Tom asks about "African American"

I was recently asked a question at Black and White Blog, where I am co-author. The question was in regard to why people use "African American" instead of just going by American.

It's a good question and I thought I'd provide it and my response here.

This will be a short post derived from my own curiosity. Who in America is an American? Very likely “Native Indian” would be the response of most. And, I’m tempted to agree. We all came from somewhere else to get here.

If the native Indian is the only true American, then aren’t we all, who aren’t native American, subject to some kind of classification by kindred affiliation? If so, then why only the “African American” distinction? I’ve really never understood the reasoning behind this situation.

As a Caucasian I’ve always felt this to be some kind of racial designation that musters tension between Blacks and Whites particularly. The reason I’ve felt this is simply because it seems totally unnecessary. Why do we have to differentiate the Black race? If it’s a good idea to do so, then it would seem that all men, red, brown, yellow and white should also have such distinction. Can you imagine that being the case!

If such were fact, I would hereafter be known as Tom a European Dutch/French American. You’re right! That would be totally mucho whaco. So, would somebody please explain to me why “African American” or for that matter, “Black American.”

It seems to me that if we all were just simply known as “Jane Smiths” or “John Blacks” it would be much easier to look at one another with a colorless eye. We’re making a great effort to rid the world of racism while at the same time we promote it by highlighting race!

Maybe it is simplistic, but it makes sense to me.

Tom

My response, while not completely historical are my feelings about what Tom stated.

Tom,

It is simple, and yet not quite. The reason why there is an African American designation, or Black American for that matter, is because of the issues America has always had with people of color.

Since colonial days, and before then, non-Europeans were considered ’savages’. As such they were not seen as equals and the names given to these people of color reflected that thought. So when Eurpoeans came to America they carried with them that prejudice.

Thus African Americans were called the N-word, or boy, in efforts to dehumanize them and make the slavery they endured more reasonable. As centuries passed, America grew a little. African American contributions to every facet of life in America, and every single conflict, removed the thought of dehumanizing and instead was replaced by a thought of inequality.

That created the designation of colored. A step up from boy or the N-word, but hardly worthwhile. The next step was Negro, also hardly a positive - but a precursor to Black.

Black was accepted in the 50’s,60’s and 70’s due to the fact that it was less weighted with negative stereotypes and history of slavery. It was not connected to the N-word, nor did it relegate people of color to some other negative that had been in the societal conciousness since inception of the nation.

In the 80’s African American became popular as a recognition of the history of African Americans took hold across the nation. It is a symbolic way of regaining a history and heritage that was removed forcibly and denied for centuries. For many, like my family, that can’t trace their lineage beyond slave masters in the 1860’s it’s the only means of having a history.

It may not seem like much, but Tom you know you go back to the Dutch and French, maybe for 1000 or more years. I can’t tell you where my family come from past slave owner Johnson in 1863. That lack of knowledge takes something away from me, and knowing it was done because my family was considered non-human makes it worse.

I agree that after 400 years in America, any group should be proud to be just American. Yet America only figured out that Blacks are people 144 years ago. And only figured out that we have equally shed our blood and built this nation (literally with our sweat, blood, and bones) in the last 44 or so years.

Because of such little time recognizing the worth of people of color, America has needed designators for anyone of color. It helps keep people seperated even as the law supposedly fight that. It allows for negative stereotyping and quick identification.

So at the same time, African American is an attempt to reclaim a past that has been denied and shunned, while being a means of seperation and inequlity.

I would love to see the day where none of this is necessary. But considering that to this day, America (the Government) still refuses to apologize for slavery, the legal system is unquestionably skewed against people of color, and people of color are disproportionately represented in every aspect of life in this nation, I don’t see things changing any time soon.