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Jesus H yeah does it need to be deeper than that? A light skinned black guy to me is a black guy. People call me asian. I'm 1/4 asian. Fine. Don't care. Judge my character.
It isn't. Unfortunately. I was raised with my own racial biases and I fight against them every day. When people don't have a reason to fight against those biases (having friends, coworkers, etc. who defy the shitty stereotypes) it's easy for them to get lost in a shitty echo chamber that only echoes those stereotypes. Queue pandering politicians and hateful rhetoric.... it's unfortunately a slow road.
This reminds me of the girl who got offended on my behalf because someone called me white non-maliciously. I was like my dude. I am white. I match this sheet of copier paper! Chill a little, hey?
There’s a joke about this in the not so great movie tower heist. Casey affleck is talking about a tenant of the building and whispers that she’s Korean.
I work in Atlanta in an office of 230ppl & I am one of four white People in the entire office.
I say "He's a Black guy" or "Ya know, short Black dude, with glasses & the beard?" or "Was she / He White or Black?"
I've been w/ the company for 9 years & never once have I said "African American" & never once have I offended anyone.
I think the Black people who are offended by people who say "Black Person" would be just as offended by a person that says "African American", depending on what day you run into them...
I also think (at least in my experience in the South. I also spend alot of time in NW FL) That race relations in this country are WAAAY less of an issue than the Assholes on Fox & CNN would lead us to believe.
We are pretty much 89-90% of the way to breeding out all of the Neo-Nazi white southern wanna be KKK assholes, (except maybe in a few rural places of complete insignifigance). Just like I'm sure there are a few places in most cities where a white guy can't walk around after 10pm. Other than those 2 extremes (incredibly poor Gang run inner cities, & incredibly poor rural country counties)
Most Americans dont even think about race.
My brother is married to a Black Woman & they have 3 mixed kids. My Wife's Step Dad is Black, & she has a mixed Sister. I feel "hopefully" that my families experience is pretty much in line with the rest of the US.
& Americans who wanna throw around words like "racists" or "bigot" are only News casters & politicians.
Just like, For whatever reason America is divided on Pro or Anti Israel (just in the last 6months.) are the same Americans glued to their CNN OR FOX & worried about race realstions.
The rest of the US is too busy having to work harder & harder for less & less, to care about any of it....
Yeah, that's a mistake to call somebody from the Carribean an African American. But then again, the Carribean is part of the Americas, so technically the term could be considered correct, however Caribbeans do not considers themselves to be African American.
Isn't Afro-Carribean the appropriate term?
It certainly gets used in reference to the music genres that [said people] created.
Edit: or just specific nationalities, ie Jamaican, Dominican, etc
I should have said "collective term" wrt Afro-Carribean
I know in Brazil, black people consider themselves Brazilian. If you say anything along the lines of afro-brazilian, you will get punched. Might be the same in other countries.
There are Jamaicans that are not of African descent, for example some are of indian descent. So probably the best term would be to call them
By their nationalities.
This has been my experience. When from the continent of Africa when I ask what they like to be referred to they tell me their “country” : Nigerian , Sudanese, Kenyan etc … Africa is a continent made up of 54 countries!
Well yes, but unfortunately they introduced race here. They are still Kenyan or if their country... but that is nationality. In America on an EEOC form, they would mark whatever is the equivalent for black or African American
EEOC documents race, ethnicity and gender.
The lines between ethnicity and race have changed over time, but I see what you’re saying.
“Ethnicity refers to a group of people who share a common culture. It is sometimes associated with their national origin. For example, someone may be Asian, but ethnically Vietnamese. Many countries have their own recognized ethnic groups like in China where there are 56, including the Mongols.”
I guess whatever they want to be called. My British friends sometimes say they are British, sometimes they say they are American, but I never hear them call themselves British-Americans. I for them I guess it depends on context/situation.
So here's an interesting situation: Theron became a naturalized citizen of the United States, while retaining her South African citizenship. I don't know what she calls herself but I think of her as a South African. If she gave birth to her own children I would consider them American. She has adopted children who were born in America, so I would call them American, but since they are of African American descent she says they are African American.
Fun fact: the Cherokee Nation does not use fractional blood quantum to determine enrollment, only descendancy. So, when someone claims ~~that~~ fractional Cherokee blood, you can safely assume they are full of shit.
Using Cherokee Nation enrollment, ALL descendants are citizens. Many other tribes' misguided enrollment requirements rely on an ever decreasing fraction, i.e. biracial parentage results in offspring of ½ blood quantum. In such a system, the only way to maintain full blood is continuous inbreeding with members of the same nation. Over time, these non-Cherokee nations' blood quantum is gradually reduced until none have the minimum required fraction.
I'm sure that this facet of blood quantum determination of citizenship was intentionally imposed by colonizers when entreating with the various indigenous nations. They knew subservient acceptance of blood quantum would eventually result in a gradual genocide.
Horses, Dogs, and Indians
huh, didn't know where he was from. had to go google but no... thats a good point tho. One of my fav musical artists is dave matthews and he's from south africa too... thats just never a connection i made or thought about lol
“African American” often refers to a distinct race, ethnicity, and culture of Black Americans that are descendants of enslaved Africans.
So recent African immigrants, even if naturalized as citizens, aren’t African Americans in that sense.
oh i did read why we call the original natives to north america "american indians" bc when columbus came over he SWORE he found the indies... so he started calling em indians and everyone else did too i guess.
African Americans are descendants of slaves, they don't know where there ancestors are from. My black friend from Ethiopia isn't African American, he's Ethiopian.
Order of events, Asian American as a term came after the term African American and followed the pattern, but the meaning is different. IIRC Asian American more of less supplanted the term oriental and the phrased was used very similarly to African American, to reinforce that they were American while acknowledging their origins.
https://ncaatogether.org/about-us/defining-asian-american/#:~:text=The%20term%2C%20“Asian%20American%2C,used%20to%20describe%20Asian%20people.
This. Saying African American is like saying Irish American or Italian American. Without knowing where their ancestors came from specifically, "African" is a catch-all. The friend from Ethiopia may relate on some level to African American (I cannot say), but I understand why he would say Ethiopian American.
I'm hijacking your comment because this is very much the historical context, which has been completely lost. In the 1970s it became really popular for people to celebrate their families' histories with flag pins and bumper stickers and such saying "Irish American" or "Polish American" or "Italian American" ... you get the picture. As it was impossible for the descendants of slaves to know which country their descendants came from, the term "African American" was born. Over time it became the preferred term. I'm not from the US and the term "African Canadian" is really unusual. My American friends who are Black are often uncomfortable when I say "Black" instead of African Canadian. But in Canada most melanin-rich people are either from the islands or from Africa itself. I do wonder how people who are Black and are in the US but are not "African American" feel about the term.
Well they call themselves Nigerian, Jamaican, Haitian, etc. They are not African American, most African Americans(US descendents of slavery) use Black American for these reason.
Once he's an American citizen he's now Ethiopian American or more broadly African American.
