On the usage of the term "African american"

[Akyeame Kwame]

"When jesse jackson publicly announced in the 1980's that Black people in america were 'African american' he contributed to the subverting of a struggle in search of a path out of america's shadow."

-Kwasi Akwamu

[Class_Struggle]

Damn right. The prefixes to "American" lays bare power in America - ever heard of a "Euro-American"? (though we do have "hispanic"). "America" on its own of course obscures the historic theft of those lands - and extermination of its peoples - by the Europeans.

[IfasehunReincarnated]

Do u think that he was trying to make a good attempt at something? I was old enough to be organizing in my teen years in the 90s. I remember the debate. I remember his interview in Emerge Magazine, which at the time was the only critical thinking mag for Black people. I think he thought he was doing something. I would rather this outcome.

Before that most people were even skiddish about being Afro-American. People wanted no connection w/ Africa. I see it as a stepping stone. Jesse didnt drop the ball of opportunity. We did. We should have pushed the African prefix harder.

[Class_Struggle]

IfasehunReincarnated, I'm not going to knock Jackson for reasons I can't get into. However, the essential points relate to:
1. That when everyone except the Europeans (and especially Anglo-Saxons) have prefixes, then those without ones must be considered the original or proper Americans.
2. Whether or not black people living in America (for want of a better term if we cannot currently use "African American" or "African") should be assimilated into "America" - i.e. the history and present of slavery, genocide, racism, economic exploitation, imperial expansion, overseas aggression (including the massacre of 3,000,000 Vietnamese) and so on. What has that got to do with black people living in America? They are only part of that "America" as the subjects of oppression.

However, as I said, I cannot judge him too harshly - as you said, at least he was going in the right direction.

[Akyeame Kwame]

Originally Posted by IfasehunReincarnated

Do u think that he was trying to make a good attempt at something? I was old enough to be organizing in my teen years in the 90s. I remember the debate. I remember his interview in Emerge Magazine, which at the time was the only critical thinking mag for Black people. I think he thought he was doing something. I would rather this outcome.

Before that most people were even skiddish about being Afro-American. People wanted no connection w/ Africa. I see it as a stepping stone. Jesse didnt drop the ball of opportunity. We did. We should have pushed the African prefix harder.

it pushes an integrationist agenda...

an Afrikan-amerikkkan is a type of amerikkkan, not a type of Afrikan...

i think jesse jackson has always been an integrationist assimilationist...WE were better off as Black people and knowing WE were/are not/will not be a part of amerikkka

i agree with Kwasi Akwamu, it's a step back into the shadow of amerikkka...and a step in the wrong direction

AK

[CreatorsCollege]

I'm an African in America. Outside of America as I am, I'm just African. Being a child of the Diaspora, I claim the whole continent, which deliciously pisses Egyptians (Arabs) off.

This hyphenation is a trap to keep us "two-feet" in America's ideological and colonial mind-set.

Africa is my MAIDEN name, so to speak. This marriage didn't work, and I reverted to my FAMILY name ONLY.

SEPERATION OF "SELF" AND STATE.

Side note: As Africans in America wake up to the true understanding of their African inheritance, repatriation is gonna take on a whole new meaning, and knowing what freedom IS NOT, we're gonna change the game in Africa.

Many in Africa (Politicians) want us to keep being "African-Americans," too!

[Simba Nerevu]

I've noticed a pronounced tendency of late in popular negro magazines and elsewhere to refer to Africans in the u.s. as Black Americans. It seems that our aversion to being Afrikan is alive and well among the aspiring negro middle classes.

[Kentake]

Originally Posted by Simba Nerevu

I've noticed a pronounced tendency of late in popular negro magazines and elsewhere to refer to Africans in the u.s. as Black Americans. It seems that our aversion to being Afrikan is alive and well among the aspiring negro middle classes.

