Raven-Symone appears in the new issue of People to promote The View because the show could use a little help. Producers may want us to forget about Whoopi Goldberg’s huge mess of Bill Cosby statements. Raven has stayed pretty silent on the Cosby subject, which is understandable. She hasn’t called him innocent like another former co-star. Raven’s simply trying to distance herself from the Cosby fallout. She did tell Hollywood Reporter, “I don’t really like to talk [it] because he’s the reason I’m on this panel. He gave me my first job. But at the same time you need the proof, and then I’ll be able to give my judgment here or there. And now there’s real facts.”
Raven spoke with People about another subject, which is her distaste of labels to explain her heritage. Raven previously said she wasn’t African American, and issued a clarification, saying, “I never said I wasn’t black.” But Raven also made strange geographical statements, saying “I am from every continent in Africa except one.” Here’s what Raven said to People on just being American:
“I don’t like labels, but everyone needs them to understand what is going on. So, okay, I get it. Give me ‘American.’ There is nothing wrong with being an American, purely.
“I think that there are a lot of different races that fall under ‘American,’ so past that you really just are sub-categorizing me over and over again. I’m not disowning my history in any way. My family has been here for almost 400 years. We’re American. This is me and what I feel about myself. But if you identify as African-American, then you’re African-American,” she says. “What right do I have to tell you what you are and what you’re not?”
[From People]
Raven gets herself into hot social media trouble sometimes, and the problem really isn’t that she holds unusual points of view. I think she simply doesn’t explain herself well enough, and when she does, everyone still remembers how she doesn’t even understand basic geography. We still don’t know why she thinks she’s from most African “continents,” but here she says her family is straight-up from America. If Raven wants to refuse labels, that’s up to her, but she needs to explain her perspectives better on a number of subjects before people will stop side-eyeing her words.
Photos courtesy of WENN
It’s sad how she wants to subsume her afro American roots and culture.
I guess her and Eldrick “Tiger” “cablasian” Woods hang out together.
I just always take issue with the term American. It just feels like rewriting and disconnecting history. The real Americans were decimated and treated brutally.
Never thought about it like that, but I don’t think it’s disconnecting from roots. Unless someone is full blooded native American(who were treated terribly, agreed), we are all from somewhere else up the family tree. But we find issue with raven and not anyone else identifying as purely American, and not Irish American, English American, french American, etc. You can acknowledged that you are American, and respect, remember, and carry on traditions from your ancestors homeland.
Americans are the only ones who know what they “are” and talk about being one eighth this, one quarter that, etc. Every other country, they just ARE people from their own country.
I also feel badly for those like tiger who are mixes of many, because he is what’s said to be trying to escape the black side, when he is really also Asian and (is it Cuban? Can’t remember). But his Asian roots are forgotten, ironically, when people come down on him for not being “black enough”. We are all mixes, and that’s a big part of being American.
No it not just Americans. Canadians also identify with where they come from they just don’t hyphenate anything. I am half British and half Swedish and a second generation Canadian. You don’t normally read African-Canadian etc.
I found that weird too, like Americans will say ‘I’m Irish’ and when you probe it turns out their grandparents came over from Ireland – it sounds so strange. In Australia you’d identify as Australian first then maybe point out where your ancestors came from. Mine came from Scotland but I don’t say I’m Scottish. In a way it’s almost trying to claim a culture that really isn’t yours, I’m not sure I can get behind it.
I can see it.
She is black AND a lesbian. Considering how proudly homophobic a large segment of black Americans tends to be, I can see her wishing to be disassociated with labels or perceived as disenfranchised.
It is an particularly taxing battle for the ‘non-white’ lgbt community.
I can only imagine.
Let’s stop with the narrative that blacks are more homophobic than any other group of people because it’s not true.
I do not think I am making a racist, or racially-biased, statement here – I have listened to many testimonials from black gay teens and read many reports/comments/anecdotes online for years.
It is an issue we, as a society, can no longer sweep under the carpet.
I think it would be racially biased to deny the mere existence of this reality.
Seriously. And, ‘proudly homophobic,’ to boot?
You’re trying to be all intersectional, while promoting a racist narrative. It’s ridiculous.
THANK YOU, Fingerbinger. That generalization pisses me off to no end.
@ Babalon
I do not see it that way. Agree to disagree.