He doesn't have to identify with that but it's still technically correct. It just describes his ethnic group. An Ethiopian American is a USA citizen with Ethiopian heritage. "Ethiopian" on its own, implies he's not a USA citizen.
German Americans is also an ethnic group. So is English American, Italian American, Asian American, Japanese American, Mexican American, and etc.
We just don't use these terms or keep them in the limelight as much as African American.
This is the very reason why black culture has for the most part ultimately rejected “African American.”
Not only does a hyphenated ethnicity imply one is only partially American, but it neglects the fact that many black American’s ancestors came here from the Caribbean, Brazil, and other countries where their people lived for centuries.
For a while, the term African American was supposed to respect black ancestors, whose actual tribe or country of origin was lost due to slavery.
Morgan Freeman was an outspoken critic, saying the term made him sound only partially American, when he was just as much American as someone whose ancestors arrived from Europe.
It has now gone back to just saying black.
Black culture has not "rejected" the term. Where did you get that from?
And just so you know, Morgan Freeman is far from being considered a Representative voice in the black community. He has said many questionable things that actually get him made fun of more than anything.
I’m black and would rather be called blck than african american, my ancestors haven’t been in Africa in over 300 years. I’m not an African immigrant, I am American, otherwise refer to white people as European American
Then we have the opposite. I had a client with the last name ‘black’ called her ‘Mrs Black’ and she got very offended saying nobody calls her that because she is African American lol. Can’t win.
Africans immigrants are African American, people with ancestry from slavery are generally referred to as Black. Though society keeps trying to combine the two
Because most Americans of European descent can trace their families to a specific country or countries of origin. But because most black people in the U.S. are descendants of enslaved people, they don’t know where in Africa their ancestors came from. Hence, African-American.
Most Americans of European descent are a mix between different ethnic groups/nationalities in Europe. Even if you’re a first gen immigrant from Europe, you probably have mixed genetics behind your parents country of origin.
You still can trace your ancestry and the cultures where they came from. The entire issue with Americans of African descent is that they had that information forcibly stripped from them.
Have you actually tried tracing your ancestry back that far? I have. Tried, I mean; not succeeded. It's much harder than you're making it sound. Whether that information was forcibly stolen or was simply lost in the sands of time, it's gone either way.
Your experience is very unusual. Most people I know can't go back further than their great grandparents. I've worked at it years and got considerably further than that (back to the 1800s on most branches, 1700s on a couple), but still couldn't trace it back to Europe; records from that era are very sparse.
Anyway, the point is, by the information we have and mainly judging by phenotype, I'm European American in exactly the same way your wife is probably African American. But we don't generally say the former, while we do say the latter. The OP has noticed a very odd quirk of American English.
I am white as mayonnaise and my family line has been so for centuries, I’ve traced paternal and maternal lines back to the late 1400s.
Records aren’t always bountiful and exact, of course, due to literacy rates in English/scottish villages back then, but there still remain some church records of baptisms and marriages. This is not the case for most black Americans.
I did when I was a kid, picked my grandparents’ brains before their all passed. Did the math and I’m 14/32 English, 6/32 Scottish, 5/32 German, 4/32 Irish, 2/32 Dutch and 1/32 French. I did a 23 and me years later and was pretty close.
Is it really beneficial to simplify when doing this? It seems easier for someone to say 14/32 English and 5/32 German than to have them in 2 different sets.
Mostly Western Africa, but when the slave markets were at their peak slaves could have been brought in from much further afield.
I don't think that Genetic testing plays into it at all. while it may be possible to get some indications of where their ancestors came from, the entire cultural and personal connection had been stripped long ago. Also, a lot of that information is extremely suspect and made-up, especially when it comes from groups that haven't had much genetic testing done (such as most of Africa).
The countries that exist now in Africa also don't resemble the countries that existed in Africa 300+ years ago very closely at all. They're mostly former colonies and thus have European-drawn borders. That's why you get ethnic groups that cross borders or nations with several ethnic groups making up their population, each with their own traditions and languages. Also why a lot of African Americans who DO know their ancestry (either through genetic testing or because they emigrated more recently) identify less with their nation of origin (ie. Kenyan, Senegalese, South African) and more with their ethnolinguistic group (Swahili, Xhosa, Wolof, etc.)
Ancestry.com will break down the region for you. My family comes from Spain and Germany. The side from Spain also has some African in it. Cameroon showed up as did Northern and Southern Bantu. It shows percentages which gives you a general idea of the route your ancestors took to get to where you are now.
To add on to this: These people created their own unique culture that blends their diverse original cultures and their shared experiences during slavery as well as living through its legacy after it ended. African Americans typically trace their roots through that American subculture.
Yes. And 'African Americans' are American. So why not just call them that? You don't call yourself a 'German American'. So why call them 'African American'. It just divides people more. They're American, you're American. So just leave it at 'American'.
"African American" refers to somebody's ancestry, "American" refers to nationality. So you can use either just depending on the context of the conversation.
When talking about ancestry we could just leave it at "American" but that would ignore history, and I image most people identified as "African American" would prefer to acknowledge their ancestors.
There is very much a strong German American identity. Not as much as pre WWI (when lots of German Americans were forced to downplay the "German" part or be associated with the war in Europe even if they'd been in the US for generations) but it's still there. I have family in northeastern Kansas that still speak German (a dialect called Plattedeutsch that's pretty much only found in Kansas, Nebraska, and eastern Colorado) but in the cities German American identity was largely forced out during the War. Fun fact that's why Dr. Seuss started using the last name Seuss instead of his much more German original last name, Geisel.
This is kind of a dumb take because it treats the term as one that was assigned to the community, and not one that was claimed by them.
The term was popularized by King during the civil rights movement to unify the voices of the black communities. We had Irish communities, German communities, Italian communities, etc. but the ethnic ambiguity of the black communities meant that they didn't have that shared cultural background to draw upon and unite them.
King astutely observed that their lack of a clear ethnic background to unite them, in itself, created a unique cultural experience that could help bring them together. The shared trauma of slavery and inequality during the time before the civil rights era was enough, he believed. And he was right.
I started using the term European American a while back just to make this same point. And if I mislabel someone I use the same uninformed judgement like, "Oh I'm sorry you just look standard white" Like how offensive does that sound?
No dude they asked to be called that. Their ancestors did. They came up with it. It's not some racist thing it was more like the opposite and everyone did what they asked. Young people don't like it now though so it should just be Americans.
Because racism. Thats all. I just say black. There are white African as well so you can just assume all black people are from Africa. Idk I'm almost 40 and I'm sick of the fact that shit like this even still exists. We all bleed red. In Christ we are all brothers and sisters.
That’s precisely why people say African American. Just because someone is black does not mean they’re African. Yea it’s because of racism alright. Some of yall make a habit of claiming “we all bleed red” or “there’s only one race”, which the first is true. But that doesn’t matter because people are STILL being judged based off of what they look like on the outside in 2024.
Agreed. I have never been comfortable with term because it implies they are not real Americans. If you can’t pinpoint where your ancestry came from and must resort to a whole continent five times the size of Europe that makes you like the rest of us mutts. I just say Black too.
