Black, but “Not Black”: Dominican Racial Contestations and the Pursuit of Authentic Blackness

Abstract

Because identity is a continuously evolving process, it is important to question whether and how immigrant groups contend with U.S.-based ideas about race. This is especially the case for Afro-Latinxs, who sit at the intersection of two identities, Blackness and Latinidad, that are constructed as mutually exclusive. This dissertation uses Dominicans in the U.S. as an empirical case for understanding how Afro-Latinx groups think about their racial identity and create racial meaning around labels like “Latinx” and “Black.” I also theorize the concept of ethnoracial authenticity and explore how this group navigates normative constructions of Blackness and Latinidad that situate them outside of these identities. Finally, I discuss how Dominicans engage with transnational racial justice movements that create space for Dominicans both in the Dominican Republic and in the diaspora to challenge Dominican xenophobia and anti-Blackness. This work contributes to a broader conversation about the future of Black and Latinx politics and intergroup coalition building and offers insight into how Black Latinxs perceive the benefits of social and political alignment with these larger groups. Understanding the intersections of ethnicity and racial identity and the ways in which these groups overlap is ultimately important for considering what Black, Latinx, and Black Latinx coalition-building will look like in the future and could help us better understand and appreciate the role that these communities could play in global efforts for racial justice.