During the time of slavery, all of the African American beliefs, customs, and speech were oppressed. Even though the African Americans were stripped of their identity, they managed to keep parts of their past and culture alive. This is seen in other parts of history as well, such as the with Native Americans or the Holocaust. All of these groups had ways of securing thier identity. What was the importance in the African American slaves keeping their culture alive, and what were some of the ways in which they did this?