Anyone else sick of race??

[Preach]

^^
I wasn't talking about blacks, I was talking about yellows. I should be okay then.

Seriously, that's a good example. If you put your mind to it I'm sure you see why it would make sense to me to use that word though, so again. I'm not even fully sure how "colored" discriminates in a way that "black" does not, but it does.

 

[Chronic]

Black, white, brown etc. are neutral terms, there's an "equal" name for each race.

Colored is not neutral, it creates a distinction between white people and everyone else. It's the whole white people at the center of the world terminology.

 

[Preach]

Lol. I know that. When I said I don't know the difference I was basically making the same point I am now. The only reason I know or even bother to think about shit like this is I'm that guy. You know, the guy who gets on forums to argue with other people about shit that doesn't matter. I analyze words and philosophize meanings of things, and enjoy it.

To me, a white person is as colored as a black person. My logic could be that I call a black guy "colored" because I'm white, he's of a different color, thus, colored in comparison to me. I'll admit to being narcissistic, but not racist. I'm the ultimate reference point for all comparisons in my life, go figure. At the same time, I presume a black person considers me colored in comparison to him/her, or in any case, that said black person considers me to be the one with a difference to him, and not the other way around. You can call me "white" or you can call me "colored", or you can call me "honky", it makes absolutely no difference to me what so ever. So, for me it's easy to assume that it would make no difference to others as well. I'm not trolling right now, I'm speaking from my own very personal point of view. In the very second I uttered the word "colored" it's (probably) because it was necessary to aesthetically distinguish the person I was talking about, for the purpose of conveying information or a funny. I'm not black so I don't hear the word "colored" being thrown at me and it doesn't make me feel bad or angry. I don't have any black friends who express to me how it makes them feel when someone calls them "colored". Point is, I mean nothing negative or discriminative with the word, there's about 300,000 words out there, I don't know all the different meanings and all the different contexts all the words can be used in. It's a technical detail that slipped by me. It pisses me off, however, that this pisses other people off or bothers them. An insecure white boy who doesn't want the big bad black guy to be angry with him should be endearing, not an annoyance.

 

[S O F I]

At the same time, I presume a black person considers me colored in comparison to him/her, or in any case, that said black person considers me to be the one with a difference to him, and not the other way around.

I don't think it hurts for you to think that way, but I don't think that's the case. A Black person does not view you as colored...but colorless(hihi ok that's a joke). But yeah, what I said.

When I saw you use the "Coloreds" term, I assumed it was just because you weren't aware of it being out-dated; I know you didn't mean it in a negative way. Since you live in Europe, it's not a big deal to not know that. I completely agree that if you made the mistake, the Black person should recognize the honest mistake and not feel offended.

 

[linx]

Eh, I can already see a long response. But I don't feel like it right now. Probably in the morning.

 

[Synful*Luv]

Try to look at this from another direction. This post will be full of presumptions and examples, just look at the point.

You've got your pictures in your signature, and I've been on this forum with you for years so I know very well you're from the Dominican Republic. You clearly identify with Dominicans, and very much take pride in your heritage. At the same time, you live in America, and want to identify as an American, not an African something something or a Dominican Northern American.

See and that's the thing, I don't want to be identified by any ethnicity or nationality. Yes, I'm proud of being who I am, I love my culture. However while my being Dominican may enhance who I am it does not define me. (By enhance, I mean just different values, skills, etc that are culture specific that not everyone may have access to or know of, etc). I want to be identified as me, who I am based on things I can control... i.e. skill, personality, intelligence, opinions, etc. Not something as insignificant as where I was born or how much melanin my skin has compared to someone else. I mean, it's America for crying out loud either everyone is American or no one is. The only people who are actually native to the country you barely see anywhere.

Now you take me who live in Norway. We have lots of immigrants from all over the world, but Africans have not had such a big impact on Norway. I simply have not had to deal with a lot of black people in my life. The way blacks are discriminated in life differs from the way arabs are discriminated. I have no idea what I can or can't say to a black person so as to not step over the line. I just know there's a line and you're not supposed to step on it. If anything, my ignorance comes from the fact that you want to be both American and Dominican, and you can't make a choice about who you want to identify with.

