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"African-American"
Topic Started: Mar 13 2014, 09:56 PM (157 Views)
Hedgehog121
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Rank 9
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Why are black people in the USA referred to as "African-Americans"?

I don't understand why this term exists today as most black men and women born in America are no longer tied to Africa. I can understand that people born in Africa are referred to that way but being born in America makes you American, not African.

I think the term excludes black people from this country by making them seem like they're not true Americans. I don't call black people African because they are just like me, American. I don't even see color when I meet people for the first time generally and it isn't natural for me to describe a person by the color when giving a description.

Another case I can make is that I am not referred to as European-American because I am white. Just like most people born here, my blood is mixed and I am not from pure European descent. My mom's side of the family is German and Native American mostly while my dad's family is French, German, and Native. Somewhere along the line there must have been some African influence because I have the sickle-cell trait which originates in Africa.

So with that being said, do you agree with me that black people living in America should no longer be referred to as African-Americans?
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CJ
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A very minor case of serious brain damage

Apologies for this....it's just going to be a bunch of sentences that don't flow together into a coherent post :P .

I will admit that I'm pretty far removed from this issue, so it's difficult for me to add much to (or, for that matter, counter any of) what you said. However, I think you raise a valid point. Analagous terms for other ancestry groups (e.g. "German-American", "Irish-American") do exist, but they aren't used with anywhere near the same frequency. Indeed, as you quite rightly pointed out, members of these groups are usually just referred to as 'Americans'.

Like I said, I'm really too distant from this to say much about it, but I get the impression that most "African-Americans" no longer identify closely with their African ancestors, and recent immigrants to America from Africa don't identify with modern "African-American" culture.

So, yeah. I'd probably have to think about it some more, or listen to more points of view, before I can confidently agree or disagree - but I do see your point.
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