A few days ago, we talked about Raven-Symone’s interview with Oprah. Poor O nearly fainted when Raven said this: “I’m tired of being labeled. I’m an American. I’m not an African American; I’m an American … And that’s a colorless person.” Raven is free to identify however she wishes, but Oprah warned that there would be a backlash.
Most of you thought Raven made a lot of sense. Elsewhere, the backlash did happen. One of the more civilized criticisms of Raven’s perspective came from CNN’s Roxanne Jones, who said Raven was “rejecting [her] blackness.” Now Raven is clarifying her statements:
“I never said I wasn’t black … I want to make that very clear. I said, I am not African-American. I never expected my personal beliefs and comments to spark such emotion in people. I think it is only positive when we can openly discuss race and being labeled in America.”
[From The Grio]
Technically, Raven is correct. She did say the word “colorless,” but she never said she wasn’t black. Raven rejects labels, which is what she was really getting at. She doesn’t want to be labelled as gay either, but the headlines all grabbed at her rejection of the African-American label.
I don’t expect that the furor sparked by Raven’s comments will completely settle after her clarification. On an unrelated note, Raven also talked about having good (mermaid) hair to Oprah, yet she’s changed it already. Now Raven sports multicolored dreadlocks braids.
Photos courtesy of Raven Symone on Instagram & WENN
I get her point. I’ve got Swedish and German ancestors but I don’t call myself Swedish-German-American. I’m American. People are too obsessed with labeling and categorizing. Just be.
African American is the label for everyone of Black skin color in America. But many don’t identify with it. Actually Charlize Theron is African American, but Viola Davis is an American from southern origin who is Black. IMO.
A black person who is Swedish (born and raised, swedish nationality etc) and moves to America is…Swedish-American? European-American?
Or is that just something the Charlize Theron’s and other whites from South and other parts of Africa get to do? Just trying to understand how it all works.
+1 Observer! Ha.
African American is shorthand of people of African descent who live in America. The term came of use after Negro fell out of favor. Back in the day there were mixed feelings about being called Black since none of us are actually that color, we are various shades of brown.
Now the tide has turn and Black is an acceptable term. I wish I could say it’s all about semantics, and while it is for some people, let’s be real — for others it’s about distances themselves from their racial group.
This is true. The term “African-American” is not very descriptive. I understand why some people would not want that label. My husband is from an African nation, but he is Caucasian, with white skin. Technically he is African-American, but it’s a meaningless term for him. And Black African immigrants who are naturalized citizens—do they identify as African-American?
Charlize Theron IS NOT AFRICAN-AMERICAN. She is a dual citizenship holding South African. Please stop perpetuating this phony claptrap that Charlize Theron is the only person in the whole world who can legitimately be African-American. Just Stop.
African-American is an ethnic, social and political identity for 30-40 million people of west African ancestry and whose ancestors were slaves in ante bellum. AMerica. It has a specific meaning.
BTW not every person of west African or Subsaharan African ancestry is African-American. Idris Elba and Lupita Ny’ongo are not African-American. Rihanna is not African-American. Chewetel Edgiofor is not African-American. It is an ethnic identity just as Native American refers to a specific group of people.
Don’t understand Observers pts.
I was discussing color and race.
Charlize Theron, a Afrikaner who is a naturalized American should be classified African American.
In terms of Race – Viola Davis – should be classified just American. Her family has been here for centuries. Her identity is not derived from African it is identified from American traditions and experiences.
Kitty,
If your Husband is from Moroccan he is Moroccan-American. He knows what country his people came from. If your Husband is from Egyptian which is actually an African nation….then He is Egyptian American.
The term is not meaningless to a few million people of WEST African ancestry in America. Because slaves were forbidden to speak their own languages, worship their own gods,or retain their own African names…and because poor records were kept almost no African-Americans know which specific country their roots are from. We don’t know if our great great great grandparents came from Ghana, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone etc. So African-Americans have made a conscious choice to use AFRICAN-AMERICAN to represent our current nationality and the ethnic roots which have been obscured from us by the historical times. It refers to a very specific group of people and it is not meaningless to us.
African is not a race.