1st you need to understand that the term "Black" means nothing, it refers to all people who are darker than White. Secondly, "Black" people are from everywhere, countries in African, countries in the Caribbean, countries from Latin America, etc. So, people who consider me Black although technically, i'm Latina. However, ppl just assume things. Also there's no one wrong thing to say because all Black people are different based on their ethnicities and nationality (you should know this, lol). Something that would offend a Black American probably wouldn't offend an African and so forth and so on. Each individual person is offended by whatever offends them, it can't be based on a group decision. And I don't want to be classified as either, Dominican or American. i want to just be me. That is my decision.

I only worry about racial issues because certain people with a darker hue of skin than myself will throw a fit if I just be myself. I say this from experience. Just like a depressed person thinks the world is against him I can see black people thinking everybody's a racist as part of some bigger human social evolutionary anxiety bullshit phenomenon of our century. I know this is true for many cases.

That comment is based on uneducated idiots looking for a cop out and a hand out. No, the playing field isn't even for minorities and White people... however, that just means work harder not ask for a handout. And if you're worried about what some depressed Black kid who thinks the world is against him thinks then you should evaluate why their opinion matters so much to you.

There's so many maybe's and possibly's involved when two humans with different skin color and facial features interact, that if I were to not think about race as an issue, I would sooner or later get socked for saying the wrong thing. We both know this is true.

Ignorance.

 

[Synful*Luv]

I don't think it hurts for you to think that way, but I don't think that's the case. A Black person does not view you as colored...but colorless(hihi ok that's a joke). But yeah, what I said.

When I saw you use the "Coloreds" term, I assumed it was just because you weren't aware of it being out-dated; I know you didn't mean it in a negative way. Since you live in Europe, it's not a big deal to not know that. I completely agree that if you made the mistake, the Black person should recognize the honest mistake and not feel offended.

The problem is, even in all of your responses (minus Chronic I think) you're all classifying all Black people as one group of people and I'm thinking that's it's the people who are considered "African American". I probably have less in common with most of them than I would have in common with someone from Armenia born there are raised in America. Why? Because we're both descendants of immigrants living and adapting to new practices. As opposed to a group of people who may have a similar skin tone as me. Africans are not Jamaicans are not Bahamians are not Dominicans are not Cubans are not African American but all can be considered Black. It's not one thing like Mexican it's a larger term like Latino.

So, that specific person may or may not be offended but that doesn't mean everyone else will. Most people probably will be offended because it has such a negative history and it brings up bad memories of a bad time period.

 

[THEV1LL4N]

It kinda makes up who we are, how we act and feel by having such an appearance, or how we may behave because of how we feel.

People have different thoughts, views and opinions and the person who told you about the hair chose to mention what they thought; which was meant to be some sort of praise.

But one thing is that, under the skin (eliminating ethnicity from the picture) we are all the same "race", the "human race".

Our bodies are very similar for the fact that we have the same organs, structure etc...

People think differently about what's on top of all that, the skin colour and appearance etc... and this is what causes stereotyping, discrimination and segregation in some cases.

 

[THEV1LL4N]

Racism will always be a problem and I dont think we can prevent it completely although we can try to clamp down on it.

Wherever you go, there are people who are similar to each other, let's say in a group. When they see someone unfamiliar or one who does not fit into that group, stereotyping will likely occur. They will also be biassed towards other groups.


I know this problably doesnt answer your questions. I thought id contribute to something which could indirectly answer them.

 

[Chronic]

1st you need to understand that the term "Black" means nothing, it refers to all people who are darker than White. Secondly, "Black" people are from everywhere, countries in African, countries in the Caribbean, countries from Latin America, etc. So, people who consider me Black although technically, i'm Latina.

That's not correct. In some parts of the world "Black" is used for anyone with a skin-tone that's quite dark but for the most part, and especially in the US, Black is synonymous with negroid, as in Black African. So a very dark-skinned Indian (from India) would not be called Black, unless it's by someone who can't keep the darkies apart

Latina does not describe someone's race, it has to do with cultural background and origin so you being Latina does not exclude you from being Black.

