ATLANTIC CITY — It’s that time of year when one can find endless reunions taking place in our community; that is, the African-American community.
In the form of family reunions, class reunions, backyard or front yard cookouts and after-beach-day porch parties, people gather to stay connected, reconnect or make new connections.
The Atlantic City Inlet beach, every Chicken Bone Beach jazz concert and weekend Gardner’s Basin musical performances are all popular spots if you want to stay connected to African-American locals, blood and extended family members, who have been here for generations.
A teacher once told me that family reunions were especially popular among African-Americans because of our slave experience in the Americas.
Once the Civil War came to an end, she said, people walked from plantation to plantation, sometimes state to state, seeking to “reunite” with family members who had been sold away from their original plantations.
Dr. Ione Vargus of Temple University’s Family Institute says, “For black people, slavery in this country disrupted this most essential structure [the traditional African family] since slavery allowed no legal marriage, no legal family and no legal control over the children.”
When people could not find their family members, in the absence of blood family once they moved North, or in addition to blood family, community members extended themselves to each other.
The extended family has remained crucial to our survival in this country. When I was a little girl on the Westside, every neighborhood in Atlantic City had at least one old-fashioned block party during the summer months.
Street blocks were roped off from traffic and everyone brought food, games and music outside for the day. You might not find many block parties anymore, but the purpose of these summer gatherings is the same — to stay connected.
I found one last week — the Venice Park Civic Association’s “National Night Out.”
Neighbors, families and friends gathered at Dolphin Field, recognized students of all ages who had graduated from kindergarten, high school and college, ate burgers and baked beans, talked and listened to music.
Augusta Garrett, wife of Freeholder Charles Garrett, played games with the children. The president of the VPCA, Alma Johnson, reminded residents that it was a national night out “for safety, not against crime” to keep things in the affirmative.
Atlantic City, like many other U.S. cities, once had segregated beaches, but they didn't start out that way. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Blacks and whites lived side-by-side, worked side-by-side and played side-by-side.
"I hope my daughter will be introduced to a different type of music. She usually plays rock and R&B. I've always tried to keep my daughters busy with something constructive during the summer, no sitting around on your butt watching TV for months."
My fondest Kentucky Avenue memory is gaping in awe at the mere size of Muhammad Ali as he lifted me into the air with one huge hand.
Renovated housing attracts better tenants, which attracts more renovations in the neighborhood. By fixing what we have already, we can immediately put local people to work without the politics of the unions and commercial construction or out of town development interests.
"It was like I had missed some stages of normal development, you know. I had never lived a legit life."
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1. NA white said... on Aug 17, 2011 at 08:53AM
“Reunions a time to reconnect and live past memories. But also a time to past on traditions that make African-American life so great, that others want to emulate.”
2. HAR said... on Aug 21, 2011 at 04:40PM
“Well, once again, I've learned something new. I always enjoy attending family reunions whether it's my family or someone else's who has invited me. I never knew that the tradition was so key for slaves/former slaves to reconnect.”
3. Hassan said... on Aug 21, 2011 at 05:02PM
“I always enjoy attending family reunions whether it's my family or someone else has invited me to their's. Once again, I've learned something new. I was not aware that this tradition had so much to do with slaves and former slaves either staying connected or reconnecting.”