African American or Black

Racism is one of the greatest and most persistent issues in the United States. One might wonder why such a thing even exists. We were all born equal as human beings, and yet, throughout history, certain races have been considered lesser in comparison to others; namely, in this particular case, the ‘’black race’’ compared to the ‘’white race’’. Recently, mankind has become aware of this issue, and from then on has been struggling to put an end to it. In the process, a new term has emerged: African American. This new term appeared in 1997, as an attempt of the US government to keep up with the changing social opinion. It was introduced as a substitute for the word ‘’black’’, as the latter was considered to be politically incorrect. In my opinion, referring to all black people as African American is wrong for several reasons.

First of all, lets take a closer look at how the term African American even came to be. It is derived from two words: Africa, the place of origin, and America- the country of residence. Using the same logic, a black person in Russia, for example, should be called an ‘’African-Russian’’. That makes no sense. ‘’African American’’ is supposed to represent the black race, and race does not change with the country of residence. With the term black, however, there can be no such confusion. It is more accurate, as a black person is black wherever he or she may go.
Now, lets take a look at the reason behind the appearance of the relevant term. With each generation of ‘’African Americans’’ born on US soil, their ties to the country of origin gradually fade. Keeping in mind the fact that the majority of the ‘’blacks’’ currently in the USA is native-born, the term ‘’African American’’ might seem like a proper one to use. It symbolizes the integration of the ‘’black’’ race into the American society, and at the same time preserves the cultural heritage of the same race. In other words, it is a compromise that satisfies both the people who feel American, and the people who still have strong feelings towards their origins. This way, by referring to all of them as African American, it is possible to assign both groups to just one race without discriminating against any of the two. But, for reasons already given above, African American is a rather ambiguous and inprecise term. Can we, then, refer to these people as just Africans? While it might seem fitting, the native-born blacks in the US would probably not concur. Then how do we refer to this group of people in the matters of race? The answer is simple: black.
However, in reality, things are far more complex. The word ‘’black’’ in the context of race is labelled ‘’politically incorrect’’, and from my own experience, is occasionally quite offensive. Once again, one must wonder why. The meaning of the word black is quite clear- it stands for the black colour. Then why is it inappropriate to call a person black if their skin is black? How come you will never see a white person offended when referred to as white? The answer to this last question, as well as to why ‘’black’’ is thought to be inappropriate lies in an article I recently read about the so-called ‘’Gates Affair’’. (blog)
The writer points out how the interpretation of the event of white people and black people were completely different. ‘’The whites interpreted it as another uppity black man sassing a white police officer, threatening law and order and white comfort levels. The blacks, however, interpreted it as a symbol of the ever-lasting harassment of black people by white policemen''. The key word here is ‘’interpretation’’. In my opinion, the US society is too busy interpreting that it fails to see and accept the reality. When the word black is used in the context of race, the people of the US don’t think ‘’black skin colour’’. They interpret it, and hear ‘’slave’’. This interpretation comes from the times before the abolition of slavery, when being black practically meant being a slave, or at least in a disadvantageous position in the society compared to that of the whites.
This has to stop. The times of slavery are long gone, and we need to let go of prejudice and former standards. The world is on its way to racial equality, but it will never get to the finish line as long as it’s people keep interpreting reality instead of accepting it the way it is. Nevertheless, one day, when people stop distorting reality, the need for such ambiguous terms such as ‘’African American’’ will be gone.
I am white. You are ‘’black’’. Accept it. Be proud of it.