Racial identity and ethnicity may seem highly complex and is a difficult subject to discuss. There is no doubt that Blacks and Latinos carry similar ties. One day, I was surfing through social media, and viewed promos for the new reality TV series, Love & Hip Hop: Miami on VH1. I am highly familiar with the Love & Hip Hop franchise, but I’ve never watched the Miami season.
After deciding to watch the first episode, I was shocked that one of the breakout stars, Amara La Negra, who openly identified herself as Afro-Latina, was being judged by her race. During the episode, Amara was seen meeting up with a Latin producer and he made a few racist comments regarding her “look.”
For instance, he told her that he didn’t think that people would take her seriously with her Afro, and how she needs to switch up her look in order to be successful in the music industry. Amara told him that she was an Afro-Latina and he asked “What does that mean? Does that mean that you have an Afro?” And even made a comment about her “Nutella” skin color, which was undeniably racist. Below is a picture of the lovely Amara La Negra, who is Dominican-American and of course, a proud Afro-Latina:
After the episode, I went on Instagram and saw nothing but clips of what I just saw regarding the scene with Amara and the producer all over my timeline. After seeing the online reviews, I was shocked by the comments made about the situation. I noticed that half of the fans were supporting her and others were judging her.
I was shocked because the people who were judging her were mainly black. In fact, those people were claiming that she was doing “black face.” I found this very ignorant and wanted to know why her skin color and hair were an issue. I noticed comments saying “oh she’s not black she’s Latina. These people want to be black so bad.” And “Her skin looks so airbrushed and fake to me.” What bothers me is that it is 2018, and people can’t learn the difference between race and ethnicity.
But the question is, what exactly does Afro-Latino/Latina mean? Well, according to Latin Times, Afro-Latino/Latinas are people of African descent who have origins in Latin American and Caribbean countries. This mainly focuses on the culture and language. For example, a darker skin Latino who was born in the Dominican Republic or Cuba. People just assume that Latino is a whole race, which is FALSE. It is important that we are more open-minded when it comes to race vs ethnicity.
Let’s be clear. Amara’s RACE is black, and her ETHNICITY is Dominican-American. There have been issues where some dark-skinned Latinos would deny being black, which is another major problem. This is because people in both parties are still refusing to acknowledge that Afro-Latino is a real term. What needs to be understood is that black people come in all forms and colors ranging from light to dark skin. Afro-Latin does exist and you should not be skeptical when you see a black person speaking Spanish or any other language. This goes for mixed races such as Black and Asian, also known as “Blasian.”
What people need to understand is that we Africans came on the same boat, BUT not all of us went to the same place. In fact, according to Henry Louis Gates Jr. in "Black In Latin America," a 2011 PBS documentary, he stated that 11.2 million Africans were transported from the Middle Passage to the New World, but only 450,000 made it to the United States, while others landed all over Latin America, the Caribbean, and even other nations. This also can be taken back to the early 17th century where Ouidah, a West African city (currently the Republic of Benin) was one of the major trading routes of slavery. Villagers witnessed people being enslaved and stripped of everything they owned and taken to foreign countries.
According to Jehovah Witnesses from JW.org, 11-12 million Africans were shipped and only 6 percent were sent to the United States, 85 percent were sent to Latin American countries and Caribbean countries, while the remaining went to other countries.
Still, don’t believe me, or think you have never seen an "Afro-LatinoLatina"? Here are some popular celebrities who you didn’t know were Afro-Latino/Latina:
1. Lala Anthony
Yes, Lala is a well-known television personality, businesswoman, actress, producer, and NY Times best-selling author. She is also married to famous NBA player Carmelo Anthony. Anthony was born to Puerto Rican parents and raised in New York City.
2. Zoe Saldana
Saldana, a famous actress, was born to Dominican and Puerto Rican parents. She also has traces of Haitian and Lebanese roots. Saldana stated "There's no one way to be black. I''m black the way I know how to be."
3. Victor Cruz
Cruz is a well-known American football wide receiver, who is currently a free-agent. He was born to African American and Puerto Rican parents in New Jersey.
4. Bruno Mars
5. Christina Milian
Yes, well-known for her hit singles, Milian is indeed Cuban-American. In a statement, she said, "I’m Cuban but people didn’t get it because I was also brown-skinned... Latinos come in all colors, all shades... You should see my mom and her brothers and sisters... We just vary in color, shapes and sizes. But we’re still Latinos — that doesn’t change a damn thing."
6. Selenis Leyva
Leyva is a Cuban-born actress. She is best known for the Netflix Original hit series, "Orange Is the New Black."
7. Cardi B
Well-known rapper and billboard superstar born Belcalis Almanzar was born to Dominican and Trinidadian parents.
8. Fabolous
This famous rapper was born to Dominican parents. He was also a former member of the Love & Hip Hop franchise on the New York season. He and Amara La Negra aren't the only Afro-Latin artists on the Love & Hip Hop franchise.
9. Tyson Beckford
Yes, he is! The famous model was born to Panamanian and Jamaican parents.
10. Juliet “Juju” Castaneda
Famously known as Juju, is a current member of Love & Hip Hop: New York. She is a proud Afro-Latina and is born to Cuban parents. She and Amara are highly supportive of each other as well. It was shocking that Amara was getting backlash while people gave no opinions on Juju's identity. Both are in the current seasons of Love & Hip Hop.
For those who know me, no, I am not Latina at all. I am a proud Caribbean American who feels that people in the Black Community need to accept their own, and for those who are Latino/Latina need to be informed. But why am I writing this article?
Well, I want to provide a voice for all my friends who are tired of explaining themselves and those who keep being in denial about who they are. Now you know that some of your favorite celebrities are Afro-Latino/Latina, it’s time to have an open mind about race and culture.