It’s referred to as a way to classify a people who hailed from a certain Continent, Africa.
Africa is a Continent filled with people of varying races, with one race more. Prominent.
American is not a race.
America is a Continent with people of varying races.
Charlize Theron is African, she because was born in Africa.
Charlize Theron is a Caucasian who is African.
Her family are from Dutch settlers but she is African since she was born there,
Prince Alberts wife Charlene Wittsock is also African, even though her family roots descend from Germany and England. She is African.
PR. Harry’s ex girlfriend Chelsy is African. She was born in Africa.
There are only basically three races or (possibly a 4th ,according to some theorists, scientists) from what I recall from an old anthropology lecture.
But everything’s debateable which makes it all interesting.
And here is the confusion. “Someonestolemyname” We are talking about skin color and hair, not ethnicity.
I have a degree in Anthropology but it doesn’t mean that how America has defined Race is correct or makes sense.
The category of African American seems wrong for Black American’s who come from many parts of the world and have settled in America.
What box would Rhianna check if she became a US citizen?
She would check African American because of the color of her skin. But she wouldn’t identify with it because she is from the Caribbean.
I know, my grandparents immigrated from the Caribbean to Central America to US. I still check the African American box because of my skin color but I don’t truly identify.
* side note Charlize Theron told Viola Davis that she was African american and pissed Viola off.
I think this is a provocative conversation with many views. Thanks for writing your opinions
Oh denisemich, I’d love to hear more ,since you have a degree in the subject of Anthropology. I ended up majoring in Journalism so I can’t recall much from the other classes I took outside of my degree, but I’d love to hear more.
What I want to know, is “IF” Charlize really does have her American citizenship, couldn’t she tecnnically be African American? I know it’s a stickler with some but wouldn’t she be citizens of both nations and therefore could call herself as such?
Just wondering?
Charlize Theron is AFRIKANER. Last time anyone checked that’s a legitimate African tribe of white dutch origin who’ve been in Africa since 17th century. If she’s taken up American citizenship then she’s African American or if we are pedantic, Afrikaner American.
Brionne: Lupita Nyingo is Kenyan whilst Chiwetel Ejiofor is Nigerian and Idris Alba is Sierra Leonean so by your definition of what an African American is, then Lupita can’t be described as an African American if she takes up citizenship??!!!
Someonestolemyname: white Africans aren’t so designated for simply being born there although it helps.
They’ve been settled for several centuries. In South Africa (Charlize), in Zimbabwe (Princess Charlene/Chelsy), in Kenya (Jecca Craig). They are as distinct amongst themselves as the areas they’ve settled in.
They are not the same as recent immigrants eg the Spencers who moved to South Africa in the past 20yrs.
I agree with everything you are saying LAK.
I am well aware of Jecca, Charlize, Chelsy,Charlene and their distinctions.
I basically can only extend my post only so long before they get erased, for some reason a super long post here won’t go through for me on this site, so didn’t go into further details, but I do agree and am aware of each of the distinctions, you mention above.
Charlize Theron is African, South African to be exact. She is not African American.
I’ve had black colleagues who are from Africa and they got royally pissed off when people would insist they are African American. One poor guy got so sick of it and being told not to use the word black he finally blurted out “In Africa, I am black and you, sir, are colored”
What about Eurasians, or Asian Americans? They are just an Ethnic mixture or it is related to culture?
Latinamericans is also a difficult term.
There are also Africans who are from a different American country.. Are they black? or African-CAnadian, etc?
OR does it dependo on which label one wants to have?
.
.
The mixing of culture in the US is an amazing thing, but when I first visited, I was kind of shocked with the obsession with labels, or maybe it is just a way to refer to the people’s origins. That was so, so foreign to me, where I am from, most of this labeling just does not exist like that. We are a multicultural country, but most of us are mestizos with variations o color and very, very few “pure” foreigners white, black or otherwise. I didn’t like when people tried to put a label on me in my visit to the US, but it was probably a normal thing, just upon meeting you.
there are certain areas where there are not “indians” or native nations, or indigenous people … I am uncertain on how to call them in an American blog, even…
Someonestolemyname/Ol Cranky/Ennie: i’m on the same page as you. These labels are a very American thing.
