Self Determination and Socio-Political Frustration. Perspectives of the Diaspora.

Self Determination and Socio-Political Frustration. Perspectives of the Diaspora. When Black History is discussed, it is often relegated to the North American continent with the conventional recognition of Harriet Tubman, Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights movement. Black History is rarely discussed under the auspices of connecting the entire Diaspora and their shared experiences. I will delve into a comparative analysis of the theme of pan- Africanism, as articulated through specific works of Nicomedes Santa Cruz, Nicolás Guillén, Rene Depestre, Claude McKay and Langston Hughes. African Americans and Afro Latinos have often traversed the intersections of culture through an African lens as well as that of their oppressors. I will examine how these artists addressed their identity; and how their writing addressed the oppression in their community as well as their reaction to continual hostilities by their former colonizers. Moreover, I will explore these concepts juxtaposed against certain social phenomena that inspired some of their writings, such as the Red Summer of 1919, the U.S Occupation of Haiti, the Harlem Renaissance and apartheid. Finally, I will discuss the manner in which these artists recognized and articulated the shared struggles of the Diaspora; in spite of the linguistic barriers