My black family in North Carolina is always a reliable testament in my life that there are people who do not accept homosexuality. They are the only people in my life that I know personally who are outward and outspoken about it. I think to try to be PC and say that significant parts of the Black community (particularly the ones who go to church every Sunday) isn’t more homophobic is covering truths and sticking one’s head into the sand. That homophobic reality is there every holiday, every visit I go back to North Carolina.
In New York City, this obviously isn’t even an issue as it is in NC, but it does sadden me when we find homophobic attacks that make the news (most recently that guy who crashed a chair over a man’s head at Dallas BBQ in Chelsea), the perpetrator is not Mr. Aryan nation good ole redneck white boy – the trope we love to attack – but a man of color.
Also, to add.. because I think this is a very important point. Many (if not most) of LGBTQI youth that are on the streets are minority. This would only happen bc they come from families that do not accept them. We cannot turn a blind eye in the name of political correctness just because people who are turning these kids out are minorities themselves. Please have a look at the Ali FOrney Center in NYC– it is not a groundless statement that communities of color, especially those rooted/rotted in strong religious foundations, produce a lot of hate towards anyone homosexual.
I’m not saying this to offend nyone, it is the last thing I intend to do, but i do not think we should be in denial of it.
I know. Concern trolling from people who think they’ve got some lock on the entire group. No white people voting ‘No’ on Prop 8, no siree.
@ annaloo
I am so sorry for you, but surely you know that you are a credit to your people, community and to your country and you should feel pride and contentment for being an outspoken, honest, courageous and courteous individual.
@Serena exactly. I let most of her comments slide, because she’s still young and was mostly brought up in the industry, so it’s not as though she’s any kind of touchstone for great insight. She can be who she wants, and it shouldn’t matter, because she’s the only one it really affects. And not that it’s my life, as a straight Caucasian, but I’ve seen and heard how open how some black people can be in their dislike-to-hatred of the lgbt community. So if that’s why she wants to put some space between who she is and what’s expected of her, I don’t blame her at all.
My opinions exactly.
Thank you for your eloquent input.
I see her point in not wanting to wear any label. She is simply asking to be her. She wants to be… Raven. Good for her.
I just don’t get why people insist, that you have to be labeled. That you have to be one thing. Period. And want to get in your face, if you don’t accept the label they are forcing on you.
+1
It’s such an aggression how people want her to take “this” or “that” label for their own comfort of categorization. She is an American! Every other sub-categorization is additional and she doesn’t really need to use them if she doesn’t want to or if she doesn’t feel identified by them.
People like everyone around them ‘figured out and categorized’. Natural instinct? Social norm? Subconscious need to identify? Who knows?
Some people dislike bisexual people for this reason alone. Or bigendered individuals. Or gender-fluid, trans etc. They do not ‘fit in’.
This attitude may come off as natural, but it is ridiculous and backward imo.
she wants to anything else but who she really is. that is why the attachment or the obsession with labels
In that top pic she totally reminds me of Tracy Anderson.
I’m going to ignore her disturbing lack of geographical knowledge and just comment on the labels. I remember an interview with Jessica Alba where she talked about how she was always spoken about as a foreign ‘Mexican’ American despite her family being here for three generations while Cameron Diaz’s family came straight off the boats and because she’s white, blonde and blue eyed was always referred to as ‘all American’.
That is the difference, why are whites ‘normal’ or ‘all’ Americans whereas every other race a hyphenated American, read not really American at all.
It’s not respectful or healthy for a society to separate people based on race, division creates distrust and fuels tensions by making people feel isolated from the mainstream.
You can be proud of your heritage without feeling the need to hyphenate yourself. Labels are used to segregate people from each other, for as long as people perpetuate race/ethnic/religious based segregation there will never be equality and peace. The only beneficiaries of that are those in power who benefit from a society where people are so divided that they are incapable of coming together to challenge a political system that does not benefit the ordinary people, particularly those at the bottom.
Thank you!!
You make some good points.
I agree.
Completely agree.
Thank you! Spot on.
Agreed.
Maybe I’m giving Raven too much credit, but I think there’s a legitimate point in all of her nonsensical rambling that has nothing to do with her denying her heritage. She’s just terrible at expressing herself. If white people can self-identify as American without further categorizing that they are European-American, then why is it required for her to identify as African-American? Historically, her family line has probably been in America for longer than many white people who aren’t asked to further sub-categorize their identity. That seems to imply that the term “American” assumes a white racial identity and any differentiation from that must be further specified. But American shouldn’t refer to any specific racial or ethnic background
Personally, I think labels can be helpful, especially when you belong to a minority group that is fighting for respect and equal rights. It’s why I choose to accept and use labels with regards to my own identity as a queer woman; self-identifying helps me feel like I am standing with my community. But I don’t think it’s a requirement for others.
