Tell me now.

[Tessu]

Are there any people here, who are of African descent, who will be offended if I call them black and personally request for me to call them African-American?

Please, speak now, so I can be sure to never be so rude as to describe someone as being black with the fair knowledge that they have never been to or even seen Africa.

It really bugs me when I use the descriptive term "black" with a human being in question, and a whole bunch of people chime in YOU MEAN AFRICAN-AMERICAN. (none of whom fit the description, by the way)

Henceforth, I forbid any of you to ever call me Chinese or Asian. I must always be Asian-American, even though I have never set foot on Asian soil in my life, nor have my parents.

[Aisha379]

I guess that makes me...uh...eastern-german-irelandian-soviet-american.


I agree though. Its stupid.

[Xaeris]

I'm not even from Africa. I'm from the Caribbean. I actually feel the urge to /facepalm a little bit when people call me African-American when, it's inaccurate, and 'black' would be so many less syllables.

[unicorn]

No one will care if you call them black. Lol.

[Aisha379]

No one will care if you call them black. Lol.

Sadly untrue. While rare, there are a few jerks that take it as an offensive term D=

[CelestialBlade]

Be honest. Call them brown.

[Kylie]

Be honest. Call them brown.
XD

But yeah, I'd rather save the offense for the intention behind the words and not just the words.

[Toadthroat]

No, I'm black.

[Leviathan]

Nigerian-American.
Puerto Rican-American.
Spanish-American.

&That's about it I think...

My dad is from Africa.
Mum is from Puerto Rico.
From her mom's side she came from Spain.
&Then I might be some other stuff too.

[Vanzazikon]

I usually refer myself as a Cambodian or Cambodian-American. People don't usually call me asian anyway so it seems weird for me to call myself asian-american. I have some african-american friends and they don't mind if I refer them as black. They usually don't call me "that asian guy" when describing me to another person. I don't know... where I'm from, being Cambodian is much more different than being another asian ethnicity according to them. I guess its the way I look.

[Tessu]

I usually refer myself as a Cambodian or Cambodian-American. People don't usually call me asian anyway so it seems weird for me to call myself asian-american. I have some african-american friends and they don't mind if I refer them as black. They usually don't call me "that asian guy" when describing me to another person. I don't know... where I'm from, being Cambodian is much more different than being another asian ethnicity according to them. I guess its the way I look.

That's odd. I'd probably just stick with "Asian", unless you were from eastern Russia.

But I agree with what Kylie said. It's the intentions, not the words (assuming it hasn't been deemed "taboo") that should count when speaking of someone. I don't use the term black as if it's some kind of offense. ;\

[Vanzazikon]

That's odd. I'd probably just stick with "Asian", unless you were from eastern Russia.From where I'm from, that's Fresno California :wacko:, it seems odd for me to call myself "asian." I really have no idea why. I can only guess it's because there isn't any asian that isn't Cambodian supportive enough to me to make me feel "welcome" to that name. You have to consider how my lifestyle is like. To consider yourself asian-american, you have to gain knowledge of how all asians are like, because from what I see they are not all the same.

[VanHalen]

I like to be called black. I was born in America and not Africa so I don't need an added title. I feel prouder saying American anyway :3.

[Kent]

I demand everyone refer to me as Chimera-American (though, the portmanteau'd version would be acceptible, because portmanteaux are awesome: Chimeramerican), due to my ridiculously-diverse genetic background.

...Besides, isn't [insert locale here]-American mostly referring to immigration from another part of the world into America? :/

[Nitro Vordex]

I demand everyone refer to me as Chimera-American (though, the portmanteau'd version would be acceptible, because portmanteaux are awesome: Chimeramerican), due to my ridiculously-diverse genetic background.

...Besides, isn't [insert locale here]-American mostly referring to immigration from another part of the world into America? :/
You're from hell, Kent? :wacko:

[Vanzazikon]

You're from hell, Kent? :wacko:Nah, he's from Greece. :D

[thunder-ray]

I like to be called black. I was born in America and not Africa so I don't need an added title. I feel prouder saying American anyway :3.I secound this

[HAYABUSA-FMW-]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v468/HAYABUSA-FMW-/jefferson-twilight.jpg

I hunt Blaculas.

