A black American who co-hosts “How Does Immigration Benefit Black Americans? #SecureTheTribe” on Twitter Space got fellow blacks annoyed with his views which showed a shallow understanding of immigration.
The forum which was held on Thursday was for African-Americans and African immigrants in the US to speak about the impact of African immigration on them.
A young Nigerian lady who lives in the United States of America had asked an innocent question about how the huge sums the country realizes from immigrants, especially black immigrants, benefit the American blacks.
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But Tariq Nasheed, an American movie producer co-hosting the show, said foundational blacks in the US do not need the immigrants as they’re already making more money in their country. He then asked the lady why the immigrants ( from Nigeria and other countries) had to come to the US if they were making so much money in their own countries.
Nasheed’s suggestion that African immigrants are not contributing to the system but rather taking their jobs provoked furious response from listeners, especially Nigerians who exposed the co-host as ignorant and uneducated.
One of the listeners in the space, Gimba Kakanda told Nasheed to study the history of America because the country was built with Africa’s resources.
“You say that you are all victims of the American system. We are also victims of American system. You don’t start your history from 1960, you don’t start telling your history from the 1800 you have to move further down the line.
“How did we get here? We got here because the world interfered with the resources, legal structure of Africa and interfered with our economic growth.
“If you know anything about third world dependency , you are going to have an understanding that we didn’t just become dependent on western country by chance. They triggered this dependency. This America you are so glorifying, was built by our resources for God’s sake.”
He also pointed to Nasheed how Nigerian immigrants are excelling in different professions in the US to show the value they bring, adding however that foundational blacks in the country cannot match their contributions.
“I have two friends here who are professors in the United States. And I don’t see how you or anybody at all who is a high school dropout is going to compete with them. They are not being favored by any affirmative action, or as quota system beneficiaries but because they are they are top dogs in their field,” he said, in obvious rage.
Another Nigerian, YabaLeft, advised Nasheed to see a psychiatric for proper mental evaluation.
He said, Tariq, do you plan to come to Lagos any time soon? I’ll pay for everything. There’s a place in Lagos called Yaba left, it’s a mental hospital where you need to come and get checked.”
Commenting on the issue, Ulloma also said “You’ve been ranting on a Space for 7+ hours and you’re wondering why ‘Africans’ are taking your jobs? Dude, that’s a whole work shift. It’s not our fault you’re committed to being jobless.”
Meanwhile, according to the Migration Policy Institute report in 2018, 59% of Nigerian immigrants aged 25 or older in the US hold at least a bachelor’s degree that is nearly doubled the proportion for Americans born in the US.
The report also stated that 54% Nigerian immigrants are in largely white collar positions in management, business, science and the arts, compared to just 39% of people born in the US. That means they have significant spending power.
Also, a report by the new American Economy Research Fund in 2018 also showed that Nigerian immigrants in the United States made more than $14 billion and paid more than $4 billion in taxes.
Most immigrants even those of African extraction know next to nothing about African contributions to what America is,today.
Only the history that negates African/American immigrants received prominence and emphasis at all for a such as the one under focus.
To make worse the situation, even back in Africa ,history as a subject has been relegated to the background; therefore the misgivings about African immigrants contributions to American development.
The response by a an African brother Gimba Kakanda has said it all for those seeking for the truth.
Oh please! You contribute NOTHING to your own countries yet try to claim the achievements of others. This hit piece is an example of the dishonest “reporting” Africans do that Harvard talked about when they retracted a story written by black immigrants against ADOS. Where’s the reporting on the countless African-led discussions against FBA every single day since Clubhouse started? African immigrants have been disrespecting FBA on Twitter for YEARS now. Why haven’t you reported on that? You keep showing yourselves as dishonest and manipulative.
Are you going to act like 2 African professors outnumber the number of FBA professors that have existed since CENTURIES before Africans we’re allowed here? There’s not one things Africans are doing in America that FBA haven’t already done and continue to do.
Furthermore, only a handful of Africans are allowed in the US. Comparing the percentage of that small population with degrees to a native population makes no sense. Compare the educational levels of Americans in African countries to the native populations. The comparison makes no sense but shows how desperate Africans are to feel better than others. Inferiority complex at its worst.
I am an African-American woman,and I really do take pride in the fact that I am part of the diaspora . I am grateful in the current years that we are starting to learn about each other from all sides of the Diaspora, so we can share our stories, learn to come together, and support each other as Black people. But with every step forward and progress we take 10 steps back…. And that is what I dislike about Tariq Nasheed ; his stupidity, ignorance and his divisiveness. He has a very convoluted understanding of what it means to be black or African-American or African, Caribbean etc. So I commented on his page and I asked him “so where does that leave me? My mother is African-American but my dad is from Barbados, so am I a “tether”?”He told me that I was and that I have loyalties elsewhere. However the last thing that African-Americans and all Black people of the desperate need is to be divided. We need to learn about each other, come together economically so we could be a driving force. That is a problem. I hate that people continue to listen to his uneducated rants. His followers refuse to educate themselves and listen to a buffoon rather than open up a book. The whole idea of this indigenous blackness is not even historical fact. (At least not for african-Americans as a collective ) we all have African heritage. I asked him why would you want to separate yourself from such a glorious heritage? But I knew the answer, because he is uneducated charlatan with a platform ,he hates His African origins, and he want to spread self-hated to others(for profit). We as Black people need to wise up, get educated(if you’re not already) And share actual factual information with others instead of this poison that he is spreading. He needs to be stopped