Hyphenated-Americans

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  • Laces_0ut
    Laces_0ut Posts: 3,750 Member
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    hmm what about tax incentives for interracial marriage? maybe we can breed out our differences sooner rather than later.
  • Laces_0ut
    Laces_0ut Posts: 3,750 Member
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    looking online i found this quote from an article http://www.livescience.com/34228-will-humans-eventually-all-look-like-brazilians.html

    "A varied population forged from the long-term mixing of Africans, Native Americans and Europeans serves as an archetype for the future of humanity, Stearns said: A few centuries from now, we're all going to look like Brazilians"


    so we will all look like Brazilians!!! i think we can all agree thats a pretty good outcome. :)
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    ok, well i don't think hyphenating is stupid.

    if your white, your prob not getting discriminated against very much, and in the eyes of almost everyone, which part of europe your from doesn't matter.

    but america is very racist, race matters. your race and heritage is a huge part of your identity. i think it's very understandable that many visible minorities would want to hyphenate.

    And presumably labelling people of Caribbean descent who can go back many generations of ancestors who've never been anywhere near Africa as "African-Americans" because they're black and consequently might be African so we'll just make that assumption is a valid solution against racism?

    I don't understand your point. I didn't say it was a "solution" to racism, I said since racism is so pervasive, a person of visible minority may understandably make their heritage part of their ancestry, since they are gonna be judged by it every day anyway. Not that much of a stretch lol.

    Also, still not getting why people are making a distinction between being Black and having African ancestors. Do people not realize that all Black people have African ancestors?

    So we are all racists, and there is no solution, so let's maintain racial prejudices in our language? Is that really what you are trying to say?

    I'm not encouraging people to hyphenate, I'm just saying its totally understandable why some people would WANT to, it was a reply to those saying "hyphenating is stupid, I don't get it".

    Also, look at all the white people (assuming by their profile pictures) going o and on about how it "doesn't matter" etc. This attitude of "I'm white, racism doesn't affect me, so why should I care? I'm gonna pretend racism doesn't exist, and that makes me a good, non-racist person" is what is troubling. On the one hand, yes it great that we want to live in a racism-free world, that is what we want. But denying the racism exists, that heritage and the labels just don't matter, is reallly insulting to those for whom their identity IS a part of their daily life, those who are systematically discrimminated because of it, those who are attacked because of it, those who feel excluded because of it. It doesn't address the issue, it just allows racism to go on without anyone taking notice of it.

    This reminds me of a bit on the Daily Show a couple nights ago, where they had a black panel and a white panel. The white people's complete disregard for and denial of race issues was just too much.( When 4 out 5 Black people claimed they had been randomly frisked by police, and then no one in the white panel had ever had the same experience, then one white lady goes "Yes, I've been frisked!!! ... At the airport!!!" LOL I nearly fell off my chair. )


    We are not "pretending that it doesn't exist." Rather, we are saying, "Hey, let's stop with the race identity and unify."
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
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    Identity is a multifaceted thing entrenched in a long history of evolving thought. It is ethnic, cultural, religious, familial, tribal, and nationalist.... It is intensely personal and political and historical and evolving.

    Not a great topic for MFP forums.
  • Laces_0ut
    Laces_0ut Posts: 3,750 Member
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    Identity is a multifaceted thing entrenched in a long history of evolving thought. It is ethnic, cultural, religious, familial, tribal, and nationalist.... It is intensely personal and political and historical and evolving.

    Not a great topic for MFP forums.

    its actually a great topic. if its not for you dont click.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    hmm what about tax incentives for interracial marriage? maybe we can breed out our differences sooner rather than later.

    We are getting to that point without incentives. The world is getting smaller and education and awareness is already helping. What racism is left is hidden behind closed doors. Meanwhile, more and more people are participating in interracial marriages. I think it's pretty awesome how far we've come. It makes me sad that some people want to maintain the status quo instead of looking for solutions to improve race relations.
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
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    ok, well i don't think hyphenating is stupid.

    if your white, your prob not getting discriminated against very much, and in the eyes of almost everyone, which part of europe your from doesn't matter.

    but america is very racist, race matters. your race and heritage is a huge part of your identity. i think it's very understandable that many visible minorities would want to hyphenate.

