cultural and ethnic labels... do we need them or no?

[RD]

Jim says:
September 3, 2010 at 2:44 pm

I was born in 1941 in DC. We moved to Columbus Ohio in 1949. I saw so many of these images. Brings back bitter sweet memories. As a person of color, I am no longer and african American, I am an American. If we want to break the bonds of the past, we have to let go of the past. Don't ignore it, deal with it! Black, white, brown ,yellow red.......we all got pains we remember. Don't allow yourself to be trepped by the past.

~~~Captured: American in Color from 1939-1943; in blog posts below the pictures~~~

NOW first and foremost, I want us all to think about what this man says, not what you want it to say.  I believe the cultural/ethnic/race divisiveness we have in this country partly stems from our individual wants/desires to feel set apart from the whole, to be something more than just a number or a statistic.. but it is due to this want (not a need mind you) there has been created spiteful and animosity-driven undertones in regards to culture and ethnicity within the U.S.

I believe, the day/hour/minute/second we "Americans" begin to peel the labels of sub-cultural identity, that are based on political correctness and self-seeking purpose mentalities, away from our names and being, that then and only then will the U.S. begin a trek that will align a more humble, cultural and ethnic co-existence.

So what I am getting at is this.  If this gentleman of "color" can shed his African-American label and just call himself an "American", why cannot all do the same?  When does being an "American" just NOT enough to satisfy your hunger to be a part of something?  Does adding African, Hispanic, Russian, German, Philipino, Japanese, etc. really make you something more or less?  Why do such labels have to exist at all?

I am not saying they are right or wrong (the labels in regards to cultural, ethnic, or racial background), but just curious as to your viewpoints on why (1) they exist and (2) should they exist?

Thanks.

[Shakey]

Back then, the coloured people just wanted to call themselves American so they could have the same rights and freedoms as the white man.  Now that they achieved their goals, they want to embrace their heritage.  Not much different than the immigrants that landed on Ellis Island who chose to shorten their European names to make it easier to fit in amongst the locals.

What I have seen in my travels, when you ask an American what their family background is they almost always say American.  Only with a follow up question do you get an answer like English, Italian, Dutch, German etc.  When you ask a Canadian what their family background is, the answer, I'd say about 99% of the time, is English, French, Italian, Dutch, German etc.  It seems as though there are many here North of the 49th that embrace their families background and culture much more than I have seen in the United States.

As far as whether or not we need the ethnic labels or not - I'd say it's up to the individual.  

My two young girls know that their Nono & Nona (that's Grandpa & Grandma) hailed from Italy and they both declare their Mother's pasta as their favourite meal, just like I did when I was a boy.  I hope that they too pass this on to their children - it makes us all who we are.

Plus, let's not forget about the humour! 

[Alaskan_TA]

Race - Human

-or-

Race - Often

[John_Kunkel]

If somebody told me they had a '68 Charger the first question I would ask is "What motor"? and the second would be "What color"?

Simply calling somebody a human doesn't tell you much about them just like simply calling it a Charger doesn't tell you much. Further identifying either can be a basis for discrimination or it can't be.

[chargergirl]

Racial labeling and heritage are completely different in most peoples eyes. I never believed that I was prejudice until my son was in daycare. He asked me why black people were different...I said they weren't and he said the teacher told him they were. I walked back into the daycare and asked to talk with the teacher. She was new to the school and when she walked out I was floored. She was black. We talked, her jaw dropped when I told her that she was never to tell my son that she was different than me. We are human, however if she wanted to share her upbringing and heritage with my son...that would be great. We became friends and she saw, like me...that labeling has to stop. Nothing makes my eyes roll more than, "This is my white friend, black friend, asian friend". However if you want to make me your families favorite dish...I will bring one of my/our own!

[bull]

I use them for description; Asian, black, hispanic, Arabic, etc. I get very tired of trying to figure out the latest politically correct term for certain ethnic groups so I continue to use the above words when describing people. I do think it's interesting that I almost never say "the tall, white guy" for example when describing someone who's primarily white but at my job and neighborhood most people are white. I suppose if I lived and worked in a predominantly black environment I would be saying "the tall, black guy" when describing someone. Long story short, I agree with John (if I understand him correctly) that using race labels is primarily a method of description.

[Mike DC]

  
It has always amused me that we have African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans, and even Native Americans, but nobody ever refers to white people who live here as "European Americans".  

[hemi68charger]

People are people and with that, imperfect...... Such diversity as we have here in the good ole' USA comes with a price. Sure, living in a Utopian world such as the USS Starship Interprise would be nice, but it isn't reality. People have an innate disposition to be individual, to set themselves apart and be unique. We all know were unique, but when you get more and more people with the same uniqueness together, it creates an agenda. We all know that the government here in America is "of the People, by the People, for the People". Ding Ding Ding........ We have People with agendas and with diversity, comes DIFFERENT agendas and the vicious cycle begins........ Someone has to be smart enough to be able to establish a uniform "code/standard" we all live by.......... Look at History, The Romain Empire........... When it got too diverse ( yes, distance added to the diversity of people under Imperial Influence ), it crumbled...

And, I'm English American............  That almost sounds like a double negative............