I am Australian-American. No matter what you consider me to be…I am American.
Her hair is actually in braids, which is quite different from dreadlocks.
Yeah…you grow locks, which starts off from twists, not braids/extentions.
Of course we shouldn’t be labeled as African Americans. Not every American black person hailed from Africa. And if we did, like we do with European and/or Asians, we refer to their specific country when refering to a person. Like Korean/Japanese/Chinese American, or, German/Russian American. Or simply an American of (blank) descent.
Yeah looks like she has braids… Probably extensions as well. I thought what she we saying is that African American as a term is kind of ambiguous because you’re referring to a continent and given the history of blacks in this country it’s more like saying I’m European American because you can’t say specifically what country you’re from. Ok but then that’s not a label issue that’s an accuracy issue. If she’s now saying she’s black well…I think you just labeled yourself Raven.
She should have not had to clarify because what she said was clear. I didn’t see the issue, I feel the same as her. I’m Black, not African-American.
Don’t know what all the fuss is about. It was pretty clear to me what she meant. I agree. Anyone born here or naturalized should just be American. What is so hard about that!
+1,000,000 Toot! I never understood the backlash, either. I also take issue with the labeling concept. Society wants blacks to identify as ‘African American’ however, we are so far REMOVED from Africa – having been in this country since the 1600s. I’m assuming this is to distinguish that although we’re ‘Americans’ by birth, we’re still not the same as ‘regular ol’ Americans’. Yet, White Americans aren’t expected to identify as ‘white’ Americans, or ‘European Americans’, or even ‘Anglo-Saxon Americans’. Why? Because they consider themselves ‘Americans’ period. I’m wondering how black people born in Europe are labeled, and how about generations of blacks born in Asia, who call the region ‘home’?
Why do people keep ” agreeing ‘ with things Raven NEVER said , She said nothing about preferring black to African American , She said she is colorless which is her right
Do people even bother to view/read The source material or do they just head straight to the comments section .All since Yesterday people have been turning this into a black vs AA label debate when the woman said nothing of the sort
NO Labels Colorless what is there not to understand ?
I totally agree. if you were born in America you are American We all came from different ethnic backgrounds and have ancestries from other countries. I like Raven don’t like labels But just another human being of the human species. Why can’t people accept a person as a person instead of a label.
Unfortunately, there will always be backlash over petty things.
Our world has become so politically correct, it’s ridiculous. She should be able to make a statement regarding her own identity however she pleases. I still see her as the adorable little girl on the Cosby Show. Let it go people, let the woman live her life. Social media is now trying to control how people articulate their feelings……the Internet can be a wonderful thing….but it is also the new police patrolling the world.
I agree completely. How she likes to identify herself racially and sexually is entirely HER business. She’s got nothing to apologise for.
Random, but I really love your name……
I completely agree. She wasn’t talking about how all black people should see themselves just herself.
I know Whoopi Goldberg once said something similar too. Her attitude was “Im not from Africa”. Which makes sense. I mean my ancestors come from England and and Ireland and I hardly identify myself as such.
Yup, Whoopi says it all the time, the exact same thing.
No one gave her any crap about it.
Her hair looks so heavy! I’d be falling over backwards.
I don’t have a problem with what she said. I’m sure she’s been in some kind of new-agey therapy for years… you can tell by the way she speaks.
What is the actual PC term for black people in America? I mean seriously.
I’ve heard quite a few: some don’t mind to be referred as black. Some prefer coloured (which I presume is not just black). Than there’s African-American which is problematic because – as Raven said – some of them are not really African any more. What’s the most PC term you can use without anybody getting angry at you?
American.
Seeing as most so called “African Americans” have ancestors who can be traced to its inception when it was still the new world…we can safely say they probably have black, white and inbetween in their family trees.
White immigrants get the privilege of just being ‘American’.
I don’t know who you are, or if you are even American, but you sound like a sanctimonious troll. Any American gets the privilege of calling themselves American no matter what color. Don’t put words in anyone’s mouth, troll.
