Does the term African-American annoy you?

I only know it exists because of online forums like this, and have never actually witnessed its use so it's a very foreign term even to me.cjek

Yeah, I'm not even sure I've heard it outside of the internet. I feel like I have, though..I used to live in Florida (southern part of the United States) when I was young, and came across more than a couple hicks and rednecks in my time living there.

It doesn't annoy me.

Unless you are an African-American (an actual African American)I don't see how the term can annoy you when it doesn't affect you.

The term annoys me when it's used like this:

There is an African American neighborhood in the west side of town; there is a white neighborhood in the east side.

Notice that the terms African American and white are very unequal. The term African American is formal, polite, and "fancy". The term white is not derogatory by any means, but it isn't "fancy" like the term African American. There are many instances in my American history textbook where the term African American is used to describe blacks and whites are referred to as just white. It's an eyesore to me.

There are two ways that the sentence can be "fixed".

They are:

• There is an AFRICAN AMERICAN neighborhood in the west side of town; there is a EUROPEAN AMERICAN neighborhood in the east side.
• There is a BLACK neighborhood in the west side of town; there is a WHITE neighborhood in the east side.

Notice how the terminology is now equal in the two sentences.

Other than this, the term African American only annoys me when it's overused.

The usage depends on the context. You say African-American to show respect for strangers or to describe someone in a place that requires it (court or some professional setting). You say "black" when it's a friend and they don't mind being called black.

I have a friend/co-worker and when I tell someone they need to talk to him and he's not around, I say "the black guy who runs the warehouse" not "the Dominican who runs the warehouse".

For one thing, not everyone knows what a Dominican looks like (it can vary). And for another thing, he's not African.

my_mortal_coil

The term annoys me when it's used like this:

There is an African American neighborhood in the west side of town; there is a white neighborhood in the east side.

Notice that the terms African American and white are very unequal. The term African American is formal, polite, and "fancy". The term white is not derogatory by any means, but it isn't "fancy" like the term African American. There are many instances in my American history textbook where the term African American is used to describe blacks and whites are referred to as just white. It's an eyesore to me.

There are two ways that the sentence can be "fixed".

They are:

• There is an AFRICAN AMERICAN neighborhood in the west side of town; there is a EUROPEAN AMERICAN neighborhood in the east side.
• There is a BLACK neighborhood in the west side of town; there is a WHITE neighborhood in the east side.

Notice how the terminology is now equal in the two sentences.

Other than this, the term African American only annoys me when it's overused.

gamerguru100

I do not use the term in referring to black people unless they actually immigrated from Africa.

I have no personal ties to Africa and as far as I know, no one in my family is from Africa so as far as I'm concerned, we are Black or just plain American.

What about a caucasian who was born and raised in Africa, then moved to America and became a citizen? There's nothing wrong with calling an African American black, but what about that poor person who I mentioned in the first sentence?hiphops_savior

[QUOTE="gamerguru100"]

The term annoys me when it's used like this:

There is an African American neighborhood in the west side of town; there is a white neighborhood in the east side.

Notice that the terms African American and white are very unequal. The term African American is formal, polite, and "fancy". The term white is not derogatory by any means, but it isn't "fancy" like the term African American. There are many instances in my American history textbook where the term African American is used to describe blacks and whites are referred to as just white. It's an eyesore to me.

There are two ways that the sentence can be "fixed".

They are:

• There is an AFRICAN AMERICAN neighborhood in the west side of town; there is a EUROPEAN AMERICAN neighborhood in the east side.
• There is a BLACK neighborhood in the west side of town; there is a WHITE neighborhood in the east side.

Notice how the terminology is now equal in the two sentences.

Other than this, the term African American only annoys me when it's overused.

-Sun_Tzu-

why cant they just call them American just like every other american. like u dont go around like oh hes Japanese American and he is German American

[QUOTE="-Sun_Tzu-"][QUOTE="gamerguru100"]

The term annoys me when it's used like this:

There is an African American neighborhood in the west side of town; there is a white neighborhood in the east side.

Notice that the terms African American and white are very unequal. The term African American is formal, polite, and "fancy". The term white is not derogatory by any means, but it isn't "fancy" like the term African American. There are many instances in my American history textbook where the term African American is used to describe blacks and whites are referred to as just white. It's an eyesore to me.

There are two ways that the sentence can be "fixed".

They are:

• There is an AFRICAN AMERICAN neighborhood in the west side of town; there is a EUROPEAN AMERICAN neighborhood in the east side.
• There is a BLACK neighborhood in the west side of town; there is a WHITE neighborhood in the east side.

Notice how the terminology is now equal in the two sentences.

