Why do we call African Americans "black" when they aren't actually black?

Question

What about calling asians "yellow" & Caucasians "white"?

Answer 1

read up on why this term came into use by OUR people

it was partially to symbolize the awareness that our skin was darker and that it was not EVIL to be black

have a good day

Answer 2

We DO typically call caucasians "white"!

If you get too hung up on what to call particular "groups of people", or if you even feel the need to have a name for an entire group of people, then you may have more of a problem than society at large does!

There is no question that black people in America are at a disadvantage that is none of their own making, but there are only two ways to fix this; either outlaw breeding with someone the same color as you (problem vanishes in 2-3 generations), or take personal responsibility for injustice in your sphere of influence, and treat people as humans, rather than green humans or red-haired humans or pot-bellied humans.

The differences between the two most different humans on the planet amount to very little in the bigger scheme of things!

Answer 3

Two reasons.

1. The people who coined the term were seeing dark-skinned people for the first time, and the automatic reaction was to use an 'extreme' label. For example, if you lived at the Equator your whole life and then suddenly you go to NYC, you'd think/say it was 'freezing' there even when the temperature was in the 50s/60s.

2. Native Africans' skin was/is closer to 'true black' than most 'black people' one meets today, especially if you live in the US.

Answer 4

I've never heard anyone refer to Asians as yellow. It makes sense to call them Asians becuase you can look at an Asian person and you know for a fact they're from Asia. I don't know if black people are from Africa or not. Originally yes--they are (We all are technically. Ever heard of Pangaea?), but for all I know they could be from Trinidad, Jamaica, St. Croix, etc. It's kind of unfair to ask people to refer to you as African American. Looking at me (and I look remarkably similar to my avatar) what would you call me? You shouldn't call me white since that would be (in your opinion) just as bad as calling you black, correct? So what would you propose to call me? German American? Russian American? French American? You have no way of knowing, and I shouldn't be upset because of this. I know you don't know my ancestry. that's why I don't understand why many black people get so offended when they're referred to as black.

If you want to get into the whole caucasian thing, the technical term for white people is caucasian, and the technical term for black people is *******. Would you rather me call you black or *******? Uh huh, thought so.

Answer 5

I don't know because I've always thought it was ridiculous to refer to people by their skin color especially since, like you said, black people aren't really black, Asians aren't yellow, and Caucasians come in all shades from fair to dark. However, I've always loved the children's Sunday school song "Jesus loves the little children. All the children of the world. Red and yellow, Black and White. They are precious in his sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world" I've always taken that song literally which opens a whole new can of worms. Anyhow, I think it is silly to categorize people by color. I think we need to learn from our little ones. My son will say things like my friend with the dark skin which is like saying my friend with the red hair. I also met a young girl looking for her sister and she asked if I has seen a brown girl like herself. I don't know why we keep doing it, but I would like to see it stop.

Answer 6

You obviously dont realise what you're speakme approximately and simply desire a racist rant. White settlers forcibly took slaves from Africa to America throughout the colonisation interval, they didnt have a alternative within the topic and have been handled as animals or worse for hundreds of years and they're by and large caught within the underdevelopment cycle within the US however that cant be stated for all black Americans. As for the name African American its foremost for one to preserve their history

Answer 7

I have never seen a black, white, red or yellow person. The colours are just comparative. At a certain time "dark" was used, but "darkies" quickly became perjorative.

Answer 8

You are absolutely correct. We should never have stopped using the term "*****" or "*******." The ****** themselves insisted on being called "blacks"....that is until they decided that "African American" is what they want to be called. Who knows what will be next.

Answer 9

There are very few who are actually black. Why be so picky?

Answer 10

why do we call black people african americans? they're not necessarily african or american...