@Observer: Well, yes, but what if for some reason you have to mention the race. Which does happen in real life, no matter how much we’d like to eliminate it as racist. If a person is the first person of colour to win some award, you mention their race, for example, because it’s an important achievement. What do you say then?
@Jules
You don’t know “who I am”? Should you? Or “Where I am from”? What difference does it make?
I don’t know what your problem is but I am not a “troll” and I never put any words in anyone’s mouth. I simply said that only a few people, those with white privilege specifically, get to be “just” American. Without Hyphen.
Clear enough for you?
@Crocuta
Many would prefer ‘black’ in that case or ‘people/person of color’, it’s a very individual thing. Many would also then prefer to go by their ethnicity or country of origin (if they are not native to America). So it’s a very complicated issue because obviously people have different preferences.
I find that often times “race” (to describe someone or yourself) isn’t necessary. I mean, when I refer to my friends, I don’t call them “my white buddy” or “black buddy”. It’s not interesting to me personally.
American.
American is what all US citizens who hold passports are referred to and once you leave the U.S. your passport, still says United States of America and you are called American.
There is no race on the passport for the U.S.
@ Observer – thanks. That covers it (I was referring to specific situation anyway, not calling friends where that obviously doesn’t matter).
What is a “so-called” African-American? The politically correct term is AFRICAN-AMERICAN. Coloured is definitely WRONG
@Jules
I think you’re the one trolling here. @Observer has been commenting on this site for ages and what she’s saying here is one million per cent correct.
I am throughly confused by this discussion but i can say that Americans do not call themselves coloured. In my country coloured is extremely PC term but you should have seen people’s face when i used that word in USA. *shudder*
I’ve always just said black because a few of my friends have stated they have no ties to Africa.
PoC typically go by their country of descent (at least we latinos do) .
Historically, whites are the ones who get the “american” label, the rest of us have always been considered “others”.
Raven has every right to identity how she chooses, IMO.
This is another thing I don’t quite understand. Aren’t Latinos white? I’ve never heard Spaniards in Europe being considered a different race.
(This is what happens if you live in a country that is so white-white you can’t even find a race statistics online anywhere.)
@crocuta,
It depends: Latinos can be black, white, mestizo, or indigenous… we’re multi-racial.
Now, the US considers all non black Latinos white by default but I know of very few Latinos who consider themselves as such.
As for Spaniards, they’re simply European -I will NEVER consider them Latino.
@ Maria
What’s the definition of a Latino? It’s obviously not race then, if they are black, white, mestizo, indigenous and the mixture of all.
I always connected it to the language group (and since I always imagine Latinos as American descendants of Spaniards, I generally consider them white, even though the real picture is of course more complicated after centuries of development).
But in Europe, Latin language group includes Spanish, Portuguese, French, Romanian, Italian and a bunch of smaller languages & dialects – the native people of countries in question we’d usually consider white. I wouldn’t call an “Italian-American” a Latino, tho. SO it’s all a bit confusing for me.
What’s the most PC term for a Native American?
Crocuta: American Indian
There is no PC term.Some of us prefer prefer Black,some African American ,others prefer POC.For me,all three are fine although I call myself Black.There are over $30Million of us in America were are not a monolithic group.We don’t all think alike,look alike or know each other.
If you want to know what a specific person wants to be called ask them
I don’t think there’s a monolithic group, or that everyone knows each other or talk/look alike. Seriously, no need for that tone. But what do you do in situations where you can’t ask a person for their preference: like Obama winning the elections, he became a first ____________ president. I was just wondering what the best term in cases like this is. As much as I can imagine it buggs you, these generalisations happen often.
Thanks for the answer nonetheless.
This !
@Crocuta : In a case like that I would probably say African America since thats the “technical” term that official government papers use when your checking off the race box on like a drivers license for example. Just as the “technical” term used for white people is caucasian.
People need to watch the ciip in its entirety it wasn’t never about a preference for the label black versus AA ( a term I personally don’t care for but respect those who do )
She wants NO labels period (guess American isn’t a label )and went on to say she is colorless?? colorless is not the same as black.
She also mentioned all the stuff that’s running through her veins and not sure why She had to bring up her ” nice interesting grade of hair ? (Translation Im mixed and have good hair)
She has every right to identify how she chooses but needs to own up to what she said
Girl don’t pee on my leg and tell me its raining !