    And presumably labelling people of Caribbean descent who can go back many generations of ancestors who've never been anywhere near Africa as "African-Americans" because they're black and consequently might be African so we'll just make that assumption is a valid solution against racism?

    I don't understand your point. I didn't say it was a "solution" to racism, I said since racism is so pervasive, a person of visible minority may understandably make their heritage part of their ancestry, since they are gonna be judged by it every day anyway. Not that much of a stretch lol.

    Also, still not getting why people are making a distinction between being Black and having African ancestors. Do people not realize that all Black people have African ancestors?

    So we are all racists, and there is no solution, so let's maintain racial prejudices in our language? Is that really what you are trying to say?

    I'm not encouraging people to hyphenate, I'm just saying its totally understandable why some people would WANT to, it was a reply to those saying "hyphenating is stupid, I don't get it".

    Also, look at all the white people (assuming by their profile pictures) going o and on about how it "doesn't matter" etc. This attitude of "I'm white, racism doesn't affect me, so why should I care? I'm gonna pretend racism doesn't exist, and that makes me a good, non-racist person" is what is troubling. On the one hand, yes it great that we want to live in a racism-free world, that is what we want. But denying the racism exists, that heritage and the labels just don't matter, is reallly insulting to those for whom their identity IS a part of their daily life, those who are systematically discrimminated because of it, those who are attacked because of it, those who feel excluded because of it. It doesn't address the issue, it just allows racism to go on without anyone taking notice of it.

    This reminds me of a bit on the Daily Show a couple nights ago, where they had a black panel and a white panel. The white people's complete disregard for and denial of race issues was just too much.( When 4 out 5 Black people claimed they had been randomly frisked by police, and then no one in the white panel had ever had the same experience, then one white lady goes "Yes, I've been frisked!!! ... At the airport!!!" LOL I nearly fell off my chair. )


    We are not "pretending that it doesn't exist." Rather, we are saying, "Hey, let's stop with the race identity and unify."

    Why should I have to eliminate my own cultural, familial, and ethnic identity to unify with what you interpret as being non-racial, but is in fact a very specific ethnic-cultural-religious identity?
  • Laces_0ut
    Laces_0ut Posts: 3,750 Member
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    hmm what about tax incentives for interracial marriage? maybe we can breed out our differences sooner rather than later.

    We are getting to that point without incentives. The world is getting smaller and education and awareness is already helping. What racism is left is hidden behind closed doors. Meanwhile, more and more people are participating in interracial marriages. I think it's pretty awesome how far we've come. It makes me sad that some people want to maintain the status quo instead of looking for solutions to improve race relations.

    obviously i was joking....and i agree i like that more interracial marriages are occurring. and according to the link i posted above we will all look like Brazillians some day. pretty awesome :)
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
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    But to be snarky, on the demographic questionaires if it says "caucasian" I will check other and put "European-American" as I am a European Mutt (but mostly Anglo-Saxon-Jute) born and raised in American (5th generation).

    Haha.. ME TOO! I'm not from Caucasia!

    I don't understand that at all. Caucasian by definition means:
    Cau·ca·sian
    adjective /kôˈkāZHən/ 

    Of or relating to one of the traditional divisions of humankind, covering a broad group of peoples from Europe, western Asia, and parts of India and North Africa

    White-skinned; of European origin

    in terms of those demographic questions.

    This definition of Caucasian is cultural to the Americas. It actually means a person from the Caucasus Region, a very specific place. In Russia, Caucasians are considered "Black."
  • maundrelle
    maundrelle Posts: 39 Member
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    I am an interesting mix.

    Ethnically Tanzanian, in East Africa, moved to Finland, northern Europe, and now I have a Finnish passport, so that makes me Tanzanian-Finnish.

    I bet you've never heard of that before :tongue:
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
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    Identity is a multifaceted thing entrenched in a long history of evolving thought. It is ethnic, cultural, religious, familial, tribal, and nationalist.... It is intensely personal and political and historical and evolving.

    Not a great topic for MFP forums.

    its actually a great topic. if its not for you dont click.