If you aren't of mixed race then you're Black and your ancestors came from Africa around 500 years ago. And unless you're sure that your ancestors voluntarily came to the Americas you can very safely assume that you're the descendant of slaves. I think that's why a lot of black people want to have the African tag because the culture they have now is, in part, the legacy of the slavetraders and not a natural evolution of culture.

This is not a comment about your pride in Dominican culture by the way, that's up to the individual, but it's a fact that (unless you're mixed) you're the descendent of Black Africans that left Africa no more than a couple of centuries ago and the term African American is rightfully used (if you're going to place a label ... of course I'd prefer if there were no labels). Not to say that this should mean that you should relate to African culture any more than American/Dominican, or even relate to it at all.
It's the same with White Americans, they're all descendents of Europeans that came to America so calling them European Americans would fit. Same way any Japanese, Chinese, Korean etc. person is called Asian, regardless of how long they've been in America.

 

[raywaters11]

it really doesnt matter about race so much as it does someone being "different"

this will sound very childish but i was watchin "fairly oddparents" [my gf has a baby, there's my excuse] and the kid wished everyone was the same color, so everyone was this pinkish like color. he hoped this would cure the "racism" but then everyone with really nice teeth picked on everyone with "less-nice" teeth. so skin color and ethnicity is just something else to pick on, there will always be something behind that if the race issue is ever over.
they will pick on ppl for accents, height, weight, intelligence, what kinda clothes they wear, what kinda cologne they wear, or if they dont wear any, or if someone smells bad, or even if someones hair is always fixed, everyone gets ridiculed, its better to laugh it off.

 

[Farzin]

^Very true.

 

[S O F I]

The problem is, even in all of your responses (minus Chronic I think) you're all classifying all Black people as one group of people and I'm thinking that's it's the people who are considered "African American"."

Well, yeah? In America, as Chronic said, Black is synonymous with African-American. If a Dominican is called Black, I would say that it's inaccurate, because a Dominican may or may not be from Africa. When I address people as Black or African-American, I address them as such because it's politically right to say so. In my surroundings at work or in school, it's required. If I can't distinguish, then it's my fault, but shouldn't be taken as offensive. In the end, it's simply just another way of saying "THAT person" instead of pointing a finger, if that makes sense.

Africans are not Jamaicans are not Bahamians are not Dominicans are not Cubans are not African American but all can be considered Black.

Well, there are lots of gray areas with these "race labels". You have to understand, when people label you as Black, it's just another way of pinpointing you or identifying you as a person. If you refute the label, that is fine.

The thing here, and I wouldn't say problem because it's not, is that you don't even want to be addressed as Black or Dominican or African-American, but just American. That is just YOU, though. Generally speaking, people don't mind these labels; on the contrary, they take pride in it.

I mean, I know Blacks here who don't want to be called African-American because they can't even identify with the Africans that emigrated here recently and want there to be a difference. A Somalian who came here five years ago and a 5th century Black American are different, the Black friends would say, and I don't see why I wouldn't agree with that.

In the end, it's all about people's preferences. We have these labels because it makes it easier for identification and classification. In the end, that's what it's all about. I mean, race here is so sensitive that I know Philipinos who received scholarships intended for Blacks (Black scholarship) just because how the hell is a 50 year old white man going to tell a 16 year old dark kid that he's not Black?

 

[Tha_Wood]

in Australia anyone who is not white is black or yellow. at least in grovedale that is the case.

i am white

 

[randomthug]

You know I'm just opening up myself for ridicule and scorn but remember when Barak Obama wasn't black enough cause his mother is white and his father is from Kenya and was not the descendant of a slave-blooded African American? America has a very bad rap about being "racist" but that's more on the part of the white forefathers and not their white sons and grandsons. I found it interesting to note how we have all this race based selection for jobs and college admissions and yet it was the great and oft touted yet seldom read or heard Martin Luther King Jr. who said "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." May we all strive to truly be worthy of accolade and acceptance not for being a brutha or souljah in da struggle just because I woke up being an off-shade of brown but because in my heart and in my soul I am a human like all the rest of the world's population crafted in the image of a Creator.