To "Michelle," actually the term in question was "ethnicity," NOT "ethnic," so maybe before you attempt to correct someone you should take your own advice. You think? LOL
To "Michelle," actually the term in question was "ethnicity," NOT "ethnic," so maybe before you attempt to correct someone you should take your own advice. You think? LOL
My dad is from Puerto Rico. Has been called "brother" more than once, yet his birth certiicate says he is caucasion because Puerto Rico is part of the US.
?????
Hey Wolfie ...
My dad is from Puerto Rico. Has been called "brother" more than once, yet his birth certiicate says he is caucasion because Puerto Rico is part of the US.
moreonblaxx, I agree, there are sevral people who are quick to denounce the notion that they are "white". As you stated, they might say that they are Irish, Italian, etc. That's all fine and good. To each his/her own.
My question to them would be are they also willing to give up the ascribed priveledges that come with being "white". Because every body knows, or should know, that with whiteness comes priveledge. Because of this priveledge, the biggest problem facing the U.S. was, is, and always will be that of the colorline (W.E.B. DuBois).
moreonblaxx, I agree, there are sevral people who are quick to denounce the notion that they are "white". As you stated, they might say that they are Irish, Italian, etc. That's all fine and good. To each his/her own.
My question to them would be are they also willing to give up the ascribed priveledges that come with being "white". Because every body knows, or should know, that with whiteness comes priveledge. Because of this priveledge, the biggest problem facing the U.S. was, is, and always will be that of the colorline (W.E.B. DuBois).
LC4U, of course it doesn't really matter what she thinks to me personally, I have seen the opposite ends of the spectrum and it kinda shocked me on how far apart they were...
I just thought it would make for an interesting discussion...
LC4U, of course it doesn't really matter what she thinks to me personally, I have seen the opposite ends of the spectrum and it kinda shocked me on how far apart they were...
I just thought it would make for an interesting discussion...
You are incorrect to blame minorities for the use of ethnic labels such as, Mexican American, Black American, Italian American etc.
Let me remind you sir (and please check your history more carefully) that those labels were first used by the federal government and some local governments for purposes of identification and segregation.
How often have you heard people being referred to as English Americans, Canadian Americans, German Americans, or Dutch Americans? All these groups collectively are known as "white people", or just "Americans", while everyone else is something-slash-American. ********************************************************************************
Yes, I am quite familiar with American History, and you are indeed correct that racial identification was first introduced by the Federal Govt., as well as local gov'ts.
So does this mean that we as minority groups should voluntarily continue this form of labeling?
How do you feel about being labeled an African American? Black Americans have very little in common with black Africa or the many diverse African cultures. OK, so the use of ethnic labels were started by the Gov't, so shall we continue this on our own now?
I noticed something quite interesting over the years. Whenever asian people are referring to an American person, so many of them consider caucasians to be the only real American people. Hmmm...so what does that make the rest of us?
morenoblaxx wrote:
Mr. phea44,
You are incorrect to blame minorities for the use of ethnic labels such as, Mexican American, Black American, Italian American etc.
Let me remind you sir (and please check your history more carefully) that those labels were first used by the federal government and some local governments for purposes of identification and segregation.
How often have you heard people being referred to as English Americans, Canadian Americans, German Americans, or Dutch Americans? All these groups collectively are known as "white people", or just "Americans", while everyone else is something-slash-American. ********************************************************************************
Yes, I am quite familiar with American History, and you are indeed correct that racial identification was first introduced by the Federal Govt., as well as local gov'ts.
So does this mean that we as minority groups should voluntarily continue this form of labeling?
How do you feel about being labeled an African American? Black Americans have very little in common with black Africa or the many diverse African cultures. OK, so the use of ethnic labels were started by the Gov't, so shall we continue this on our own now?
I noticed something quite interesting over the years. Whenever asian people are referring to an American person, so many of them consider caucasians to be the only real American people. Hmmm...so what does that make the rest of us?
Well morenoblaxx, since your comment was directed at "some" white people let me say that only "some" white people would care what color you are on your side of the desk.... it's not ALL ABOUT THE RACE CARD.