    Great topic, yes. Not for MFP tho.
  • forgtmenot
    forgtmenot Posts: 860 Member
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    I'm half Ukrainian Jew, 1/4 Irish, 1/8 Cherokee, 1/8 English and I'm also American. It makes people feel better to call me "white" because of my skin color which I think is silly. I'm not any more white than a Hispanic person. I get rather dark in the sun and have an olive tone to my skin. I also don't call myself Ukrainian-Irish-Cherokee-English-American either Haha. I think being American most people realize you are a mixture of sorts. American is the only title I need. If someone asks me my ethnicity or ancestry then I will tell them, but for all intents and purposes I'm American.
  • forgtmenot
    forgtmenot Posts: 860 Member
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    Identity is a multifaceted thing entrenched in a long history of evolving thought. It is ethnic, cultural, religious, familial, tribal, and nationalist.... It is intensely personal and political and historical and evolving.

    Not a great topic for MFP forums.

    its actually a great topic. if its not for you dont click.

    Great topic, yes. Not for MFP tho.


    This is the chit chat, fun and games section of the forums. None of these topics have much to do with weightloss so I don't see anything wrong with the topic being posted here.
  • Laces_0ut
    Laces_0ut Posts: 3,750 Member
    Options
    Identity is a multifaceted thing entrenched in a long history of evolving thought. It is ethnic, cultural, religious, familial, tribal, and nationalist.... It is intensely personal and political and historical and evolving.

    Not a great topic for MFP forums.

    its actually a great topic. if its not for you dont click.

    Great topic, yes. Not for MFP tho.

    of course it is. everyone is being civil here. since you cant handle it just dont click the thread. :)
  • KelleyGirl74
    KelleyGirl74 Posts: 182 Member
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    Omg, my first topic that got such a phenomenal response. I'm reading and taking notes of all of your information (not names and such lol) but information sources you're leaving for me. I really love that there are so many people that have such great opinions on this. I've been searching the net for what would normally be a vast with information on this and yet, just as here (but I love this response) it's all really a matter of personal preference. But isn't that with anything in life? Well, for me it is. Anyway, 8 pages and growing. Thank you all again for sharing you wealth of knowledge and your personal opinions. Keep it going. I'm still writing.

    Nika
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
    Options
    Identity is a multifaceted thing entrenched in a long history of evolving thought. It is ethnic, cultural, religious, familial, tribal, and nationalist.... It is intensely personal and political and historical and evolving.

    Not a great topic for MFP forums.

    its actually a great topic. if its not for you dont click.

    Great topic, yes. Not for MFP tho.

    of course it is. everyone is being civil here. since you cant handle it just dont click the thread. :)

    You seem to be taking my comment personally.

    I wonder why that could be?

    ;)
  • Laces_0ut
    Laces_0ut Posts: 3,750 Member
    Options
    Identity is a multifaceted thing entrenched in a long history of evolving thought. It is ethnic, cultural, religious, familial, tribal, and nationalist.... It is intensely personal and political and historical and evolving.

    Not a great topic for MFP forums.

    its actually a great topic. if its not for you dont click.

    Great topic, yes. Not for MFP tho.

    of course it is. everyone is being civil here. since you cant handle it just dont click the thread. :)

    You seem to be taking my comment personally.

    I wonder why that could be?

    ;)

    its because i hate all the "lick the person above" threads. and when we finally have a real thread here id like it to stay. :)
  • lj8576
    lj8576 Posts: 156
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    I think if you live in America and are an American citizen then your just American. IMHO I think this country is divided way too much. It would be nice to just agree we are Americans.
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
    Options
    Identity is a multifaceted thing entrenched in a long history of evolving thought. It is ethnic, cultural, religious, familial, tribal, and nationalist.... It is intensely personal and political and historical and evolving.

    Not a great topic for MFP forums.

    its actually a great topic. if its not for you dont click.

    Great topic, yes. Not for MFP tho.

    of course it is. everyone is being civil here. since you cant handle it just dont click the thread. :)

    You seem to be taking my comment personally.

    I wonder why that could be?

    ;)

    its because i hate all the "lick the person above" threads. and when we finally have a real thread here id like it to stay. :)

    If MFP is the only place where you are engaging in conversations like these, it might be advisable to branch out in your real life.
  • rodneyderrick
    rodneyderrick Posts: 483 Member
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    I didn't recognized myself as an American at all until I left the country for a few years. I'm hyphenated, and will die that way.

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