When Amina Gaye first came to the U.S. as a Fulbright Scholar, it was not what she expected.
Since Gaye is from the West African country, Senegal, she only knew about the U.S. she saw in movies.
"I thought there was violence everywhere, and I was afraid that I wouldn't be safe," Gaye said.
However, she wanted to get a quality education experience. "I knew they had good universities, so I decided to come," Gaye, who is pursuing a doctorate in applied linguistics, said.
Gaye's friends had other opinions about the United States.
"They just assume that when you get to America, you'll become rich," she said. "When you get here, your friends ask you to send them things."
Scovia Wilson, sophomore public relations major from Sudan, agrees. Wilson said that what she was taught about the U.S. is completely different from what it's really like.
"In Africa, they don't show us poor places like Binghampton in Memphis. They show us New York, Las Vegas and California, so we can think it's paradise," she said.
Africans may have certain misconceptions about the U.S., but they often receive judgmental comments and criticism from the people in the U.S. who look the most like them-African Americans.
Wilson said that people often ask her if she walks around naked in Africa. When she first came to the U.S., kids at school made fun of her and called her "African booty scratcher."
Gaye said that she has been asked many questions about the poverty in Africa.
"We have computers and iPods, too," she said.
Gaye said when she tells people she is going home after she receives her doctorate, they ask why she would want to go back. Some people make it seem like Africa is such a bad place.
Assistant professor of English Terrence Tucker, who specializes in African-American literature, said many black people do not understand the ideas that immigrants have of the United States and the goals that they want to achieve in this country.
He said that black Americans and Africans often stereotype each other instead of having conversations about perspectives and experiences.
"There is a lot of misunderstanding, misinterpretation and a lot of tension that does not need to exist," Tucker said.
Gaye sometimes finds it hard to talk to black Americans.
"Usually it's not easy to have discussions with them," she said. "Some of them don't want to know about other cultures."
Tierrany Bell, a black American junior criminal justice major, said a lot of black people fail to realize that Africans are people just like Americans. They think that the things on television are a correct depiction of Africa.
Bell recalled a time when her dad went to the hospital, and his doctor was an African.
"You're a real African, aren't you?" her dad asked the man. "My dad acted like it was such a big deal, and the man just seemed really embarrassed," she said.
While Bell's father, like many black Americans may not understand Africans, his wife has different views. Delois Bell, a teacher and family advocate, said she sees Africans as she does everyone. They are just from another part of the world.
"My child is different from me, and I still love her," Bell said.
There are some black Americans who do not fully understand Africans, but many of them are trying to learn about and accept their culture.
Nicholas Mackey, a black American junior engineering technology major, said he recently joined the African Students Association to learn more about Africans and embrace his culture.
Wilson said if people knew more about Africa, they would not be so quick to judge her. To her, the continent is paradise.
"It has everything-beaches, mountains and deserts. Go see it for yourself," she said.
Justin Roberts, another member of ASA, not only wants to learn more about Africans, but he has plans to visit the continent someday.
Justin Brooks, sophomore health and human performance major, said that when he was in high school, he did not care about Africa and its history, much like his peers. But, eventually, he wanted to learn more and did some research on his own.
"Do not let what you hear dictate your opinion of someone that you don't know," Brooks said. "Do research and meet people from these different places to figure out who they really are."
Tucker said it is important for Africans and black Americans to accept and understand each other's cultures.
"This is a topic that we should continually discuss, because, whether we would like to admit it or not, we are tied together," he said.
Black Americans and Africans have to figure out what their disconnection is, and how they can learn to appreciate the two cultures, according to Tucker.
"We are on a journey together," Tucker said.
