African-Americans traveling to the DR

[ERICKXSON]

Let me add my 2 cents (BOOK YOUR FLIGHT) and forget about colors, beside this country have more than 10,000 color shades and too many mixtures to count in addition you will blend easily with the population and will go home with a beautifull experience.

ERICKXSON

[JanH]

Bobo - My observations as a tourist/property owner on the north coast are the black tourists are treated no differently than any other tourist in restaurants, bars, etc. And this is regardless of "shade".

I personally viewed something interesting on the beach though. I saw a light-skinned black child playing with several dark black children. In no time, the mother of the light-skinned jerked her up and admonished her for playing with the black children. I assume all of these children were dominicans, however, because the boys just had underwear on - which I see all of the time with dominican families.

[Fiesta Mama]

Originally Posted by JanH

I personally viewed something interesting on the beach though. I saw a light-skinned black child playing with several dark black children. In no time, the mother of the light-skinned jerked her up and admonished her for playing with the black children. I assume all of these children were dominicans, however, because the boys just had underwear on - which I see all of the time with dominican families.

Just to add to what Jan said, I know several paler skinned Dominicans who refer to Dominicans darker than themselves as "black" when in most parts of the world, my paler friends would be considered black too. They don't mean it in a derogatory way but at first I found it amusing when I came across many "black" Dominicans who didn't think of themselves that way - it showed me a perspective which I have not seen in North America where people are "labelled" and grouped into one big class rather than being viewed as individuals.

[Bobo]

Thanks for all of the replies! I feel a lot better about visiting the DR now so we will continue with our vacation plans.

Right now we're looking at resorts in the Punta Cana area (Secrets, Iberostar, Paradisus, etc.). Can anyone give us any advice about this area (what to do/what not to do)? Can anyone recommend a good resort in this area? We're not the partying type--just want some R&R and a beautiful beach!

[toneloc24]

Originally Posted by BrothaNature

I am under the impressions that if people go farther away from their resorts, wouldnt it be wise to know basic conversational spansih?

To be completely honest, it's best to know basic conversational spanish, or at least have a little phrasebook, whenever traveling abroad to any Spanish-speaking country. The farther away from the resorts, means much less Englisg being spoken or understood.

When I go to Brasil, for two weeks prior, out comes the Pimsleur CDs for a quick brush-up, as I don't speak Portuguese here daily. When headed to the RD or any other Spanish-language countries, out comes the CDs as well. Just makes for a better experience, as there are people who really want to understand and help you, as well as get to know a bit about you.

[JanH]

Bobo - the most comrehensive web site I've found on resort descriptions and reviews by other tourists is

http://www.debbiesdominicantravel.com/

[Festero]

Originally Posted by Fiesta Mama

Just to add to what Jan said, I know several paler skinned Dominicans who refer to Dominicans darker than themselves as "black" when in most parts of the world, my paler friends would be considered black too. They don't mean it in a derogatory way but at first I found it amusing when I came across many "black" Dominicans who didn't think of themselves that way - it showed me a perspective which I have not seen in North America where people are "labelled" and grouped into one big class rather than being viewed as individuals.

My interpretation of this phenomenon is that Dominicans don't suffer under the constraints of "political correctness" the way we North Americans do. It is what it is... why hide behind what is true and obvious. They call it the way they see it and if a friend of theirs has very dark skin their term of endearment is often "Moreno/a" or Negro/a," but with no negative connotation.

In my neck of the woods we are taught to pretend that certain differences don't exist and that if we find ourselves noticing differences we should be ashamed of ourselves. One could say that the Dominican way is a more honest approach to life.

[Bobo]

Festero,

I see your point but the only problem is when people allow obvious physical differences--like skin color--affect how they view other people. If differences in skin color were viewed the same way that differences in eye color are viewed (i.e., people with brown eyes are treated no better or no worse than people with green eyes) then we wouldn't have a lot of these problems. We get into trouble when we not only "notice" the obvious physical differences but also ascribe (subconsciously) all the stereotypical character traits associated with that physical difference.

As far as I know there are no stereotypes associated with "green eyes".

[Tomvangeffen]

Morenita or negrita........

like the merengue singers do it even has a very positive ring to it (men talking about women...)

I have a Dominican wife, I am myself a white guy, my wife is "caffee con leche" (coffee with milk).

She and her family will use "negro" or "Haitiano/a" as a negative term. But only AFTER already disliking the person will they use these words to talk about it.

Originally Posted by Festero

My interpretation of this phenomenon is that Dominicans don't suffer under the constraints of "political correctness" the way we North Americans do. It is what it is... why hide behind what is true and obvious. They call it the way they see it and if a friend of theirs has very dark skin their term of endearment is often "Moreno/a" or Negro/a," but with no negative connotation.

In my neck of the woods we are taught to pretend that certain differences don't exist and that if we find ourselves noticing differences we should be ashamed of ourselves. One could say that the Dominican way is a more honest approach to life.

[Festero]

Originally Posted by Bobo

I see your point but the only problem is when people allow obvious physical differences--like skin color--affect how they view other people. If differences in skin color were viewed the same way that differences in eye color are viewed (i.e., people with brown eyes are treated no better or no worse than people with green eyes) then we wouldn't have a lot of these problems. We get into trouble when we not only "notice" the obvious physical differences but also ascribe (subconsciously) all the stereotypical character traits associated with that physical difference.

As far as I know there are no stereotypes associated with "green eyes".

Absolutely! I agree with you 100%. I wasn't trying to illustrate anything other than the difference itself, not anything related to unwarranted prejudices. I wrote that specifically for you as the original poster to offer additional insight into how the Dominican culture typically handles issues of color and how it differs from North America. If you were in the DR and someone called you "El Negro" it would not have a prejudice associated with it. If someone does, don't be shocked or put of by it.

It's such a sensitive topic that I wasn't even sure how best to make my point and may not have done a good job with it ... simply attempting to paint the picture for you.

The "political correctness " factor is mentioned because I felt it relative to the distinction between the two cultures. My example: Conference room in USA full of 100 people and everyone knows everyone. Fred is the only black person among the group. A messenger arrives with a package for Fred and asks people in the room who and where he is. In our present environment of political correctness, I would predict that more than half of the people whom the courier asks would be afraid to say "He's the black guy over there" and instead try to describe the color of the tie he is wearing, when in fact, his skin color is the most obvious and efficient way to identify him. If Fred was a red-head, that would be used to identify him. In the DR if Fred was the blackest among the group everyone there would just say without a second thought "The really black guy over there," or something to that extent.

Did that help at all? My points are only to help you understand the cultural differences. No hidden agenda.