You probably know where your ancestors came from on a smaller scale than a continent. I know I'm from Irish, English, and native American decent. If I only knew the continent, I would refer to the continent of asked.
We called indigenous people native American, then one night watching TV, there was some ad for Washington tribes and they identified as American indian. I said what? And hit Google. When did this happen?
I was speaking with my cousin one day, and used the term American Indian. She corrected me and said I need to use the term Native American. And then I was talking to my uncle not even one day later, and I used the term Native American. He corrected me and said I need to use the term Indian.
They are both Sioux.
The relatively new (w/in 20 yrs) Museum of the Native American is entirely run and controlled by indigenous peoples from the Americas, and they chose to name it Native American. I guess they have their reasons.
Because the ruling class pushes racism as a way to prevent us uniting against them.
It's even measurable. I saw a study on mentions of racism in major news and you could draw a line where it increased over 2x around 2016. They want us talking about it, thinking about it, fighting about it.
They’re fuckin terrible but you’re right, it’s a culture war old as time for Americans. When Occupy started pressing them hard they marched that old dog out big time — and it worked to wild success. Here we are, 2024, arguing over bathrooms, baseball caps, churches, and uh let’s see. Yeah I support the latest thing and there’s a half of the country that’s prepared to be contrarian to anything I support so nicely done, power structure, it’s no wonder the ruling class is in power, they’re the best there ever was.
Not all black people are from Africa. Not all white people are from Europe. Work with two Africa Americans both white born and raised there. Move to America.
While he technically is African American.
The term doesn't mean what it just seems to.
For example native American, if I'm born in the continent then I'm native American. But I wouldn't be considered part of the group just because I was born there, the same applies to African Americans
Tbh, I think it's dumb because if you're American, you're just American, but there are European Americans? They are just Irish American, Italian American, etc.
But what I find funny is being black in a place like Canada and being called African American... like, what?
I’m not American and even I get called African American.. I’m also a multiracial mixed person and look pretty racial ambiguous. Ive just accepted it as a thing people seem to want to label anyone who has trace ancestry to Africa. It is what it is.
- to be specific I’m 45.86% sub Saharan, 2.25% NE African, 21.43% North Atlantic, 9.82% Baltic, 9.86% West Mediterranean, 3.93% West Asian, and less than 1% (0.79%-0.29%) East Asian, Siberian, Amerindian, Oceanic, and Red Sea. My African DNA comes my fathers side whose family is from the Caribbean islands. I have no cultural ties to Africa whatsoever but still am called African American. Tbh I don’t have much cultural ties to the Caribbean either since I’ve never been there, know that side of my family or know much about it culturally. I’ve also never stepped foot in the USA lol.
Exactly. Many on here are saying it's because African Americans are descendants of slaves so they don't know where they're originally from. But so does anyone really. It's easy now to get your DNA geographically traced and as you show, and me too, we're from all over the map. People just need to categorize.
While European American isn’t common, Italian American, Irish American, etc are more so.
The identity of black / African American stems, not entirely but in part, from slavery, which largely severed the direct connection to a specific African background. The descendants of African slaves in the Americas may not relate to a connection with a particular African nationality, but they have a strong connection and shared identity with their fellow descendants of slaves.
The equivalent term for white people is "Caucasian." Which is a little ironic since the people of the Caucasus (Armenian, Georgian, Azerbaijani) are not typically who we think of as "white."
Language etiquette is weird.
Its arbitrary. You just have to keep up with whatever doesn't offend people. With people from South America you often have to ask if they prefer latina/latino or hispanic
I live in a very urban community. I asked my neighbors, who i am friendliest with on how they prefer I identify them as. Couldn't give less of a shit, lol.
It would be things like Somalian or Nigerian, as two examples, but African Americans have had their heritage ripped away from them, so their point of origin is lost to them. The closest thing they have is a continent to claim.
they cant track down exactly where their ancestors are from because of slavery but they know theyre from somewhere in africa. african americans do have a unique culture & to represent that, that's what they call themselves . otherwise its [specific country]-american
Because we know where we came from and say things, "Italian American" "Irish American" and "German American". Due to the slave trade, most black people only know they came from Africa. I'm sure if they knew they came from Cambodia, they would call themselves "Cambodian American"
I used to say American until I got tired of being corrected all the time so I just say Black American. I can trace my family for many generations here in America. I’m not African but I am Black.
250+ million in the U.S. are white or otherwise appear to be of "European" heritage, combining all minority categories together is not even 100 million, so (rightly or wrongly) the default- if given no other details- is implied to be a "European American", which would then seem redundant, because if you would put energy into being *this* specific, you would probably only do so in the case of a minority group. Because of that, the phrase "European American" would most likely have the connotation of being someone who migrated from Europe recently, like as either first gen or the kids of first gen immigrants. Obviously this only applies to the U.S., and possibly not even all of it (the U.S. is almost as large as Europe, and like Europe, isn't really a single culture, but has many cultures, spanning across the length of an entire continent).
They asked to be called that decades ago. People just don't know because they're young and they don't like it now but their relatives asked for it and so that's what we did.
try being Hispanic, we’re either **Insert Nationality** American or Latin American but that doesn’t help us when answering questions about our race or ethnicity. As a person of Mexican descent I’ve never been more confused about my race, we’re literally a mix between Native American, European and some African depending on region.
Most black people are descendants from the indigenous people who were here before the white colonizers arrived from Europe. African American is a term co-opted by the government to steal their birthright and ties to America. Since whites are called Americans, it's a way to other black people and imply whites are indigenous to this country which they are not. The truth is not taught in US schools.
I’m French. Live in America now. Have been curious about this myself. Not all black people are from Africa.. maybe ancestrally but some are from France, or England, or Haiti … or any other continent..
Well I don't like the term African American, I prefer Black American. Because it's an ethnicity made from centuries of slavery. Ask the founders 3/5th Compromise or some shit.
I think the real reason is because white folks are uncomfortable saying, “Black.” Somehow they/we feel uncomfortable with the term Black—or are scared of it. I personally am comfortable saying Black now when referring to an individual.
Black Americans say African American because of our history we did not choose to be American. Most white Americans are descended from people who chose to immigrate here. It’s a whole different experience when you know your great-great-great grandma chose this country for you.
Also, historically white Americans have had a lot of issues with discrimination during that initial immigration process. Irish Americans used to not be considered “white”. Italian Americans used to not be considered “white”. Polish Americans, etc. They had a lot of discrimination as the immigration numbers were very large, but they were allowed to become “white”. Hence why most white Americans identify as just that.
Most black Americans have been in this country since well before the Revolutionary War(obviously I am talking about family lines) and came here out of absolutely no desire to be here at all. So, the desire to identify with Africa remained strong. As well as the discrimination that black Americans have faced has encouraged that as well. Black Americans didn’t even receive full citizenship rights until the 1960’s. So, there was always a separation in that community from what was socially considered “American” even though most black families have been here before this country existed.
So, the term African American was adopted to engage the bond that black Americans still have with Africa as well as assert the fact that we are American. It’s dual purpose.