Hotep family!,
I have noticed this too...it seems to me that it is a sad ass attempt to associate with and tell them in other words "see we like you! we do not think we are Afreekans" because to the house-niggah and miscegenationist bonding with Mama Afreeka in the face of good ol' massah means that you are asking for trouble and/or dis-associating yourself with their system which is detrimental to the mentality and survival of boot-lickin knee-grows and their aim to please whitey by any means neccessary...let them keep their black amerikkkan-blk canadian s!@#...as bro.Kwame said that is digressing goin backwards/not forward, as well as Afreekan-American, it is like sayin you are two things at once MAKE A DECISION!! for me the reality will always be there that i was stolen from my homeland AND I WILL NEVER BE ASHAMED OF THAT PART OF MY HISTORY EVEN THOUGH I KNOW IT AIN'T SWEET!! THAT IS THE FACT OF HOW I GOT MY LAST NAME AND HOW MY PPL GOT TO JAMAICA!!-BUT I'M STILL HERE SO THAT MAKES ME A WARRIOR AND A RISEN ANCESTOR OF AFREEKA-FOR THAT I MUST BE PROUD!!!!



I WILL NEVER BE 1 OF THOSE AFREEKAN DIASPORANS THAT IS TRYING TO TRADE IN MY IDENTITY TO BECOME A MAKE-SHIFT CONTINENTAL AFREEKAN!! JUST CAUSE WE ARE THE SET OF AFREEKANS WHO WERE ENSLAVED THAT DOES NOT MEAN WE SHOULD BE ASHAMED OR EMBARASSED OF WHO WE ARE! ALL THE BEAUTIFUL SHADES OF BROWN WE ARE! AND HOW WE TALK!! THAT IS THE REALITY OF OURSTORY!! ALTHOUGH WE SHOULD ALL DEF. MAKE AN EFFORT TO CHANGE THE LANGUAGE THAT WE COMMUNICATE IN...WE SHOULD NOT ABANDON ALL WE HAVE CREATED AS A HISTORY IN THE DIASPORA AND TAKE UP EVERYTHING THAT THEY ARE DOING IN AFREEKA TODAY AND CALL IT AUTHENTIC!! WE HAVE TO CHECK THE CONTINENT WITH OUR HEAD-ON STR8 AND SEE THAT THEY WERE MASHED UP AS MUCH AS WE WERE!!...MAYBE EVEN MORE!! AS SOME OF THEM HAVE TOLD ME....--SO NOT ALL THAT HAS BEEN CALLED AUTHENTIC IN AFREEKA IS ACTUALLY TRULY SO...THAT IS THE FACTOR MANY OF US ARE STILL MISSING BECAUSE WE STILL FEEL IN-ADEQUATE AND LESSER FOR SOME REASON BUT WE ARE NOT!!!!


WE SHOULD BE PROUD AND TRY OUR BEST TO BE UNITED WITH AFREEKANS FROM THE CONTINENT AND ALL OVER THE WORLD BUT ALSO CEASE FROM COPYING EVERY SINGLE THING THAT THEY DO AND SAY IT IS AUTHENTIC CAUSE SOMETIMES THEY TOO DO NOT EVEN KNOW....MY POINT IS THAT WE MUST LEARN FROM EACH OTHER CAUSE WE HAVE ALOT OT TEACH AS WELL!! BUT I WOULD HIGHLY SUGGEST LISTENING AND LEARNING FROM ALL OUR AGED ELDERS (ESPECIALLY FEMALE) FROM AFREEKA, THE CARIBBEAN ETC. ETC. THE KNOWLEDGE AND WISDOM THEY HAVE IS MORE THAN WE CAN IMAGINE...



Ok, back to the topic here...so i call myself an AFREEKAN DIASPORAN as i am born in the diaspora & i am a daughter of Afreeka! calling myself str8 up Afreekan has caused me tooooo much drama...so by making the distinction it cause no bizarre looks and questioning...when i say AFREEKAN of the DIASPORA blk ppl now know what i am sayin and even though i still get strange looks now and then, the diaspora addition makes it more clear and also does not give the impression that i am trying to sell-off my diaspora experience.i will never be Afreekan-American/Canadian and i reject being referred to that way in all cases!!


SANKOFA!,
Kentake.

[Akyeame Kwame]

htp Sis. Kentake,

actually i've found it to be a good conversation starter and a teachable moment. i say i'm Afrikan and the next question is invariably which part...to which i reply, i'm not sure, my ancestors were kidnapped and enslaved by a bunch of krakkkaz. to which they reply, i mean which country. to which i reply my ancestors were stolen by krakkkaz before krakkkaz cut it up into little tiny fragments. this always gets folk started to knowing that Afrikans whether in the diaspora or the continent are Afrikans...stay BlackNificent!

always good to have codified responses.

