Boundaries of Blackness – The Racialization of Eritreans, Ethiopians, and Somalis Over Time

• In Event: Conflict and Belonging Across Borders

Abstract

Over the course of its history, the United States has struggled to define race and whiteness/non-whiteness, with skin color, geography, religion, and political considerations all playing a role in legal decisions. By asking to be considered white in petitions for naturalization, European- and Arab-Americans played an active role in their racialization. Though missing from these legal determinations of race, people from the Horn of Africa also participated in their racialization in the United States. Their path to doing so, however, was not as straightforward as making arguments in U.S. courts. Their racialization was based on several factors: (1) origin stories which highlighted interaction with the Middle East, (2) religion, and (3) Ethiopians using their knowledge of other countries and foreign politics to frame themselves in politically expedient and positive lights as early as the fourth century. However, their active role in these processes is rarely acknowledged and is the focus of my exploration here.

Author

• Rebbeca Tesfai, Temple University