Well morenoblaxx, since your comment was directed at "some" white people let me say that only "some" white people would care what color you are on your side of the desk.... it's not ALL ABOUT THE RACE CARD.
I'm fully aware of what "white" and "black" mean, BUT I don't want to be identified as "white Kim," or "that white girl." And while it's true that I am an "American" my grandmother, her mother and so on ALL came to this country from Italy (still have family there), so whether or not that concept is too far reaching for "some" people or not is irrelevant, it is a part of my heritage/ethnicity....part of what makes me me. Besides that it is IMPOSSIBLE to live in the U.S. without being painfully aware of ones race....whatever it may be. ;)
I'm fully aware of what "white" and "black" mean, BUT I don't want to be identified as "white Kim," or "that white girl." And while it's true that I am an "American" my grandmother, her mother and so on ALL came to this country from Italy (still have family there), so whether or not that concept is too far reaching for "some" people or not is irrelevant, it is a part of my heritage/ethnicity....part of what makes me me. Besides that it is IMPOSSIBLE to live in the U.S. without being painfully aware of ones race....whatever it may be. ;)
This racial thing is a serious topic and opinions about it are infinite. Often most of us won't even admit racial bias good or bad. Morenoblaxx I agree with your statement, we can't be fake and act as if we don't see the elephant in the livingroom. In the 80's Reagan took extreme measures to re-divide a country on the verge or atleast on the path to becoming a nation. There were laws designed to place further economic burden on non-whites. Budget cuts eliminated social programs designed to raise the standards of living for all Americans. The conservative movement even had some blacks against affirmative action programs designed to improve everyones way of life. The excuse was handouts don't help! How ignorant! At a time when blacks accounted for 15% of the general population and 59% of the prison population!?! There are lots of excuses for these ridiculous numbers, but, poverty and despair are the common denominators. Again we see racism at work. Major cuts in public assistance for housing dramatically increased the number of homeless in America, as Reagan said, "The government is not in the housing business. Yet on the otherhand he increased funding for homeloans and made mortgage tax deductions permanent. That housing business the government just happens to be in. This seems fair on the surface until you understand the disproportionate number of non-whites not qualifying for help period. Reagan and his conservative, back to the 50's movement went so deep they somehow conned working-class whites that their problems were caused by lazy non-whites living off their hard-earned tax money. As Reagan did this he gave taxbreaks, loopholes, low/no interest loans to Inefficient giant corporations. He cut social programs calling it government fat and quadrupled handouts equaling up to 50times as much to corporations. This created a situation similiar to the depression when job hungry Americans ran Mexican migrant workers back across the border. Throughout history corrupt governments have used economic depression to divide it's citizens by race, ethnicity and even as we are seeing now native nationality. Race is much deeper than black/white or other. Scientist and intelligent scholars all agree our species is Primate and our Race is Human. Don't be blind to reality and don't allow race to be a factor in your life.
This racial thing is a serious topic and opinions about it are infinite. Often most of us won't even admit racial bias good or bad. Morenoblaxx I agree with your statement, we can't be fake and act as if we don't see the elephant in the livingroom. In the 80's Reagan took extreme measures to re-divide a country on the verge or atleast on the path to becoming a nation. There were laws designed to place further economic burden on non-whites. Budget cuts eliminated social programs designed to raise the standards of living for all Americans. The conservative movement even had some blacks against affirmative action programs designed to improve everyones way of life. The excuse was handouts don't help! How ignorant! At a time when blacks accounted for 15% of the general population and 59% of the prison population!?! There are lots of excuses for these ridiculous numbers, but, poverty and despair are the common denominators. Again we see racism at work. Major cuts in public assistance for housing dramatically increased the number of homeless in America, as Reagan said, "The government is not in the housing business. Yet on the otherhand he increased funding for homeloans and made mortgage tax deductions permanent. That housing business the government just happens to be in. This seems fair on the surface until you understand the disproportionate number of non-whites not qualifying for help period. Reagan and his conservative, back to the 50's movement went so deep they somehow conned working-class whites that their problems were caused by lazy non-whites living off their hard-earned tax money. As Reagan did this he gave taxbreaks, loopholes, low/no interest loans to Inefficient giant corporations. He cut social programs calling it government fat and quadrupled handouts equaling up to 50times as much to corporations. This created a situation similiar to the depression when job hungry Americans ran Mexican migrant workers back across the border. Throughout history corrupt governments have used economic depression to divide it's citizens by race, ethnicity and even as we are seeing now native nationality. Race is much deeper than black/white or other. Scientist and intelligent scholars all agree our species is Primate and our Race is Human. Don't be blind to reality and don't allow race to be a factor in your life.
