I actually find this group fascinating. One the one hand, they practice a relatively mainstream Judaism (i.e., they accept the Talmud, reject Jesus, use a standard Sephardi siddur, have separate seating for men & women etc.). In New York, it's not uncommon for their children to go to Yeshiva University. On the other hand, they refuse to convert (generally) and bizarrely think that the original Jews were black Africans. The latter view is so patently irrational that I have trouble taking them seriously -- today's Iraqi Jews are the direct descendants of the Talmudic Rabbis they study. And they aren't black.
Yes, it's equally irrational to think that the original Jews were blond haired, blue eyed and fair skinned. But no Ashkenazi claims that as an article of faith.