Question-To be Called “African American” or simply “American”
February 3rd, 2009
There have been proposals in this post Obama era that Blacks no longer refer to themselves as “African Americans” but in the spirit of unity and national solidarity, refer to themselves as simply “Americans”. The elimination of Black History Month, the closing of Black Institutes of higher learning (HBCUs), Black museums and anything perceived as once necessary but now no longer required.
Let us know what you think.
February 4th, 2009 at 3:16 am...
If you look at the history of our country we’ve always had a “mainstream culture”, an American culture if will. Minority groups have felt the pressure to join this mainstream upon stepping off of the boat. First or second generation European immigrants were once commonly identified as Italian or Irish-American for example. Their children and grand children integrated into “mainstream” society and dropped those labels. African-Americans have not been able to follow that path of assimilation for obvious reasons. We’ve stayed a self-identified separate group. An argument could be made for dropping the “African-” but i think that would be short sighted. We’ve all heard that the U.S. will no longer have a majority race later in this century. What that also means is that we no longer have a majority culture either.The country needed a monoculture for a variety of reasons but that is soon coming to an end. Interconnected but distinct cultures will replace the single dominant one. Instead of a melting pot it will be a buffet. Let’s take advantage of every thing this country has to offer while maintaining our since of self. For children born in the post-obama era, American culture is going to be far more complex and hopefully more inclusive.
February 4th, 2009 at 4:37 am...
That is a very interesting take on the question. You are correct, there has always been a mainstream society that all immigrants have longed to be a part of. The culture of the American has been so desirable that people from around the world have assimilated to the ideas of its culture while never darkening its shores. The idea and concept of the freedoms in America has been enough to cause cultural changes internationally.
You also make an interesting point which speaks to the empirical inability to totally assimilate. The only section of the population that has experienced discrimination, segregation and this inability to totally assimilate are women.
You tend to know one when you see one.
March 19th, 2009 at 3:14 pm...
While I truly don’t have a “dog in this hunt”, I would like to give my perspective as a person who has grown up in the ’70’s & ’80’s. I personally didn’t see a lot of the struggles that the minority races went through prior to the assasination of Rev. King, JR. The girls and boys I grew up with were my friends irregardless of their color/skintone. I have friends and now relatives that are of mixed races. Right or wrong, I just never really made a distinction as to race or religious designation. Frankly, the “African-American” references makes me cringe for some reason. I am not a “German-American” or “Irish-American”, I am an AMERICAN. I do believe that the day we can get people that write/report news like one of our own in the Memphis C.A., to stop draging up race to discribe EVERY issue that comes down the pike, we will begin to be Americans. I never needed someone to tell me that a person was of African decent unless that person was white, otherwise, I felt it was ususally quite obvious. Light skinned, dark skinned, yellow, or white, if you were born on U.S. soil, you are an American. You have identical rights, privleges and protections under our U.S. Constitiution & Ammendments as any other U.s. Citizen. No, we do not need ‘Black’ colleges or the NAACP. I feel more like those organizations are racist than some of the racest white people I have come into contact with.
Post Obama is irrelevant. Anything post-JFK started the process to where we are today. For my children’s sake, I hope that we can wrap up these discussions everywhere, kick out the racest media people and move forward as Americans. I also think that people need to actually listen to MLK, Jr.’s speech a little closer, I don’t believe that he wanted this divison to continue. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton just want to have the money and power that comes with stirring the pot and keeping race in the front of our minds. When in the last 35 years has it made a hill of beans difference if a person was white or black on anything other than a political issue. I am really ready to get past all of this. I never owned slaves, my father never owned slaves and my grandfather never owned slaves. Beyond that, I am not sure but if my family didn’t have any slaves in over 150 years why am I still worried about it. Jesus says that if a sin is forgiven, then it is forgivin completly, if it is held bound then it is held bound. Please forgive us and let’s move forward together. I for one think we could put our anger, group determination and powers of persuasion into keeping our beloved country a free, non-socialist country rather than riding a dead horse. If we don’t pay attention to the real issues at hand, we will all be slaves to the government and we will all wonder where our freedoms that our fathers died for have gone.
March 19th, 2009 at 8:48 pm...
It is often the case that if we do not see something we have a definite challenge believing that it happens or happened.
If you are a white male I can see how you can find yourself thinking in this vain, but if you are a white female, I do not see how you can make the statement that all are privileged to the same degree of freedoms afforded to us as Americans. For if that is true, women who assert that there is sexual discrimination, are mistaken.
If America is the Utopia the Panacea of realized freedoms then you are right. Any special interest group is a fallacy, a product of some overactive imagination.
Is not the idea of America, a republic where the individual can be an American? I am the noun described by the adjective, not the adjective described by the noun. America allows me, if I so choose, to maintain an identity that augments or describes my existence as an American. Should we attempt an amalgam of personalities, thoughts, dreams, desires and ethnicies to such and extent that we are indistinguishable? Thus, no longer being a mixture but becoming a solution.
If we should see ourselves as only Americans, should we dispose of every, China Town, Jewish, Latino community, Indian reservation etc. and make it a requirement that upon acceptance of US Citizenship a person and their family renounce any outward display of history or ethnicity that is not considered 100% American?
According to the Pledge of Allegiance we are an indivisible nation not an indistinguishable people. The very fact that we are the United States plural and not the United “STATE” singular attest that we believe in maintaining and indivisible identity.