For the individual who posted "And then there's some people whose ethnic is black, but their skin color is white," ETHNICITY is NOT the same as RACE. One is based on physical characteristics and the other on custom's/beliefs and language. To "Luliana," North America is obsessed with "race" much like South American countires are obsessed with skin colour. Why? Good question. ;)
For the individual who posted "And then there's some people whose ethnic is black, but their skin color is white," ETHNICITY is NOT the same as RACE. One is based on physical characteristics and the other on custom's/beliefs and language. To "Luliana," North America is obsessed with "race" much like South American countires are obsessed with skin colour. Why? Good question. ;)
I have never understood the "race concept" in the US and ended up in various arguments about it.
Out here in Germany, we distinct ourselves by our nationlities. Not by race so this whole white/caucasian thing is a huge enigma for me.
Hopefully, someone can enlighten me. ********************************************************************************
Yes Luliana, the U.S. has always been a country divided over many things, race being perhaps the biggest thing. And there is no end in sight.
You would be hard pressed to find any type of application that doesn't require information related to race/ethnicity.
I remember a number of years ago, a friend of mine from Venezuela was applying for a job, and when the application required her to give info. on race/ethnicity she was quite offended and hurt by it. It does seem a bit intrusive and provides an outlet for discrimination based on race/ethnicity. I'm sure this covert form of racism happens far more often than most people realize.
With many black people, it's even easier to become a victim of discrimination based on first names alone. I mean with names like SHANEQUA, LAKESHA, TYSHAWN, WANETTA, JUANITA, TYRONE, TERELL, BUBBA(just kidding!), etc. You get my point. OK...so I'm a bit off topic here.
The United States has many "skeletons" in its closet because the amount of past wrongs against minorities(blacks, native Americans particularly)has never been resolved. So the DARK CLOUD remains in this country. The dominant thought seems to be LET BYGONES BE BYGONES, but the problem(s) remain.
But many minorities help to perpetuate racism by insisting on being called: African American, Italian American, Mexican American, etc. This is utterly ridiculous!!! There is NO SUCH THING AS AN AFRICAN AMERICAN PERSON. Africa is a continent with over 100 countries, so which one of those over 100 countries does the African American pledge his/her origin??? Mexican American makes a little more sense, because Mexico is a single nation. The same is true of Italian American. But if you are a citizen of the United States, you are an American. Period. Not an Italian American, or an African American. Simply an American!!!!!! I will get off my SOAP BOX NOW. LOL
In England, a black person is not called a black briton, nor is a Chinese person referred to as a Chinese briton. They are simply British citizens who happen to be Chinese, Italian, Scottish, Irish, Nigerian, etc.
And I am sure(having been in Germany before)the same is true in Germany.
Luliana wrote:
Wow, thanks for that blog!
I have never understood the "race concept" in the US and ended up in various arguments about it.
Out here in Germany, we distinct ourselves by our nationlities. Not by race so this whole white/caucasian thing is a huge enigma for me.
Hopefully, someone can enlighten me. ********************************************************************************
Yes Luliana, the U.S. has always been a country divided over many things, race being perhaps the biggest thing. And there is no end in sight.
You would be hard pressed to find any type of application that doesn't require information related to race/ethnicity.
I remember a number of years ago, a friend of mine from Venezuela was applying for a job, and when the application required her to give info. on race/ethnicity she was quite offended and hurt by it. It does seem a bit intrusive and provides an outlet for discrimination based on race/ethnicity. I'm sure this covert form of racism happens far more often than most people realize.
