ABSTRACT
China’s integration into the global economy has led to an influx of foreigners, some of whom are highly skilled and credentialed Africana people. They address China’s growing need for creative and innovative workers. For many of them, China offers the possibility of self-discovery and development, especially with regard to intellectual skills and capabilities linked to market needs. In China, they find opportunities not available in their often underdeveloped home countries. At the same time while reveling in their achievements, Africana workers must struggle with the exacerbation of long-standing feelings of ambivalence with its origins in the home culture. It is also a feature of life in China where their skills are in demand, but there is wariness regarding the cultural difference that they represent. Many struggle with, racism, loneliness, and maintaining ethical standards, and they encounter difficulty in establishing spiritual communities. Some Africana workers adaptively manage the ambivalence by celebrating their unique perspectives as foreigners, while eating the bitterness that comes with having to accept permanent outsider status. Some also invest in learning Chinese and forging substantive relationships with Chinese persons. Such actions speak to adaptive ways of managing the ambivalence that is a feature of wherever they reside.