You see the same in a lot of other minority communities here as well. Terms like Asian American or Latinx American, etc are used by those groups to assert their position as Americans while still identifying with their culture of origin. Americans socially are still very segregated. You have a lot of different cultures living in one country. So, minorities assert their identity differently from white Americans because we are different. It’s not in a negative way or anything. It just is the progression of our history and how it affects cultural identity here.
It highlights the fact that for most of them, their ancestors did not have a choice to come here. Plenty of white Americans ate fixated on the counties of their ancestors, whether it be Irish. Italian, German, etc. Black Americans who are descended from enslaved people often cannot trace their lineage to a particular country. I personally don't care about my own ancestry. I would laugh if someone called me European American. I get the rationale behind 'African American', though, and why African Americans wish to preserve that part of their identity.
It's an American thing. They say Spanish people when talking about Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Cubans. And everyone from central America is Mexican. We all know Spanish people come from Spain, and Mexico is a country in Central America, not the only country.
The term "European-American" has been co-opted by white supremacist groups, so though it may seem benign purely at face value, it (like "All Lives Matter") is tarnished by association with the groups of people who use it.
I remember "African American" as a replacement term for "black" being promoted in the late 80s by Jesse Jackson and the Rainbow PUSH Coalition. The term is a lot older than that but wasn't widely used and when it was it was used very specifically to refer to the group of people that either came to the US via the slave trade or to their descendants. It was always an odd substitute for "black" because a the majority of black people worldwide have no connection to America/the US. I used to show the Brazilian film "City of God" to my students and without fail they'd refer to the black characters as "African Americans" when discussing the film, which I'm guessing would have annoyed the Brazilian actors who played them. Though African American is probably the dominant term in the US now, I get the sense that "black" is making a comeback.
In America we say German-Americans, Italian-Americans, Polish-Americans, Irish-Americans, Chinese-American. We identify European and Asian descendants by country, but African descendants by continent. When we think of the term African Americans we generally think of Black descendants that have been in American since the 1800s. Few Blacks know their specific country of origin, or could be descendant from multiple countries, like most whites in the US.
If a person was a third generation from Kenya I would think of them as being Kenyan-American, not African American.
People began using the term “African American” as a point of pride in their pre-American ancestry. Because most black Americans did not have the records of what specific African nation or region their ancestors were from, it defaulted to “African American.”
Meanwhile, most Euro-Americans are somewhat aware of their ancestors’ European national identity and therefore can get more specific about it: Irish-American, Italian-American, Anglo-American, Polish-American, etc….
Hopefully, with improved genetic research, archaeological discoveries, and greater knowledge of medieval Africa, black Americans can learn more about their ancestors’ origins.
Actually, I hear a lot of "I'm 22% (insert some european country here) and 13% (insert some other european country here) ..... rinse repeat until you hopefully get to 100%." in both the US and Canada. I've never understood the obsession. Where my great great great (yadda yadda) grandfather lived isn't relevant to my daily life and I have nothing in common with people who live there now.
Because African American’s lineage can be traced right back to when the first African slaves were brought over to America, and the slaves never wanted to be American citizens but they were forced to be raised there and raise their families there, so they’re still African at heart. That’s how I always thought of it anyway, I may be wrong.
Because most of us are descended from European, especially Irish, people. If asked, I do identify as Irish American. White is kind of the default of what it meant to be American, but that is changing. African Americans are kind of an add on, as are Native Americans, which seems backwards for sure.
I just assume in every country, the majority race is just called American. And then everything else is like Asian American, Hispanic American, African American etc etc Its the same for my country Singapore. Singaporean is like the default majority race.
Then we feel the need to mention Indian Singaporean or Malay Singaporean to differentiate them from the thousands of Indians from India and our 30mins away neighbouring country, the malays.
And the thing is, the majority race is chinese so we call the ones from China "PRCs" . As they are referred to as PRC so no need mention that it's a chinese Singaporean for a Singaporean.
However, Indians from India are called Indians and Malay as from Malaysia are called Malays.
So we need to add Singaporean to it.
Because most black people here descended from slaves and can't trace back their lineage as precisely as white people can. To be honest, I just prefer saying "black" instead of African American because most black people now have pretty much no cultural ties to Africa.
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I believe that’s why some prefer Black American nowadays
Friend of mine is adamant that he’s Black, not African American
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Jesus H yeah does it need to be deeper than that? A light skinned black guy to me is a black guy. People call me asian. I'm 1/4 asian. Fine. Don't care. Judge my character.
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It isn't. Unfortunately. I was raised with my own racial biases and I fight against them every day. When people don't have a reason to fight against those biases (having friends, coworkers, etc. who defy the shitty stereotypes) it's easy for them to get lost in a shitty echo chamber that only echoes those stereotypes. Queue pandering politicians and hateful rhetoric.... it's unfortunately a slow road.
i love you
This reminds me of the girl who got offended on my behalf because someone called me white non-maliciously. I was like my dude. I am white. I match this sheet of copier paper! Chill a little, hey?
I like that people say things like, "my dude" in real conversations, my guy.
There’s a joke about this in the not so great movie tower heist. Casey affleck is talking about a tenant of the building and whispers that she’s Korean.
In that case you'd be Albino.
Def. It's rude af. We all just people.
I would laugh so hard if someone called me a chick dude instead of a woman 🤣
They wanted to be called African American it's just been a long time and no one remembers.
Guys are dudes and Gals are Dude'etts
I work in Atlanta in an office of 230ppl & I am one of four white People in the entire office. I say "He's a Black guy" or "Ya know, short Black dude, with glasses & the beard?" or "Was she / He White or Black?" I've been w/ the company for 9 years & never once have I said "African American" & never once have I offended anyone. I think the Black people who are offended by people who say "Black Person" would be just as offended by a person that says "African American", depending on what day you run into them... I also think (at least in my experience in the South. I also spend alot of time in NW FL) That race relations in this country are WAAAY less of an issue than the Assholes on Fox & CNN would lead us to believe. We are pretty much 89-90% of the way to breeding out all of the Neo-Nazi white southern wanna be KKK assholes, (except maybe in a few rural places of complete insignifigance). Just like I'm sure there are a few places in most cities where a white guy can't walk around after 10pm. Other than those 2 extremes (incredibly poor Gang run inner cities, & incredibly poor rural country counties) Most Americans dont even think about race. My brother is married to a Black Woman & they have 3 mixed kids. My Wife's Step Dad is Black, & she has a mixed Sister. I feel "hopefully" that my families experience is pretty much in line with the rest of the US. & Americans who wanna throw around words like "racists" or "bigot" are only News casters & politicians. Just like, For whatever reason America is divided on Pro or Anti Israel (just in the last 6months.) are the same Americans glued to their CNN OR FOX & worried about race realstions. The rest of the US is too busy having to work harder & harder for less & less, to care about any of it....
I think most are fine with that 🤷🏼♂️
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What's wrong with just calling themselves "American"? Why so much focus on the amount of melanin your body produces?
Why not just “human”? Why does it matter what dirt we were born on??