“not sure why She had to bring up her ” nice interesting grade of hair ? (Translation Im mixed and have good hair)”
So do you think she was trying to distance herself from her black roots or rejecting her blackness with the hair comment?
I saw her bragging, trying to pull some kind of “better than you” statement concerning her hair. I understand that many black women struggle with their hair, and I think they do a very good job at looking awesome.
Shame she had to clarify. Oprah probably didn’t help to quell the proceeding Twitterspolsion with her OTT reaction.
Nobody in the LGBT community had a problem with her refection of the bisexual or gay label?
It’s the internet. People overreact to everything. We do it here too.
Actually her speech made sense until she talked about being a “colorless” human being who happens to have “darker skin”.
Somebody on Tumblr raised a good point : ” not everybody has the chance to take distance from being black”. We still live in a society where young black kids are killed for looking suspicious and then labeled as “thugs”. Black women are angry and too sexual. I just thought her phrasing showed a privileged and naive point of view, not far from Pharrell’s new black ideology.
Black women are strong and some white men need to put a pejorative label on it (angry). The problems with race in America is that some sort of dialogue needs to take place, in good faith, with all parties involved, to mitigate its harmful features. I think that we are ready for it.
I personally believe that most the difficulties that Obama has had in working with our mostly white male Congress, has been racism: call it like it is. It will be nice to hear his take on it after he leaves office. I dislike the whole Republican party for this. I really dislike their attitudes on everything, that is socially valuable to the American people.. I see only war and gun mongers.
The just American label makes sense. But people from other countries may not understand that label either. My black roommate in Spain was always asked where she was from and she always responde USA which confused Spaniards. “But where are you really from?” they would press. They wanted her to answer with a specific country in Africa but she would respond that she had no idea where her ancestors came from in Africa and that she was American. We once ordered food in to our apartment and when the delivery boy came with the food, he was greeted by one white girl, one black girl, and an Asian girl. The look on his face when he asked where we were from and we all responded America. It was pretty funny but served as a reminder that even the rest of the world doesn’t understand racial diversity very well.
Excellent point, Amy!
Spain and their race issues that’s another whopper of a discussion.
INDEED, Somehow 700 years of Moorish rule and quite an influx of Jewish population gets lost in the rush to describe spayards as European.
….but Amy, there are lots of Africans/Asians who have migrated to Europe and have kept their traditions and culture. That’s why you get that question.
Europeans have become more educated about the differences such that an assumption isn’t made anymore that Black = one type of black or black culture in the same way that you see in America.
Our govt forms, if you decide to engage with any form of public job/service etc ask people to fill out forms that are so detailed that they pinpoint country origin where possible eg if you tick black box, it extrapolates further by continent and further into country.
I find most Europeans (all races) will always ask where i’m from, not because they are ignorant (Oxford dictionary definition) or rude, but because they know we aren’t all the same and have different cultures.
Well said LAK
Nobody in Spain thought my roommate was from Africa. She didn’t look like immigrants from Africa. She got every country under the sun (mostly in Europe). However whenever she revealed she was American this seemed to confuse everyone for some reason and they would expect her to know which African country her ancestors were from. She never felt disrespected by the questions though. She felt less judged for the color of her skin in Spain than all her years in the States which I found interesting. The only thing she got labeled was morena and she had no problem with that. Just thought it was interesting she felt “colorless” abroad.
Amy they assumed she wasn’t American because people around the world have a preconceived notion formed through books, magazines, movies, newspapers, advertisements, about what or who an American is. Our troops have had similar experiences in various countries they’ve served in. They don’t realize that there are ethnic groups in America and the Dominant ethnic group is comprised of white euro descended people.
Just tell them that you are from the mists of time…
Raven wasn’t dissing anyone,she just doesn’t want to be labeled! Why is that so hard to understand? Raven is a woman,Raven is black,Raven is gay……so which label should she adopt? Raven is an individual person who relates to many groups…so let Raven BE Raven!
