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No. The term "African American" has a cultural and historical context. It denotes and connotes, within those contexts, the legacy and descendents of African slaves in the U.S.
So our current president isn't an African American? What about my colleagues from Nigeria? What about Egyptians? I think perhaps what you mean is African American refers to someone who is ultimately of sub-Saharan African decent. That would include the President and recent Nigerian immigrants, but exclude Charlize Theron and Egyptians. Maybe you do mean to exclude the President, though. If you're too picky about it and believe in evolution, though, we're all ultimately of African decent.
What bothers me is when someone refers to people like Thierry Henry as "African American".
Would someone call me when there is a thread decrying the use of Irish American, German American, Italian American or any other? Frankly I am more than a bit tired of the obsessive fixation on the usage, definition or appropriateness of the term African American.
It's simple. African Americans are from a distinctive culture formed through the Middle Passage to what is now the USA, chiefly the southern USA, through slavery in the USA. It also applies to descendants of black African immigrants who assimilate into this distinctive culture, such as Barack Obama.
White immigrants, a la Charlize Theron or Teresa Heinz Kerry are not African American. They are South African-American, Mozambican-American, etc.
It's a semantic argument just like people who waste everyone's time pointing out that Arabs are also Semites. While true it runs against the standard English language usage so it is a waste of effort.
For over ten years when ever someone has asked me who I think is the best looking African American actress; I've always answered Charlize Theron; born and raised in South Africa and emigrated to the states. She's the very definition of African American.
While I will agree that she is good-looking, and a beautiful South African actress, Charlize is not the definition of African American. She is the descendant of European settlers in Africa.
I would have to agree with the poster that if you are born here, you are a american. period. if you are born in another country, your are of that country. no matter what your parents or your children are.
can only black people be called African Americans?
What about the Arabs in the North? The Whites in the South?
Sure, and I knew a bunch of people from Egypt and South Africa that would really screw with people because on the paperwork they're African American, but then when they'd meet up with somebody from the school they'd be expecting a totally different person to show up.
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