AK

Originally Posted by Kentake

Hotep family!,
I have noticed this too...it seems to me that it is a sad ass attempt to associate with and tell them in other words "see we like you! we do not think we are Afreekans" because to the house-niggah and miscegenationist bonding with Mama Afreeka in the face of good ol' massah means that you are asking for trouble and/or dis-associating yourself with their system which is detrimental to the mentality and survival of boot-lickin knee-grows and their aim to please whitey by any means neccessary...let them keep their black amerikkkan-blk canadian s!@#...as bro.Kwame said that is digressing goin backwards/not forward, as well as Afreekan-American, it is like sayin you are two things at once MAKE A DECISION!! for me the reality will always be there that i was stolen from my homeland AND I WILL NEVER BE ASHAMED OF THAT PART OF MY HISTORY EVEN THOUGH I KNOW IT AIN'T SWEET!! THAT IS THE FACT OF HOW I GOT MY LAST NAME AND HOW MY PPL GOT TO JAMAICA!!-BUT I'M STILL HERE SO THAT MAKES ME A WARRIOR AND A RISEN ANCESTOR OF AFREEKA-FOR THAT I MUST BE PROUD!!!!



I WILL NEVER BE 1 OF THOSE AFREEKAN DIASPORANS THAT IS TRYING TO TRADE IN MY IDENTITY TO BECOME A MAKE-SHIFT CONTINENTAL AFREEKAN!! JUST CAUSE WE ARE THE SET OF AFREEKANS WHO WERE ENSLAVED THAT DOES NOT MEAN WE SHOULD BE ASHAMED OR EMBARASSED OF WHO WE ARE! ALL THE BEAUTIFUL SHADES OF BROWN WE ARE! AND HOW WE TALK!! THAT IS THE REALITY OF OURSTORY!! ALTHOUGH WE SHOULD ALL DEF. MAKE AN EFFORT TO CHANGE THE LANGUAGE THAT WE COMMUNICATE IN...WE SHOULD NOT ABANDON ALL WE HAVE CREATED AS A HISTORY IN THE DIASPORA AND TAKE UP EVERYTHING THAT THEY ARE DOING IN AFREEKA TODAY AND CALL IT AUTHENTIC!! WE HAVE TO CHECK THE CONTINENT WITH OUR HEAD-ON STR8 AND SEE THAT THEY WERE MASHED UP AS MUCH AS WE WERE!!...MAYBE EVEN MORE!! AS SOME OF THEM HAVE TOLD ME....--SO NOT ALL THAT HAS BEEN CALLED AUTHENTIC IN AFREEKA IS ACTUALLY TRULY SO...THAT IS THE FACTOR MANY OF US ARE STILL MISSING BECAUSE WE STILL FEEL IN-ADEQUATE AND LESSER FOR SOME REASON BUT WE ARE NOT!!!!


WE SHOULD BE PROUD AND TRY OUR BEST TO BE UNITED WITH AFREEKANS FROM THE CONTINENT AND ALL OVER THE WORLD BUT ALSO CEASE FROM COPYING EVERY SINGLE THING THAT THEY DO AND SAY IT IS AUTHENTIC CAUSE SOMETIMES THEY TOO DO NOT EVEN KNOW....MY POINT IS THAT WE MUST LEARN FROM EACH OTHER CAUSE WE HAVE ALOT OT TEACH AS WELL!! BUT I WOULD HIGHLY SUGGEST LISTENING AND LEARNING FROM ALL OUR AGED ELDERS (ESPECIALLY FEMALE) FROM AFREEKA, THE CARIBBEAN ETC. ETC. THE KNOWLEDGE AND WISDOM THEY HAVE IS MORE THAN WE CAN IMAGINE...



Ok, back to the topic here...so i call myself an AFREEKAN DIASPORAN as i am born in the diaspora & i am a daughter of Afreeka! calling myself str8 up Afreekan has caused me tooooo much drama...so by making the distinction it cause no bizarre looks and questioning...when i say AFREEKAN of the DIASPORA blk ppl now know what i am sayin and even though i still get strange looks now and then, the diaspora addition makes it more clear and also does not give the impression that i am trying to sell-off my diaspora experience.i will never be Afreekan-American/Canadian and i reject being referred to that way in all cases!!


SANKOFA!,
Kentake.