mother does most of the cooking in his home. He says they try to eat a lot of baked foods as apposed to fried foods because they are healthier. Steaming is also used a method of preparation. Outside of his religion, JJ Alex engages in other traditions that affect the food he eats. Thanksgiving was always a custom in his house as far as he can remember. He and his family enjoy turkey, stuffing, collard greens, candied yams (sweet potatoes) and many other dishes on this day. What surprised me was that many of his dishes mentioned had a lot of southern influence to them. I thought to myself “how does someone who was born and raised in the northeast be exposed to so much southern style food?” I then proceeded to ask, “So where does the southern edge come from?” He told me that his mother’s side of the family is originally from Texas. He can remember his grandfather’s famous collard greens, dumplings, and pickled cucumbers. He also recalled his grandmother’s ‘Won’t Last’ cake, banana bread, and preserves. These recipes, he told me, were passed form generation to generation. From my interview with JJ Alex I observed that both the religious and traditional aspects helped to shape his eating habits. After my interview with JJ Alex, I then wanted to take my questions to that of the southern part of the United States. “Michelle” is a 16-year-old African American female born and raised in South Carolina. Although she and JJ Alex are from two entirely different regions and religious backgrounds, they do share some similarities in the foods they eat. Michelle is a Christian who was brought up attending an A.M.E. (African Methodist Episcopal) Zion church. Unlike JJ Alex’s faith, Michelle’s does not limit the foods she can eat. Michelle eats a lot of what most other teens her age eat. She is of course a fast food fanatic and also an occasional junk food eater but a lot the other foods she eats is saturated with family traditions and old wise tales. Like most, she enjoys the Thanksgiving Day feast that includes the customary food of a southerner. In addition to JJ Alex, her Thanksgiving dinner includes turkey and dressing (stuffing to most) and collard greens. In her case, she receives her collard greens right out of the family garden. They also have pork ribs, sweet potato pie, and many other foods. And for Christmas dinner, she indulges in the same but it is not until New Year’s and Easter where superstition influences what her family eats. It is said to bring you good luck if you prepare and eat black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day. “I don’t know why, but that’s what my grandma told me,” says Michelle. For Easter holiday, her family always prepares a ham. For what reason, she does not know that either. After Michelle, I decided to ask questions of a good friend of mine, “Ray.” Ray is 32 years old and is what I like to call a born ‘Jamerican.’ He is a first generation American his parents being from the Caribbean island of Jamaica. I found his menu of Jamaican foods quite interesting. Although Ray was born and raised in New York, he still loves to cook in the Jamaican way. Just as JJ Alex and Michelle have shown their holiday traditions, Ray certainly has his. Like most, his family has the big Thanksgiving Day dinner. There is one difference though—at his house the turkey is very spicy. It is what you call ‘jerked.’ Jerk is just a very peppery seasoning that is used on meat and sometimes vegetables. Jerk chicken is a delicious Jamaican dish that Ray enjoys on a regular basis. They also include a dish of rice and peas. Fried plantains (banana-like fruit) are served on the side. Ray’s family also has special foods that they prepare on special days. For example, on New Year’s Eve his aunt prepares a meal call Cow Cod Soup. The soup is actually made from the penis of a cow. It sounds disgusting but it is actually supposed to bring you luck for the year as well as increase virility in men. On Good Friday they eat only fish and for the Easter season bun and cheese is prepared. One fact that Ray filled me in on was that there is even a special dish served at times of a death. In most African American households, it is customary that after a funeral, there is always a big dinner at the home of the deceased. I found this to be true in the households of Jamericans as well. For funeral dinners they prepare a soup called Manish Soup. It is made from the head of a goat. Now when Ray told me this I began to wonder, “Where does one get a goat head in the states?” “Believe it or not,” he told me, “there are Caribbean markets and stores that sell them.” Ray then began to discuss the foods that his culture eats that are similar to that of many African Americans. Calaloo is a leafy green vegetable, which is very much like collard greens. Another Jamaican dish is oxtails, which is a Caribbean rendition of ham hocks. It amazed me to see these similarities from a country that is distant from the US. Now my last interviewee was born and raised in Bronx, NY but his religion came from elsewhere. Khalid is a 21-year-old African American male whose religion is Islam. Khalid is what I call a modern day Muslim. He told me that his beliefs contain many different rules and practices that one must follow. This includes praying 5 times a day and going to the Masjid (Islamic sanctuary) on Fridays. Unlike most religions, the Islamic Sabbath is on Fridays. His religion has a lot to do with what he is and is not permitted to eat. Like JJ Alex’s scenario, he also not permitted to eat pork or anything that contains pork products. The uncleanliness of the animal is not the only factor that dictates what to eat. Health is also an important factor in food choice. Bean pies are a popular dish because of the healthiness of them. Rare meat is not a favorite among his family. “No blood can drip from meat,” according to Khalid. This leads into the fact of halal and haram foods. All foods that are eaten by Muslims must be halal. Halal means that in the case of meat it was slaughtered in the proper manner. In the Islamic religion, there are holidays in which Khalid celebrates. During Hajj and Ramadan they are supposed to sacrifice a lamb. Instead, his family just prepares lamb for dinner. In the case of Ramadan, this is done at the end of the holiday. Ramadan is a month in which Muslims are supposed to fast. Fasting lasts for 28 to 30 days and begins at sunup to sundown. During these daylight hours there is no food or drink permitted as well as no sexual relations. Although Khalid engages in all of these religious traditions, he and his family still celebrate the American holiday Thanksgiving. On regular days, he does eat a lot of “soul food” which includes the collard greens and candied yams. Throughout all four interviewees I realized many foods that are common in the African American culture. In my home, although I choose not to eat pork, we do eat collard greens and sweet potatoes. Coming from a multicultural background that includes African American, Bajan, and Japanese, I also enjoy many other dishes ranging from Asia to the Caribbean. I also have family from the north as well as the south so I understood all the aspects my interviewees were throwing at me. Although each subject is from completely different backgrounds, whether they be geographical or religious, they each share likeness in many different aspects of their lives. Showing the similarities as well as the differences in their eating habits can create a cultural map tracing each individuals food choices back to one source. In this case, the source may be the continent of Africa where many of these foods are eaten today. In West Africa, the yam is a very popular vegetable. This just goes to show how food can be the missing link of different cultures throughout the world. Bibliography:

Word Count: 1798