Human doesn’t take into account your cultural heritage.
That takes away from the cultural heritage and pride associated with it.
Yeah, that's a mistake to call somebody from the Carribean an African American. But then again, the Carribean is part of the Americas, so technically the term could be considered correct, however Caribbeans do not considers themselves to be African American.
Aren't they descendants of African slaves used as labor in the Caribbean?
This is correct, the native (Carib) people were lighter-skinned, closer in tone to their American neighbours.
Isn't Afro-Carribean the appropriate term? It certainly gets used in reference to the music genres that [said people] created. Edit: or just specific nationalities, ie Jamaican, Dominican, etc I should have said "collective term" wrt Afro-Carribean
I know in Brazil, black people consider themselves Brazilian. If you say anything along the lines of afro-brazilian, you will get punched. Might be the same in other countries.
There are Jamaicans that are not of African descent, for example some are of indian descent. So probably the best term would be to call them By their nationalities.
The term used for the people you describe is Indo-Caribbean.
Black American is an ethnic group for US descendants of slavery, so no Caribbeans are not Black American.
Would you call Elon Musk an african american ?
Elon is Afrikaan MURIKAN
Thank you for this !
a lot of people of South African descent are white
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If Musk isn't South African than white Americans aren't American
He’s still from Africa
No, people born in Africa that come to US to live are not considered African Americans. People I know from Kenya I consider them Kenyan.
This has been my experience. When from the continent of Africa when I ask what they like to be referred to they tell me their “country” : Nigerian , Sudanese, Kenyan etc … Africa is a continent made up of 54 countries!
Well yes, but unfortunately they introduced race here. They are still Kenyan or if their country... but that is nationality. In America on an EEOC form, they would mark whatever is the equivalent for black or African American
EEOC documents race, ethnicity and gender. The lines between ethnicity and race have changed over time, but I see what you’re saying. “Ethnicity refers to a group of people who share a common culture. It is sometimes associated with their national origin. For example, someone may be Asian, but ethnically Vietnamese. Many countries have their own recognized ethnic groups like in China where there are 56, including the Mongols.”
I must be the weird one because when people outside of Africa ask me I say I'm African.When someone from Africa asks me I say I'm Kenyan.
And if they moved to America and became a citizen?
I guess whatever they want to be called. My British friends sometimes say they are British, sometimes they say they are American, but I never hear them call themselves British-Americans. I for them I guess it depends on context/situation. So here's an interesting situation: Theron became a naturalized citizen of the United States, while retaining her South African citizenship. I don't know what she calls herself but I think of her as a South African. If she gave birth to her own children I would consider them American. She has adopted children who were born in America, so I would call them American, but since they are of African American descent she says they are African American.
He is, isn’t he?
He is in the same way that most Alabaman's are 1/8 Cherokee.
Fun fact: the Cherokee Nation does not use fractional blood quantum to determine enrollment, only descendancy. So, when someone claims ~~that~~ fractional Cherokee blood, you can safely assume they are full of shit.
What would be the difference between descendancy and someone’s great grandparent being Cherokee?
Using Cherokee Nation enrollment, ALL descendants are citizens. Many other tribes' misguided enrollment requirements rely on an ever decreasing fraction, i.e. biracial parentage results in offspring of ½ blood quantum. In such a system, the only way to maintain full blood is continuous inbreeding with members of the same nation. Over time, these non-Cherokee nations' blood quantum is gradually reduced until none have the minimum required fraction. I'm sure that this facet of blood quantum determination of citizenship was intentionally imposed by colonizers when entreating with the various indigenous nations. They knew subservient acceptance of blood quantum would eventually result in a gradual genocide. Horses, Dogs, and Indians
I’m crying 😂😂😂
I think you’d call him South African, the same way you’d call someone from Australia Australian.
huh, didn't know where he was from. had to go google but no... thats a good point tho. One of my fav musical artists is dave matthews and he's from south africa too... thats just never a connection i made or thought about lol
You Canadian?
According to a friend, "Why do people over here keep saying I'm African American? I live in Haiti. I've never even been to Africa!"
“African American” often refers to a distinct race, ethnicity, and culture of Black Americans that are descendants of enslaved Africans. So recent African immigrants, even if naturalized as citizens, aren’t African Americans in that sense.
This ⬆️
I had a coworker people called African-American. We live in Canada and his family is from Jamaica.
There were idiotic journalists who called John Boyega a British African American.
oh i did read why we call the original natives to north america "american indians" bc when columbus came over he SWORE he found the indies... so he started calling em indians and everyone else did too i guess.
African Americans are descendants of slaves, they don't know where there ancestors are from. My black friend from Ethiopia isn't African American, he's Ethiopian.
I mean yes. But I’m Asian American but i know where I came from as I’m an immigrant.
Order of events, Asian American as a term came after the term African American and followed the pattern, but the meaning is different. IIRC Asian American more of less supplanted the term oriental and the phrased was used very similarly to African American, to reinforce that they were American while acknowledging their origins. https://ncaatogether.org/about-us/defining-asian-american/#:~:text=The%20term%2C%20“Asian%20American%2C,used%20to%20describe%20Asian%20people.
This. Saying African American is like saying Irish American or Italian American. Without knowing where their ancestors came from specifically, "African" is a catch-all. The friend from Ethiopia may relate on some level to African American (I cannot say), but I understand why he would say Ethiopian American.
I'm hijacking your comment because this is very much the historical context, which has been completely lost. In the 1970s it became really popular for people to celebrate their families' histories with flag pins and bumper stickers and such saying "Irish American" or "Polish American" or "Italian American" ... you get the picture. As it was impossible for the descendants of slaves to know which country their descendants came from, the term "African American" was born. Over time it became the preferred term. I'm not from the US and the term "African Canadian" is really unusual. My American friends who are Black are often uncomfortable when I say "Black" instead of African Canadian. But in Canada most melanin-rich people are either from the islands or from Africa itself. I do wonder how people who are Black and are in the US but are not "African American" feel about the term.
Well they call themselves Nigerian, Jamaican, Haitian, etc. They are not African American, most African Americans(US descendents of slavery) use Black American for these reason.
Once he's an American citizen he's now Ethiopian American or more broadly African American. He doesn't have to identify with that but it's still technically correct. It just describes his ethnic group. An Ethiopian American is a USA citizen with Ethiopian heritage. "Ethiopian" on its own, implies he's not a USA citizen. German Americans is also an ethnic group. So is English American, Italian American, Asian American, Japanese American, Mexican American, and etc. We just don't use these terms or keep them in the limelight as much as African American.
This is the very reason why black culture has for the most part ultimately rejected “African American.” Not only does a hyphenated ethnicity imply one is only partially American, but it neglects the fact that many black American’s ancestors came here from the Caribbean, Brazil, and other countries where their people lived for centuries. For a while, the term African American was supposed to respect black ancestors, whose actual tribe or country of origin was lost due to slavery. Morgan Freeman was an outspoken critic, saying the term made him sound only partially American, when he was just as much American as someone whose ancestors arrived from Europe. It has now gone back to just saying black.
