When millions of African people were forced to come to America to work as slaves, colonists tried to take away their identity as well as their culture. Slaves learned English, adopted European names, and lived in a way that resembled that of Europe. However, despite these efforts, European colonists were unable to destroy all of their culture, and Africans preserved this in a variety of ways.
Music was an important legacy of African culture. Slaves would often sing songs with a strong African component, and this left a mark in music genres such as soul and jazz. Many African people maintained their culinary tradition, and this can be seen in the modern food of the Caribbean and the Southern United States. Finally, many African people kept their religious traditions alive, and this has influenced systems of belief such as voodoo.