“If white people can self-identify as American without further categorizing that they are European-American, then why is it required for her to identify as African-American? Historically, her family line has probably been in America for longer than many white people who aren’t asked to further sub-categorize their identity.”
This.
Well said!
Not American myself but this makes a lot of sense.
Exactly. And white people are not only “not required” but sometimes even not allowed to hyphenate their heritage without being shouted at. I’m Polish but my family had lived in the States from the civil war (when my a few-times-great-grandpa fought as a Polish Union soldier and stayed) up until the 1950’s. I’ve heard from several of my older relatives that other people had a problem when they were stating they are Polish-Americans. That they somehow lost the right to call themselves anything other than pure Americans because they are there from x-generation. I’ve noticed similar thing online whenever someone tries to say that some actor is German-American, and some singer is Scottish-American etc. People both from US and respective European countries like to argue that they are just American, because they were not born and raised in Europe. So why it doesn’t apply to African-Americans? Most of them were not born in Africa either.
She needs a basic education so that she can clarify her opinions in a clear way.
I don’t get the issue. My cousins are Irish American and they don’t generally go around calling themselves Irish American unless they meet other Irish people and want to bond. She’s black, everyone knows she’s black — she’s not out their bleaching her skin like MJ. it’s up to her what she wants to label herself as! And her family have been Americans for 400 years! Her life, her choice. Jeez!
MJ didn’t “bleach” his skin. He had Vitiligo. A very horrible medical condidtion, that was CONFIRMED during his autopsy. Smh.
Thank you.
From the outside, wether youre black or white, we see em all as Americans. No biggie.
I suspect she merely misspoke when she said “continents” instead of “countries”. People need to get over what was most likely just a slip of the tongue. And of course she’s correct in that she’s American and doesn’t need any hyphenation.
Smoky Robinson said the same thing in the 80s she’s saying now. If they prefer to be called black over African-American that’s their decision.
I kind of get it though.
She is not good at expressing herself. I think she’s made something controversial that, if stated better, wouldn’t be controversial at all. I understand her not wanting to be labelled as “African-American.” I don’t really care if people call me African-American, but I prefer to just be black. My parents are from the West Indies. It never really made sense that I would be African-American when my parents aren’t (or, I guess they are naturalized African-Americans). That’s not because I’m trying to distance myself from other black Americans, I think that black is encompasses more of the different cultures of black people.
On the continents thing, are we sure she didn’t simply have a slip of the tongue and say continent when she meant country? Just to give her the benefit of the doubt…
As for the African American thing, I think it’s fair enough. If you don’t feel a connection or roots to a continent, why be defined by it? American seems fine as she’s a citizen of the USA. Having to add the African prefix seems unnecessary even if it may be more politically correct than ‘black’.
Whereas I have always thought it was un-PC to say African American and assume all black people are from Africa. Say African American to an Irish American (also black) and let me know how that goes!
I think people will be accepting or offended based on their personal views – and I can’t control that…
Tbh the majority of her gaffes would be solved if she was more well spoken. She puts herself in these positions by trying so hard to sound philosophical and intelligent while screwing up basic terms and history consistently. No one expected anything from her until she made a point to speak up and started volunteering her thoughts.
Raven can refer to herself however she wishes, everyone can, now will her personal terminology erase the way the world will view her? Nope. Is ignoring the way the world works helping the general issue? I doubt it very much. I imagine if we asked her about her American roots she’d be kinda clueless too.
I don’t really pity her. Educating yourself with Raven’s money is a lot easier than the average individual. Rather than speaking from such a place of ignorance she could actually arm herself with the facts needed to present a strong argument for her opions.
In this case, she is right. She has every right to call herself an American without any qualifiers. I agree with her, in that if someone wants to self identify a certain way that’s one thing. But they shouldn’t be forced to.
Quite frankly for too long Black people in America have been viewed as other, less American, and foreign. Even though, as Raven said and others have pointed out here, the vast majority of Black people in America would be able to trace their roots back 300-400 if the appropriate records had been kept.
You can be proud to be black and be proud of your unique heritage without referring to yourself as African American. The qualifier is really not needed. And lets be honest, unless you are recent immigrant to this country; the average black person is going to be more American than anything since cultural ties to Africa were stripped away a long time ago.