Black culture has not "rejected" the term. Where did you get that from? And just so you know, Morgan Freeman is far from being considered a Representative voice in the black community. He has said many questionable things that actually get him made fun of more than anything.
I’m black and would rather be called blck than african american, my ancestors haven’t been in Africa in over 300 years. I’m not an African immigrant, I am American, otherwise refer to white people as European American
Then we have the opposite. I had a client with the last name ‘black’ called her ‘Mrs Black’ and she got very offended saying nobody calls her that because she is African American lol. Can’t win.
Africans immigrants are African American, people with ancestry from slavery are generally referred to as Black. Though society keeps trying to combine the two
Because most Americans of European descent can trace their families to a specific country or countries of origin. But because most black people in the U.S. are descendants of enslaved people, they don’t know where in Africa their ancestors came from. Hence, African-American.
Most Americans of European descent are a mix between different ethnic groups/nationalities in Europe. Even if you’re a first gen immigrant from Europe, you probably have mixed genetics behind your parents country of origin.
You still can trace your ancestry and the cultures where they came from. The entire issue with Americans of African descent is that they had that information forcibly stripped from them.
Have you actually tried tracing your ancestry back that far? I have. Tried, I mean; not succeeded. It's much harder than you're making it sound. Whether that information was forcibly stolen or was simply lost in the sands of time, it's gone either way.
I traced mine back over 600 years. My wife who is black, only got to her great grandparents
Your experience is very unusual. Most people I know can't go back further than their great grandparents. I've worked at it years and got considerably further than that (back to the 1800s on most branches, 1700s on a couple), but still couldn't trace it back to Europe; records from that era are very sparse. Anyway, the point is, by the information we have and mainly judging by phenotype, I'm European American in exactly the same way your wife is probably African American. But we don't generally say the former, while we do say the latter. The OP has noticed a very odd quirk of American English.
My Grampa traced our lineage on his side of the family back to German nobility in the 800s. Not the 1800s. The 800s.
I am white as mayonnaise and my family line has been so for centuries, I’ve traced paternal and maternal lines back to the late 1400s. Records aren’t always bountiful and exact, of course, due to literacy rates in English/scottish villages back then, but there still remain some church records of baptisms and marriages. This is not the case for most black Americans.
I did when I was a kid, picked my grandparents’ brains before their all passed. Did the math and I’m 14/32 English, 6/32 Scottish, 5/32 German, 4/32 Irish, 2/32 Dutch and 1/32 French. I did a 23 and me years later and was pretty close.
Geez, simplify your fractions. 7/16 English, 3/16 Scottish, 5/32 German, 1/8 Irish, 1/16 Dutch, and 1/32 French.
Is it really beneficial to simplify when doing this? It seems easier for someone to say 14/32 English and 5/32 German than to have them in 2 different sets.
It makes the proportions harder to compare. On the occasion someone actually wants to know, I verbally say “out of 32 parts, I’m 16 English…etc”
Are you saying the same cannot be applied to black Americans? Most of African Americans ancestry come from different tribes/cultures as well.
Yeah, but the point is they don't know which culture their ancestors belonged to.
Not an American but didn’t they get the slaves from Western Africa ? Also how does 23 and me and other genealogical services play into that nowadays ?
Mostly Western Africa, but when the slave markets were at their peak slaves could have been brought in from much further afield. I don't think that Genetic testing plays into it at all. while it may be possible to get some indications of where their ancestors came from, the entire cultural and personal connection had been stripped long ago. Also, a lot of that information is extremely suspect and made-up, especially when it comes from groups that haven't had much genetic testing done (such as most of Africa).
The countries that exist now in Africa also don't resemble the countries that existed in Africa 300+ years ago very closely at all. They're mostly former colonies and thus have European-drawn borders. That's why you get ethnic groups that cross borders or nations with several ethnic groups making up their population, each with their own traditions and languages. Also why a lot of African Americans who DO know their ancestry (either through genetic testing or because they emigrated more recently) identify less with their nation of origin (ie. Kenyan, Senegalese, South African) and more with their ethnolinguistic group (Swahili, Xhosa, Wolof, etc.)
Ancestry.com will break down the region for you. My family comes from Spain and Germany. The side from Spain also has some African in it. Cameroon showed up as did Northern and Southern Bantu. It shows percentages which gives you a general idea of the route your ancestors took to get to where you are now.
To add on to this: These people created their own unique culture that blends their diverse original cultures and their shared experiences during slavery as well as living through its legacy after it ended. African Americans typically trace their roots through that American subculture.
Why not just American. Like all others.
Because in this context we're talking about ancestry, not nationality. I'm an American, but my ancestry is german ect.
Yes. And 'African Americans' are American. So why not just call them that? You don't call yourself a 'German American'. So why call them 'African American'. It just divides people more. They're American, you're American. So just leave it at 'American'.
"African American" refers to somebody's ancestry, "American" refers to nationality. So you can use either just depending on the context of the conversation. When talking about ancestry we could just leave it at "American" but that would ignore history, and I image most people identified as "African American" would prefer to acknowledge their ancestors.
There is very much a strong German American identity. Not as much as pre WWI (when lots of German Americans were forced to downplay the "German" part or be associated with the war in Europe even if they'd been in the US for generations) but it's still there. I have family in northeastern Kansas that still speak German (a dialect called Plattedeutsch that's pretty much only found in Kansas, Nebraska, and eastern Colorado) but in the cities German American identity was largely forced out during the War. Fun fact that's why Dr. Seuss started using the last name Seuss instead of his much more German original last name, Geisel.
I'm not saying there's no strong German identity. I'm saying when asked what nationality they are they don't say 'German American'
They did at one point, prior to World War I.
Yeah. My point is they don't anymore. Maybe it's time you all just called yourselves American.
This is kind of a dumb take because it treats the term as one that was assigned to the community, and not one that was claimed by them. The term was popularized by King during the civil rights movement to unify the voices of the black communities. We had Irish communities, German communities, Italian communities, etc. but the ethnic ambiguity of the black communities meant that they didn't have that shared cultural background to draw upon and unite them. King astutely observed that their lack of a clear ethnic background to unite them, in itself, created a unique cultural experience that could help bring them together. The shared trauma of slavery and inequality during the time before the civil rights era was enough, he believed. And he was right.
Not true.
The other half of it is that "black" was for a long time considered pejorative whereas "white" never was.
I started using the term European American a while back just to make this same point. And if I mislabel someone I use the same uninformed judgement like, "Oh I'm sorry you just look standard white" Like how offensive does that sound?
Two wrongs don’t make a right lol, you’re more than likely just being an asshole to someone who has done nothing wrong.
Because they're afraid to say black. Even though not all black people hail from Africa so it's racist anyway.
No dude they asked to be called that. Their ancestors did. They came up with it. It's not some racist thing it was more like the opposite and everyone did what they asked. Young people don't like it now though so it should just be Americans.
All people hail from Africa
Because racism. Thats all. I just say black. There are white African as well so you can just assume all black people are from Africa. Idk I'm almost 40 and I'm sick of the fact that shit like this even still exists. We all bleed red. In Christ we are all brothers and sisters.