-You mean African American vampires.

No, man. What if they're from England and not American.

-But

Look, I don't know what the PC term for black vampires is okay.
::::::::
Anyone upset at being called black may just be looking for a reason to be upset. Although some people just based on their own looks and the way they say black, can make it sound just wrong, hence that minuscule exception becomes a rule for some people since they've been trained to know both African American/Black and heard so many corrections from Black to African American.

Here's your compromise. Black-American. Get used to throwing together the two word jumbles, and adding another word to black if in fact you're talking to other Americans.

Teachers say black. CNN says Black in America. etc etc etc.

In college, or anywhere really, you could meet actual African immigrants whom now live/study in America. But then they would just want to be called by their country, Nigerian, Kenyan.

So that's the point. We're ever so slowly inching towards calling people in America just:
Americans.

Which comes up around February about why isn't it just American History all year long with Black American achievements and stories & the actor whom we forgot by now whom said the same thing eloquently enough to make headlines about the same thing, removing Black History as just one month and making it a part of year round annual(by habit now) and regular everyday history.

[The_Gio]

im Hispanic, but people have developed that habit of calling every single hispanic, mexican. It doesn't really bother me because i dont really expect people to know the differences between Guatemala and Mexico unless their hispanic themselves. To answer the question, nah, people shouldnt care. If they do, their just looking for a way to bother you. BUT i dont think race should matter when describing someone, unless the race is hard to come by where you live.Where i live, theres like 1 hispanic or 1 black for every 200 whites.

[CrimsomWolf]

American-something sounds just... empty? Artificial?

I would then be probably called:

*Polish-American
*French-American
*Germanic-American
*Ukraine-American

Plus a dozen other places from which our family might've descended.

We do know that my fathers family descended from French solider who settled in Poland, My mother's family partially comes from Lwów (where lots of Polish and Ukrainians live) and other from former Prussia

That's just ludicrous if you ask me.
And darn too long.

[Kent]

American-something sounds just... empty? Artificial?
There's an idea, since we're on the topic of whether or not people get offended by being called certain things.

Anyone who is a direct immigrant from another country into the united states is now deemed an Artificial-American. :wacko:

[SStrikerR]

If I ever say "black" in school, people shout, "RACISTOMGWTFWHATSWRONGWITHYOU!?"
Seriously, I'm trying to describe the person to you, and I can't do it accurately if I say white.

[ForceOfBrokenGlass]

I'll go with black. I'd prefer it if I didn't have to be classified because of my skin color but what can you do? Lets face it, what do you call a lighter skinned person from South Africa who immigrates to America?

[Vanzazikon]

Great Example, I remember my economic teacher back in high school said he had a friend who was born in South Africa. My teacher said he was whiter than he was, and when he immigrated to the United States, he entered the same University my teacher attended. When that guy had to identify his ethnicity on a test paper, my teacher was shocked, because he wrote down that he was African-American. My teacher asked him, "You're black!" Then the guy turned and said, "No, I was born in South Africa and I moved here with my mum."

[ShinMaruku]

Are there any people here, who are of African descent, who will be offended if I call them black and personally request for me to call them African-American?

Please, speak now, so I can be sure to never be so rude as to describe someone as being black with the fair knowledge that they have never been to or even seen Africa.

It really bugs me when I use the descriptive term "black" with a human being in question, and a whole bunch of people chime in YOU MEAN AFRICAN-AMERICAN. (none of whom fit the description, by the way)

Henceforth, I forbid any of you to ever call me Chinese or Asian. I must always be Asian-American, even though I have never set foot on Asian soil in my life, nor have my parents.
Those who are the same fuckers who look at Africa with stars in their eyes.
Thankfully they have not been in African and would bloody hate it there.

Find these distinctions stupid.
Yes I came from the Carribean but my great grand father came From China, does that make me Chinese?
People make stupid distinctions.Don't get too wound up about it, most people are either stupid or ignorant.

[Monochrome]

I guess that makes me...uh...eastern-german-irelandian-soviet-american.





Oh, a fellow eastern-german-irelandian-soviet-american!