Other than this, the term African American only annoys me when it's overused.

gamerguru100

[QUOTE="gamerguru100"][QUOTE="-Sun_Tzu-"] There is a very good reason why the term "white" doesn't have a derogatory connotation, especially in America. The reason is that being white has never been a hindrance, it's always been viewed as a very positive and attractive thing. Even to this day you have black people trying to look white, because that's what's been romanticized by American culture for decades. -Sun_Tzu-

Yes it certainly is.

And a bit off topic here..But is your sig from the Green Revolution last year? Just something I've wondered for a while.

But is your sig from the Green Revolution last year? Just something I've wondered for a while.

taj7575

[QUOTE="taj7575"]

But is your sig from the Green Revolution last year? Just something I've wondered for a while.

-Sun_Tzu-

Ok, thanks. I love the sig and the meaning, but just making sure we were dealing with the same thing :P

It's a shame not enough came out of it though..Hopefully a few years ahead we can look at it as a starting point for a new Iran.

Doesn't bother me. If a group of people prefers to be called by a certain name, I have no problem in respecting that - as long as it's reasonable.

[QUOTE="-Sun_Tzu-"][QUOTE="taj7575"]

But is your sig from the Green Revolution last year? Just something I've wondered for a while.

Ok, thanks. I love the sig and the meaning, but just making sure we were dealing with the same thing :P

It's a shame not enough came out of it though..Hopefully a few years ahead we can look at it as a starting point for a new Iran.

I think it's an idiotic term, you don't hear me calling myself German-American because my lineage goes back to Germany. If you're an American citizen you're American, no hyphens!

Bloodaxe726

Political correctness in general annoys me. Why can't we just be equally evil to everyone?

'Oh my god, is that a black card?' I turned around and replied, why yes but I prefer the term "African American Express".SmittyPeppers

LOL! That's a good one. I've only seen 5 to 6 of those cards in my years of working in retail. Physically they are completely different from your average credit cards. They are heavier, thicker & I think made out of some sort of metal. I remember the owner of the card told me that he had to purchase at least a quarter of million dollars or more per year to keep the card active. WTF?

Anyways..... back to the topic. I just prefer to use the term African American just to be "politically correct." I mean I'm not gonna label or call Asians Yellow or call Caucasians White so why not apply that towards African Americans.

A name made to be politically correct. I dont mind it, but it seem s there would be a better term.

I'd rather just be called an american...

I only hate it because it causes a lot of problems with me not knowing how to address people (should I call them black or African American?) but other than that I don't mind.

I don't get why people are so obsessed with having special labels, nor why people get so riled about a group of people preferring a label. So, no the term does not.

I annoys me more that people focus on the term African-American, when we had people calling themselves Italian-Americans, Irish-Americans, Polish-Americans before blacks ever started using AA.

Blacks didn't start this, but it seems like it's only African-American that bothers people.

It bugs me. Black people are black people. Saying African American makes it seem like its bad to say a black guy is black, like its insulting or something. I'm white but when I talk about black people I say black people.snowman6251

I hate when people say that too. I mean, this:

is black. I don't even understand how my skin color:

are even related....

[QUOTE="snowman6251"]It bugs me. Black people are black people. Saying African American makes it seem like its bad to say a black guy is black, like its insulting or something. I'm white but when I talk about black people I say black people.tocool340

I hate when people say that too. I mean, this:

is black. I don't even understand how my skin color:

are even related....

An African American is an American who's "roots" are in Africa, just like an Asian American is an American who's "roots" are in Asia. What's so complicated about that?

It doesn't make sense when referring to people such as Martin Luther King who wasn't born in Africa, and makes even less sense when referring to Africans. Is a black man who is born in England an African-American? Is a black man who has never been outside Africa an African-American? I just think the term is incredibly stupid, I'm not trying to offend anyone.Eleckidding

a black man born in England can be an "African American" he he registers to livein the U.S. otherwise no because hes not an "Official" American....likewise for the black man who has never been outside of Africa. How can you be ANY type of American if youve never even set foot in america let alone left Africa?? Neither example makes sense in ANY way...

personaly i dont have a problem with it whatsoever although i do wonder why people arent referred to as simply black or white. you dont hear white people referred to as eeuropean american or irish american or asians referred to aschinese american or japanese american but its nothing that really grinds my gears.so im asking a question, why should it?

An African American is an American who's "roots" are in Africa, just like an Asian American is an American who's "roots" are in Asia. What's so complicated about that?

SgtKevali

[QUOTE="snowman6251"]It bugs me. Black people are black people. Saying African American makes it seem like its bad to say a black guy is black, like its insulting or something. I'm white but when I talk about black people I say black people.tocool340

I hate when people say that too. I mean, this:

are even related....

To me it's not the term itself, but the stupid thought process of "Let's go out of our way to be as least offensive as possible" that's often behind it.