| Chapter 1: | Reconsiderations of Race, Ethnicity, and Identity: Transnational Migrants in Post–World War II Global Society |
control. On the other hand, using the category of ethnicity is a strategy of grassroots resistance in order to foster group solidarity.
The question, however, is how—or can—we separate race from ethnicity? For example, in July 2009 President Obama visited Ghana for the first time as president of the United States. The local people were ecstatic about the visit. The following dialogue about Obama's reception by Ghanaians was reported by NBC News:
- LOCAL GHANAIAN: “Welcome home, welcome to Africa, welcome to home, to Ghana.”
- NEWS REPORTER (background narration): “Ghanaians are welcoming Obama, like a native son…it makes no difference that President Obama's family is from an entirely different country.”
- NEWS REPORTER (to interviewee): “Barack Obama is Kenyan but Ghanaians are still proud of him.
-
LOCAL GHANAIAN (to reporter): “Yah…because he is African, you know? Part of him.”5
For Ghanaians, the continent of Africa—which is beyond nation and indigenous groups—is home to Obama. But President Obama, who grew up without having his Kenyan father around from the time he was two years old, identifies more subtly: “I have the blood of Africa within me.”6
As I pointed out earlier, home and associated geographic areas can be defined and redefined to form solidarity as needed. Ghanaians were excited about having the first “black” president of a powerful nation visit them and expanded their space to include all of Africa so they could be there to welcome him at his “homecoming.” Africa for them at that time, then, was something beyond national geographic divisions. But does this geographic spacing derive from race or ethnicity? Are they forming their relationship to Obama through that of race or ethnicity? Obama and Ghanaians share physical affinity in the sense that Obama expressed as his “African blood.” Ghanaians used blood and home to foster the connections between themselves and Obama, between Africa and the United States. If we are to use race as a classification of physical affinity, and ethnicity as the group member's views in relation to home,