Abstract:

During the past 25 years, African immigrants have been arriving in the US in increasing numbers due to the push factors of globalization, wars, civil unrest and natural disasters. Drawing on in-depth interviews with African women as immigrants in Greater Boston and Philadelphia, this paper will explore how the intersections of gender, race and class affect their contributions to civil society and business development. This work illustrates how transnational ties, specifically in the form of a new pan-Africanism, lead African immigrants to make significant contributions to community revitalization, particularly in historically African American communities. Although African women immigrants are clearly transnationals, in their civic lives, they differ from their male counterparts in their especially strong commitment to improving the lives of their families and communities on this side of the Atlantic.

Keywords: IMMIGRATION; TRANSNATIONALISM; PAN-AFRICANISM; INTERSECTIONALITY; RACE RELATIONS; ENTREPRENEURSHIP; CIVIL SOCIETY

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1163/156921008X359588

Affiliations: 1: Department of Sociology, Bryn Mawr College, 101 North Merion Avenue, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010-2899, USA