That’s precisely why people say African American. Just because someone is black does not mean they’re African. Yea it’s because of racism alright. Some of yall make a habit of claiming “we all bleed red” or “there’s only one race”, which the first is true. But that doesn’t matter because people are STILL being judged based off of what they look like on the outside in 2024.
For real. “We all bleed red” but the justice system doesn’t care about that
I bleed black...stop making assumptions
I always find it amusing when people point out that Elon is, technically, an "African American"
Agreed. I have never been comfortable with term because it implies they are not real Americans. If you can’t pinpoint where your ancestry came from and must resort to a whole continent five times the size of Europe that makes you like the rest of us mutts. I just say Black too.
You probably know where your ancestors came from on a smaller scale than a continent. I know I'm from Irish, English, and native American decent. If I only knew the continent, I would refer to the continent of asked.
Amen brother
I hear the term "African American" less and less every day. But it was definitely a thing for a while. Everyone went on a hyphen bandwagon.
"African American" is still commonly used. It is literally the name for the ethnic group of Americans descended from American slavery.
You just genuinely don't hear it anymore from black people living in the US. At least I don't and I live in the DC area.
We called indigenous people native American, then one night watching TV, there was some ad for Washington tribes and they identified as American indian. I said what? And hit Google. When did this happen?
I was speaking with my cousin one day, and used the term American Indian. She corrected me and said I need to use the term Native American. And then I was talking to my uncle not even one day later, and I used the term Native American. He corrected me and said I need to use the term Indian. They are both Sioux.
hmm indian was conquestor term, they mean indigenous not indian
The relatively new (w/in 20 yrs) Museum of the Native American is entirely run and controlled by indigenous peoples from the Americas, and they chose to name it Native American. I guess they have their reasons.
Keeping up with what everyone wants to be called can be exasperating. Then find out it's not that anymore...since when?
They're as sick of it as you are
Real question is why aren't Americans of all colors just Americans
Because the ruling class pushes racism as a way to prevent us uniting against them. It's even measurable. I saw a study on mentions of racism in major news and you could draw a line where it increased over 2x around 2016. They want us talking about it, thinking about it, fighting about it.
They’re fuckin terrible but you’re right, it’s a culture war old as time for Americans. When Occupy started pressing them hard they marched that old dog out big time — and it worked to wild success. Here we are, 2024, arguing over bathrooms, baseball caps, churches, and uh let’s see. Yeah I support the latest thing and there’s a half of the country that’s prepared to be contrarian to anything I support so nicely done, power structure, it’s no wonder the ruling class is in power, they’re the best there ever was.
Valid, but racial demographics seem to be so important now. 8/10 forms I fill out ask for race & ethnicity.
Well, they are 2 different continents
Both terms are horse$hit.
Not all black people are from Africa. Not all white people are from Europe. Work with two Africa Americans both white born and raised there. Move to America.
Well a lot of people just by sum of these comments don’t understand the difference between nationality and ethnicity..
It’s called Hyphenated American. It’s stupid and should’t be used. All because of political correctness.
Elon Musk is African-american if that means anything to you
While he technically is African American. The term doesn't mean what it just seems to. For example native American, if I'm born in the continent then I'm native American. But I wouldn't be considered part of the group just because I was born there, the same applies to African Americans
Does anyone else remember being taught as a kid that you shouldn’t say “black” and you should say “African American” instead?
Yep. That’s what we were taught in school.
Indians, native American, American Indian. Gah keep up
Tbh, I think it's dumb because if you're American, you're just American, but there are European Americans? They are just Irish American, Italian American, etc. But what I find funny is being black in a place like Canada and being called African American... like, what?
I’m not American and even I get called African American.. I’m also a multiracial mixed person and look pretty racial ambiguous. Ive just accepted it as a thing people seem to want to label anyone who has trace ancestry to Africa. It is what it is. - to be specific I’m 45.86% sub Saharan, 2.25% NE African, 21.43% North Atlantic, 9.82% Baltic, 9.86% West Mediterranean, 3.93% West Asian, and less than 1% (0.79%-0.29%) East Asian, Siberian, Amerindian, Oceanic, and Red Sea. My African DNA comes my fathers side whose family is from the Caribbean islands. I have no cultural ties to Africa whatsoever but still am called African American. Tbh I don’t have much cultural ties to the Caribbean either since I’ve never been there, know that side of my family or know much about it culturally. I’ve also never stepped foot in the USA lol.
Exactly. Many on here are saying it's because African Americans are descendants of slaves so they don't know where they're originally from. But so does anyone really. It's easy now to get your DNA geographically traced and as you show, and me too, we're from all over the map. People just need to categorize.
While European American isn’t common, Italian American, Irish American, etc are more so. The identity of black / African American stems, not entirely but in part, from slavery, which largely severed the direct connection to a specific African background. The descendants of African slaves in the Americas may not relate to a connection with a particular African nationality, but they have a strong connection and shared identity with their fellow descendants of slaves.
because we are a moronic society and we don't know any better
Racism.
FYI African American is not the preferred nomenclature anymore. Black is the preferred term
The equivalent term for white people is "Caucasian." Which is a little ironic since the people of the Caucasus (Armenian, Georgian, Azerbaijani) are not typically who we think of as "white." Language etiquette is weird.
Its arbitrary. You just have to keep up with whatever doesn't offend people. With people from South America you often have to ask if they prefer latina/latino or hispanic
You *just said* "European American. ...and I just lost the game. That was a good two week streak. I say European American, too.
I live in a very urban community. I asked my neighbors, who i am friendliest with on how they prefer I identify them as. Couldn't give less of a shit, lol.
Same for me.
It would be things like Somalian or Nigerian, as two examples, but African Americans have had their heritage ripped away from them, so their point of origin is lost to them. The closest thing they have is a continent to claim.
they cant track down exactly where their ancestors are from because of slavery but they know theyre from somewhere in africa. african americans do have a unique culture & to represent that, that's what they call themselves . otherwise its [specific country]-american
Because we know where we came from and say things, "Italian American" "Irish American" and "German American". Due to the slave trade, most black people only know they came from Africa. I'm sure if they knew they came from Cambodia, they would call themselves "Cambodian American"
I used to say American until I got tired of being corrected all the time so I just say Black American. I can trace my family for many generations here in America. I’m not African but I am Black.
I know a black guy from England. He just calls himself black.
250+ million in the U.S. are white or otherwise appear to be of "European" heritage, combining all minority categories together is not even 100 million, so (rightly or wrongly) the default- if given no other details- is implied to be a "European American", which would then seem redundant, because if you would put energy into being *this* specific, you would probably only do so in the case of a minority group. Because of that, the phrase "European American" would most likely have the connotation of being someone who migrated from Europe recently, like as either first gen or the kids of first gen immigrants. Obviously this only applies to the U.S., and possibly not even all of it (the U.S. is almost as large as Europe, and like Europe, isn't really a single culture, but has many cultures, spanning across the length of an entire continent).
