Courtesy of the African Immigrant Folklife Project, Smithsonian Institution

Harold Dorwin

African traders, mostly from West Africa, have established a strong presence in African- American neighborhoods. Many sell African crafts that they import directly from their own country or buy from African wholesalers, who import vast quantities of African arts and crafts. Several hundred African wholesalers have turned a storage place in midtown New York City into the largest African crafts market in the country.