Assimilation and Social Change Dynamics in African and African American Communities‪.‬

Introduction Africans and African Americans share an ancient and vital history disrupted by the forces of social change manifest in the institution of slavery as exercised in the West and colonialism imposed on the African Continent. The institutions, values and belief systems, cultural and social artifacts, and mores that evolved from these conditions have been the subject of much discussion, research, speculation, and investigation. The dynamics of social change are inevitable, dramatic, incremental or gradual and yet always rearranging the perspective from which persons endorse values, develop belief systems, establish relationships, and attribute meaning to socio-political environments. Social change has been defined as "the significant alteration of social structure ... including consequences and manifestations of such structure embodied in norms ... values, and cultural products and symbols" (Moore 1967, 3). Changes in the boundaries of the social system, changes in the prescribed actions and the particular relationship of the system to its environment are concomitants of social change. An understanding of attitudes and values is instructive in making assessments about the direction of social change. Social movements serve as important indicators of the direction and thrust of social change by demonstrating specific forms of collective behavior.