Courtesy of the African Immigrant Folklife Project, Smithsonian Institution

Harold Dorwin

Cultural continuity is important to African immigrants, and they make great efforts to socialize their children in their national cultures. Younger children often prefer to blend in, in order to be accepted by their American peers; but as they get older, they tend to be more self-confident and affirm their African heritage. At a Somali picnic in Virginia, a teenager applies henna designs on a young girl to introduce her to her culture.