With many black people, it's even easier to become a victim of discrimination based on first names alone. I mean with names like SHANEQUA, LAKESHA, TYSHAWN, WANETTA, JUANITA, TYRONE, TERELL, BUBBA(just kidding!), etc. You get my point. OK...so I'm a bit off topic here.
The United States has many "skeletons" in its closet because the amount of past wrongs against minorities(blacks, native Americans particularly)has never been resolved. So the DARK CLOUD remains in this country. The dominant thought seems to be LET BYGONES BE BYGONES, but the problem(s) remain.
But many minorities help to perpetuate racism by insisting on being called: African American, Italian American, Mexican American, etc. This is utterly ridiculous!!! There is NO SUCH THING AS AN AFRICAN AMERICAN PERSON. Africa is a continent with over 100 countries, so which one of those over 100 countries does the African American pledge his/her origin??? Mexican American makes a little more sense, because Mexico is a single nation. The same is true of Italian American. But if you are a citizen of the United States, you are an American. Period. Not an Italian American, or an African American. Simply an American!!!!!! I will get off my SOAP BOX NOW. LOL
In England, a black person is not called a black briton, nor is a Chinese person referred to as a Chinese briton. They are simply British citizens who happen to be Chinese, Italian, Scottish, Irish, Nigerian, etc.
And I am sure(having been in Germany before)the same is true in Germany.
hey wolve, how does your friend see only in "black or white". Tell her to incorporate all the colors of the rainbow.......... reminds me of a skittles commercial.
hey wolve, how does your friend see only in "black or white". Tell her to incorporate all the colors of the rainbow.......... reminds me of a skittles commercial.
You know, I saw a very interesting episode of Oprah a while back on this topic. She had a couple of very caucasion guests who were legally considered black because someone in their family tree had mated with a black person. There was some very rude comments during the show such as one drop of black blood essentially is enough to contaminate the rest etc. It was very sad to watch. In this day and age.
You know, I saw a very interesting episode of Oprah a while back on this topic. She had a couple of very caucasion guests who were legally considered black because someone in their family tree had mated with a black person. There was some very rude comments during the show such as one drop of black blood essentially is enough to contaminate the rest etc. It was very sad to watch. In this day and age.
I think too many people are answering in terms of actual definition or how people "should be" perceived and treated regarding skin color, everyone knows the politically correct answers, everyone knows that people aren't literally "white" and "black", I'm just trying to get some opinions on what others consider "white" because I've encountered many different schools of thought on the subject in my experience...
in stark contrast to the first example I gave, I had a friend who said he didn't really get into white women and would never be with one, we asked him about a certain person that we knew he had been with and he said "that's different, she was italian", when we asked him what he considered "white", he responded that "white people" had blonde hair and blue eyes...
I think too many people are answering in terms of actual definition or how people "should be" perceived and treated regarding skin color, everyone knows the politically correct answers, everyone knows that people aren't literally "white" and "black", I'm just trying to get some opinions on what others consider "white" because I've encountered many different schools of thought on the subject in my experience...
in stark contrast to the first example I gave, I had a friend who said he didn't really get into white women and would never be with one, we asked him about a certain person that we knew he had been with and he said "that's different, she was italian", when we asked him what he considered "white", he responded that "white people" had blonde hair and blue eyes...
What IS white? "White" implies the absence of color, or the achromatic color of maximum lightness...wichever you prefer. I don't know ANYONE who fits that description. Caucasion maybe, but white? Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but in my estimation considering anyone who isn't black white is ridiculous. I'm not "black," but I am Italian, French, and Native American Indian, so what does that make me? People are too funny. ;)
What IS white? "White" implies the absence of color, or the achromatic color of maximum lightness...wichever you prefer. I don't know ANYONE who fits that description. Caucasion maybe, but white? Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but in my estimation considering anyone who isn't black white is ridiculous. I'm not "black," but I am Italian, French, and Native American Indian, so what does that make me? People are too funny. ;)
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