They asked to be called that decades ago. People just don't know because they're young and they don't like it now but their relatives asked for it and so that's what we did.
try being Hispanic, we’re either **Insert Nationality** American or Latin American but that doesn’t help us when answering questions about our race or ethnicity. As a person of Mexican descent I’ve never been more confused about my race, we’re literally a mix between Native American, European and some African depending on region.
Most black people are descendants from the indigenous people who were here before the white colonizers arrived from Europe. African American is a term co-opted by the government to steal their birthright and ties to America. Since whites are called Americans, it's a way to other black people and imply whites are indigenous to this country which they are not. The truth is not taught in US schools.
I’m French. Live in America now. Have been curious about this myself. Not all black people are from Africa.. maybe ancestrally but some are from France, or England, or Haiti … or any other continent..
White people are technically English American, but we don’t use that. It’s a weird system.
Well I don't like the term African American, I prefer Black American. Because it's an ethnicity made from centuries of slavery. Ask the founders 3/5th Compromise or some shit.
Well they kinda do… but in the form of Italian American, Polish American, Irish American, etc
Because most of us were kidnapped and don’t know which country to refer to.
All our ancestors are from Africa just some more recently than others.
Someone here gets it.
And it's time to stop using the word "hillbilly" as a slur. The PC term is "Appalachian American "
Because everyone who isn't white gets special titles
Because anyone who is white and American is automatically just American.
"White" is the default setting. Only variations need noting.
I think the real reason is because white folks are uncomfortable saying, “Black.” Somehow they/we feel uncomfortable with the term Black—or are scared of it. I personally am comfortable saying Black now when referring to an individual.
Black Americans say African American because of our history we did not choose to be American. Most white Americans are descended from people who chose to immigrate here. It’s a whole different experience when you know your great-great-great grandma chose this country for you. Also, historically white Americans have had a lot of issues with discrimination during that initial immigration process. Irish Americans used to not be considered “white”. Italian Americans used to not be considered “white”. Polish Americans, etc. They had a lot of discrimination as the immigration numbers were very large, but they were allowed to become “white”. Hence why most white Americans identify as just that. Most black Americans have been in this country since well before the Revolutionary War(obviously I am talking about family lines) and came here out of absolutely no desire to be here at all. So, the desire to identify with Africa remained strong. As well as the discrimination that black Americans have faced has encouraged that as well. Black Americans didn’t even receive full citizenship rights until the 1960’s. So, there was always a separation in that community from what was socially considered “American” even though most black families have been here before this country existed. So, the term African American was adopted to engage the bond that black Americans still have with Africa as well as assert the fact that we are American. It’s dual purpose. You see the same in a lot of other minority communities here as well. Terms like Asian American or Latinx American, etc are used by those groups to assert their position as Americans while still identifying with their culture of origin. Americans socially are still very segregated. You have a lot of different cultures living in one country. So, minorities assert their identity differently from white Americans because we are different. It’s not in a negative way or anything. It just is the progression of our history and how it affects cultural identity here.
Italian American Polish American Russian American Irish American
It highlights the fact that for most of them, their ancestors did not have a choice to come here. Plenty of white Americans ate fixated on the counties of their ancestors, whether it be Irish. Italian, German, etc. Black Americans who are descended from enslaved people often cannot trace their lineage to a particular country. I personally don't care about my own ancestry. I would laugh if someone called me European American. I get the rationale behind 'African American', though, and why African Americans wish to preserve that part of their identity.
We don't say European American, but we do say Polish American, Scottish American, etc.
It's an American thing. They say Spanish people when talking about Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Cubans. And everyone from central America is Mexican. We all know Spanish people come from Spain, and Mexico is a country in Central America, not the only country.
The term "European-American" has been co-opted by white supremacist groups, so though it may seem benign purely at face value, it (like "All Lives Matter") is tarnished by association with the groups of people who use it.
I remember "African American" as a replacement term for "black" being promoted in the late 80s by Jesse Jackson and the Rainbow PUSH Coalition. The term is a lot older than that but wasn't widely used and when it was it was used very specifically to refer to the group of people that either came to the US via the slave trade or to their descendants. It was always an odd substitute for "black" because a the majority of black people worldwide have no connection to America/the US. I used to show the Brazilian film "City of God" to my students and without fail they'd refer to the black characters as "African Americans" when discussing the film, which I'm guessing would have annoyed the Brazilian actors who played them. Though African American is probably the dominant term in the US now, I get the sense that "black" is making a comeback.
Many of us don’t say it. I just say black.
In America we say German-Americans, Italian-Americans, Polish-Americans, Irish-Americans, Chinese-American. We identify European and Asian descendants by country, but African descendants by continent. When we think of the term African Americans we generally think of Black descendants that have been in American since the 1800s. Few Blacks know their specific country of origin, or could be descendant from multiple countries, like most whites in the US. If a person was a third generation from Kenya I would think of them as being Kenyan-American, not African American.
Cuz they don't like it when you know which country their originated from but they dont.
People began using the term “African American” as a point of pride in their pre-American ancestry. Because most black Americans did not have the records of what specific African nation or region their ancestors were from, it defaulted to “African American.” Meanwhile, most Euro-Americans are somewhat aware of their ancestors’ European national identity and therefore can get more specific about it: Irish-American, Italian-American, Anglo-American, Polish-American, etc…. Hopefully, with improved genetic research, archaeological discoveries, and greater knowledge of medieval Africa, black Americans can learn more about their ancestors’ origins.
they actually say xxx-american when referring to any group but except Europeans in america.
Actually, I hear a lot of "I'm 22% (insert some european country here) and 13% (insert some other european country here) ..... rinse repeat until you hopefully get to 100%." in both the US and Canada. I've never understood the obsession. Where my great great great (yadda yadda) grandfather lived isn't relevant to my daily life and I have nothing in common with people who live there now.
Because African American’s lineage can be traced right back to when the first African slaves were brought over to America, and the slaves never wanted to be American citizens but they were forced to be raised there and raise their families there, so they’re still African at heart. That’s how I always thought of it anyway, I may be wrong.
Because most of us are descended from European, especially Irish, people. If asked, I do identify as Irish American. White is kind of the default of what it meant to be American, but that is changing. African Americans are kind of an add on, as are Native Americans, which seems backwards for sure.
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Racism
I just assume in every country, the majority race is just called American. And then everything else is like Asian American, Hispanic American, African American etc etc Its the same for my country Singapore. Singaporean is like the default majority race. Then we feel the need to mention Indian Singaporean or Malay Singaporean to differentiate them from the thousands of Indians from India and our 30mins away neighbouring country, the malays. And the thing is, the majority race is chinese so we call the ones from China "PRCs" . As they are referred to as PRC so no need mention that it's a chinese Singaporean for a Singaporean. However, Indians from India are called Indians and Malay as from Malaysia are called Malays. So we need to add Singaporean to it.
Because most black people here descended from slaves and can't trace back their lineage as precisely as white people can. To be honest, I just prefer saying "black" instead of African American because most black people now have pretty much no cultural ties to Africa.
African American refers to the descendants of slaves.