ITA.
this is cute. You all can act like the world is colorless but let’s be real, when you’re out in the world, you are seen as Black and get treated as a Black person. So when she said that she viewed herself as colorless, of course Black people were upset! With the shootings of so many young Black people in America, how can she even say that right now?!
Only privileged Black folks can say the words she uttered because guess what, if she was in St.Louis she sure as hell wouldn’t go around saying that.
IMO, she can choose to label herself as she sees fit but to me, it was insensitive to say that at the moment.
This x 1000000
Raven tried to say she isn’t Black by pointing to her skin complexion and hair texture. The socio-political identity “African-American” represents people with a shared history and culture in America so I’m not sure why she needed to even discuss her complexion and hair texture at all except to create distance from blackness. Beyonce, Tina Knowles, Smokey Robinson, Eartha Kitt, Prince, Lena Horne, Alicia Keys, Vanessa Williams, and a ton of other people lighter skinned than Raven haven’t tried to distance themselves from Blackness. She seems ignorant of USA political history.
Maybe Raven is just seeking to become part of the melting pot reality of the States.
Crazy old white men cops! Put them in prison where they do belong with other murderers. Eric Holder is overseeing this investigation; he is the Attorney General of the US, as well as being black; hopefully these families who were violated will find justice..
It all comes off as sounding dismissive and ignorant about the US as well as not knowing US history: political, legal, cultural, economic and social. Here I am basically talking about America citizens whose families have been here prior to the 1970s.
I don’t have an issue with Raven S. wanting to disappear into the vastness of a colorless anonymity but America’s history and it’s continuing racial hierarchy doesn’t allow for that. Ask all of the black folks who have cut family ties in order to pass for white. Ask those who haven’t and why.
Is it time to retire identity politics in America? Sure. But the way it sorts winners and losers and public goods won’t allow us to do that just yet.
For me, being referred to as black or African American are synonymous. When or how I use each term as a descriptor is probably context driven, situational. But for me, being called an African American is about pride in my identity and my family’s will to survive, endure, thrive, to laugh and be loving under harsh conditions. It’s also about political resistance and supporting black liberal progressive thought and, finally, by virtue of my skin color “visibility” a living reminder to all that see me that America has yet to live up it’s own philosophy and promise. That’s an identity that’s not easy to carry but it’s one I HAVE to simply because if I and other African Americans turn our back on that to disappear into the vast colorlessness of which Raven speaks about then I have turned by back on all of those people who died (black and white) for me to be free and a part of America’s dream and it’s promise.
That was awesome, Dena. Liberal progressive, is our best bet, but why does it have to be black liberal progressive? Possible because of additional agenda; but I don’t like feeling that I’m being left out of the blacks! Oh…you just have to be one…that’s drawing lines. Can you see a solution?
Dena, Beautiful post! It was a joy to read.
What I said exactly!
These are pretty much my thoughts. She said that she was colorless, so it’s clear that she wasn’t just talking about her nationality. Oprah gave her several chances to clarify what she meant, but she didn’t bother.
As far I know, the terminology “Latin” is used for people who come from countries where the main languages originated from Latin. This terminology is completely misused in USA where you are considered Considered Latin only if you are are Hispanic or South Americans …
yep! People from Mexico, also self-identify as Chicano (denoting a political agenda,) and as Hispanics.
I don’t think she has to apologise. I get where she’s coming from. She’s a person from and born in America, she doesn’t want to be defined by her race and deemed as less American just because she is not a white person. It doesn’t mean she will deny being black but being black doesn’t define her personality or mentality either. I feel the same way. I am a minority race in my country and I hate being defined by my race. In fact, we have to declare race in job application and housing applications etc. I would not deny my race but I’m not any less loyal to my country than the majority race here. My armed forces have implicit reservations about hiring my race for the top ranks because they fear we are less loyal. That really sucks cos you always feel like a second citizen.
@Jade – You are so right. I am surprised that Black-Americans aren’t insulted that a white person is just called an American and blacks are called African-Americans as if they are foreigners or visitors to America.
raven is very smart, she is asserting her Americanism, not letting people brand her as a half American or a non-American.
