The terms "blacks", "whites" etc..?

Question

is it generally accepted in the American society?

It struck me as odd that you use the terms blacks and whites about people at this site, seeing as it's very unusual where I come from(Norway). It's actually frowned upon here, if not used to make a point. What I'm wondering about is if it's just here, or if you do it otherwise to?
If you do, doesn't that seem a bit rascist?

I don't see how some of you can be proud that it's common practice; "because it's America". That's a bad excuse.

And in Norway, since everyone is blond and blue-eyed, I don't know any better? *sarcasm*

Please look to the right under sponsored links. "Interracial dating"... Words fail me.

Answer 1

i totally agree that it seems racist. but unfortunately it is very common around where i am from. i wonder why people just can't be people? i hate that people are referred to by color because it is nothing but skin - it means nothing.

Answer 2

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Answer 3

It's considered very much to be a norm in the United States, however, just those two terms. I mean, one should not and would not refer to a Hispanic or Middle-Eastern person as brown, a Native American person as red or a Asian person as yellow. Those terms are usually considered derogatory and not politically correct.

I'm not entirely sure why it came to be that calling people "white" and "black" came to be acceptable. I'm not against it, but I'm not sure of the exact origins.

The "politically correct" term for blacks in the United States has constantly changed. At one time, it was acceptable to refer to us as "Colored" or "*****," but now it's mostly considered archaic and offensive by some. Currently African-American is also widely accepted, but some Africans take offense to that since many blacks in the US have a minor link to the African heritage.

At the same time, "white" and "black" are almost misnomers, since very few people are truly white or black, we're all shades of brown.

Answer 4

i don't see it as racist, although it pretty much varies by location as america is a pretty big country with quite a bit of history in this area.
imo, it's similar to describing a yellow house, a race car, a tuxedo cat, a chihuahua dog. i'm not ashmed of how i look. "black" is one way in which i could be described.
also, it's easier to say than "african-american" (7 syllables!)or "caucasian" (not to mention that i'm actually carribean-american, not african-american.).
if you want to stay on the safe side, you could always pick a different feature, like the girl with the red shirt, or the guy with the glasses.

Answer 5

There is a discouraging amount of racism in the US and in Yahoo Q&A. I don't believe skin color descriptions by themselves are rascist, but certainly associating negative stereotypes with skin color is racist.

There are statistical differences in many measurable aspects of blacks and whites in the US with respect to culture and other categories, but lumping is a lazy way of discussing people, because they are individuals.

To answer the question, I think in many contexts in Yahoo Q&As the mention of skin color is racist, and personally offensive.

Answer 6

It's kind of a touchy subject. I think it is more generally accepted in the US to call "blacks" (ie people with dark skin) "african americans". Personally, I have an issue with that. Just because someone has dark skin or is "black" doesn't necessarily mean that they are an African American. People of darker color come from a wide variety of places. Caucasions aren't automatically associated with a territory the way blacks are. I think calling people "black" or "white" is a general characteristic. I think it is better than predetermining that black person as being "african american" etc. But tough question.

Answer 7

Victoria T, what you're saying is true. This change took place about one and a half years ago. But the words "de svarta", meaning the blacks, were quite common prior to this period I've mentioned.

Answer 8

People are described as black, white, hispanic, native american, etc. In Norway, how many people of color are there? How many other ethnic groups? When making a point, such as a description in the medical field, is that when you say black or white?

I don't consider it being a racist when you describe someone using their color or ethnic background. However, it is racist if you exploit them or be disrespecful to them BECAUSE of their color or ethnic background. It's kind of hard to describe to someone who is unfamiliar with it.

Some people do get really upset when being described as a black person or white person, etc. Not me. I'm white. Can't get away from the truth there. We had a doctor once who got a nasty letter from a patient because the doctor described him in his report as a 39 year old, well developed, well nourished black male. He started off his letter as "this is from the well developed, well nourished black male who was in your office the other day". Our doctor had to answer the patient's letter to the insurance company because this idiot complained. Our doctor explained that he describes all patients this way no matter what color they are. He couldn't say male of AfricanAmerican descent because how did he know if the guy was from Jamaica or someplace like that. The guy lost his complaint because he was black and that was that. Really ridiculous and petty on that man's part if you ask me. How insecure he must be and not comfortable in his own skin.

Answer 9

I guess it is a bit racist. I never looked at it like that before. You have to remember that we had slavery in America. Up until the 1960s everything from water fountains to restaurants, was segregated by being either black or white. Our countries entire foundation was built on racism.

Answer 10

lol
It's just been used so much that it's okay.
Most Americans don't even stop to think about how they are generalizing and/or stereotyping others because it's something that is taught from early childhood.
Besides, it's a lot less derogatory than some of our common descriptions for "blacks" and "whites"...

Answer 11

It is strange since "black" people actually come in many lovely shades of brown and "white" people run the gamut from pale pink to a nice olive.