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We aren't called White Americans because we don't need a politically correct term and since white people in American history have made every possible term for a black person into a negative way to address someone we are shopping for a nice way to refer to someone who is black without pissing anyone off.
That is just the long and short of it I think.
I am Native American ( Sioux ), English and Scottish myself for what that matters.
I don't think that's really the case. The term "African-American" is usually used to denote the descendents of American slaves, who didn't know where in Africa they were from. I've seen people whose families came from Nigeria in the 70s refer to themselves as "Nigerian-Americans" because they know their heritage. In the same way, most white people in America know their own heritage, hence referring to themselves as "Irish-" or "Italian-Americans."
I don't think that's really the case. The term "African-American" is usually used to denote the descendents of American slaves, who didn't know where in Africa they were from. I've seen people whose families came from Nigeria in the 70s refer to themselves as "Nigerian-Americans" because they know their heritage. In the same way, most white people in America know their own heritage, hence referring to themselves as "Irish-" or "Italian-Americans."
no I don't like it for one why aren't white people in america not considered european or asian or african american as well. Caucasian people originate from all these places yet we don't reffer to them that way just call them white. If they're white americans then why aren't black people black americans? That's why I preffer the definition black...
I wondered this too before the first time I visited the USA. I remember I was with a group of visitors from other countries. We would introduce ourselves and say we were from so you would hear their introduction and then “…I am Chinese…I am English…I am Laotian…I am Egyptian…” but when it was the turn of the Americans they didn’t simply say “I am American” but they had to come up with all these percentages “…I am half French but 9 % Russian with a touch of English and, uuuumh, well, my grandmother had some Spanish in her so…and, uuuuh, I am also…” some people were rolling their eyes up. I wondered why they just couldn’t simply say “I am American” but then again I am not sure if “American” is a race really.
I wondered this too before the first time I visited the USA. I remember I was with a group of visitors from other countries. We would introduce ourselves and say we were from so you would hear their introduction and then “…I am Chinese…I am English…I am Laotian…I am Egyptian…” but when it was the turn of the Americans they didn’t simply say “I am American” but they had to come up with all these percentages “…I am half French but 9 % Russian with a touch of English and, uuuumh, well, my grandmother had some Spanish in her so…and, uuuuh, I am also…” some people were rolling their eyes up. I wondered why they just couldn’t simply say “I am American” but then again I am not sure if “American” is a race really.
The word American in that context denotes someone from America as opposed to someone who is English and is from Britain.
I wondered why they just couldn’t simply say “I am American” but then again I am not sure if “American” is a race really.
It's not. There really isn't a ubiquitous American culture, so a lot of Americans identify with the places their families emigrated from. Someone who grew up in Minnesota with a Scandinavian background is going to have a different American experience than someone who's Irish Catholic from Boston, or Chinese from San Francisco or Cuban from Miami. The language, the food, the traditions, will all be a little bit different.
Last edited by fleetiebelle; 01-12-2012 at 12:17 PM..
If you feel so strongly about some racial/ethnic background that you don't want to identify yourself simply as "American", you should move back to the country of origin. I find it extremely laughable that 99% of "African Americans" have stronger ties to the North American continent than most other groups put together.
I am Native American ( Sioux ), English and Scottish myself for what that matters.
To be correct, you are an American. Your heritage/ancestry is etc. etc. etc.
Likewise anybody who was born in the US or has become an American citizen is American. In that context there is no such animal as an Afro-American or an Irish-American or an Italian-American.
To be correct, you are an American. Your heritage/ancestry is etc. etc. etc.
Likewise anybody who was born in the US or has become an American citizen is American. In that context there is no such animal as an Afro-American or an Irish-American or an Italian-American.
Oh well, time to feed my girls!
I agree. I am an American.
Although does that change if my people were starved, murdered, raped and obliterated from the continent except for some poor folks who are still freezing to death on reservations?
I am happy to accept the freedoms that America gives and I would be happy to fight for my country but I know that there are many Native Americans of various tribes who take serious offense to being called Native American. They prefer to be called by their tribe names ect.
It's not. There really isn't a ubiquitous American culture, so a lot of Americans identify with the places their families emigrated from. Someone who grew up in Minnesota with a Scandinavian background is going to have a different American experience than someone who's Irish Catholic from Boston, or Chinese from San Francisco or Cuban from Miami.
Different experience, yes, but different race as well. When I have visited other countries I have noticed people are just a bit different whatever the location. For example, people from the most southern part of Japan (Okinawa) have darker skin while people from the northern part (Hokkaido) have pail skin, yet, both are still Japanese and share the same culture: language, food in general, house style, etc. You will have a Chinese from San Francisco, a Cuban from Miami, a Puerto Rican from New York, etc. But each one of them would be just that: Chinese, Cuban, and Puerto Rican. Australia and UK also have a melting pot of different cultures, yet, I don’t see those Caucasians go “Well, I have 30% of this race and 4.9% of that race plus I think my grandfather was half of that other race and…” no, they are Australian or English, as simple as that.
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