Most white Americans cannot trace their lineage back as far as the majority of black who have been here around 300 years, yet they put blacks in the foreign category of African-American (not a full American) and blacks just stand around and let them do it, if longevity determined Americanism blacks would be super Americans.
It is not an insult. African-American is a political identity we chose for ourselves because we no longer wanted to be known as n*ggers, colored,negroes and other assorted derogatory names given to us by whites over the centuries. We also did not want to be known by our skin color just as Asians and Native Americans do not want to be known as “The Red Man” or ” The Yellow Man” . Every time we say African-American we acknowledge our roots and our nationality in a nation where we’ve bled fought and died in every war since The Revolutionary war
Really, Jade? I find that hard to believe as far as the military, because no one is that blind – – I would fight by a black soldier any day. I’ve never imagined that kind of racism still existing in the ranks, but I do not doubt that there are monsters everywhere. It still is very hard to believe – don’t we have some black generals? My hub was in army, and there was a colorblindness as far as I could tell. His best friend Tony (who was black/Korean) was deployed with him. His mother came to Korea to arrange Tony’s marriage to a Korean woman named Soon Mi – it was a whole lot of fun. The military is pretty rigorous when it comes to that, but…I don’t know, we didn’t ever discussed it with them. We saw no need to actually, because that was Tony & Soon Mi!
Hahah why would I make it up? The military structure isn’t exactly a role model for equality and democracy. Anyway, my country is a young nation compared to America and we do have a violent, racial past post-independence. So the baggage is still there.
I’m sorry Jade. I notice people hating on each other all the time, but I can’t imagine using the color of your skin as one of the reasons. A little story: In third grade I attended a nearly all white grade school (Utah) and noticed a new black guy who looked to me like a like a 6th grader. Waiting in the lunch line, I looked at all of my numerous freckles and was trying to decide whether they were going to be a liability to me. I noticed that kid ahead of me, strong and proud as pie. I pondered in those moments, and decided to never feel inferior because he did not (at least as far as I could tell in 3rd grade). It was a password to freedom.
There were various messages in my early years of how skin color was “otherness”. Years later, when I attended the University, I was standing outside of the Anthropology building, I noticed a black man walking past, who didn’t see me. I watched him intently, going to my depths to see if there really was a difference existing between us. Of course not! I saw that minus the topmost layer, a difference did not exist.
That is the truth, regardless of anyone who would say otherwise. I’ve never believed it, and I was fortunate enough to have very dear black friends where idea of “otherness” simply did not exist.
There is something to this; to not internalize the messages of difference meaning inferior.
I know that there are and have been enormous struggles for black people, but my suggestion is to stand and be proud because that is the truth of you. I am sorry that people do that to other people, but in my mind people who would try to demean others for that reason, actually reveals ugliness in their character, and a very low quality education.
I have always admired Raven and still do. It’s her right to describe how she feels and everyone else needs to leave her alone. When my daughter was growing up (she’s now 20), Raven was the one young actress we both truly admired. She wasn’t whoring herself out, she actually wore clothing, and she enjoyed food. She was a wonderful role model for kids.
I still don’t get it, what does she need to clarify? I read her interview statement and she’s right she was not born in Africa and then became an American citizen so she is not African-American. – naturalized Americans from Africa should be annoyed that their status is being co-opted.
Raven is a full American – she is a Black American…….
It is kind of interesting there were almost absolute silence in spaces where one can get an interesting comment about Raven’s original statement. I’ve seen one response and one funny blog reinforcing the silence.
I get the feeling that it is recognized that she has a right to her opinion. Pharrell made a similar statement in which the response was a similar, nonchalance silence. A very adult behaviour reaction.
I think people need to give her a break. I think the point she’s trying to make is that people should not be labelled because, inadvertently, labels place social values on people. When at the end of the day we are all just people, that love and feel and breathe and bleed the same. She IS an American and she DOESN’T know anything about being African, so let her be her. Just because society made up a category to put everyone into, does not mean she has to necessarily identify with with her allotted category. It would be a beautiful world when we can all just say “I’m human.” and that’s that. And it’s not that she’s shunning or denying her heritage, she is just saying “I’m me, i don’t limit myself to labels to make other people comfortable.” and that’s her choice to make.