Something for the Politically Correct
I really detest politically correct speech. And, it has been my belief that it is, in fact, more divisive than it has been helpful. I have never called an American Indian a "Native-American" or a black guy an "African-American.
This is not to say that I have not been corrected and chastised over my ideas. I have had a few black associates tell me that they are "African-American" and not black. They told me that it was offensive to them that I referred to them as black and that I should refer to them as "African-American.
My response was to ask them if they had ever been to Africa. They had not. I asked them if they were born in Africa. Again, they had not. I asked where their parents were born. Their parents had been born in the USA. So, I asked them what made them African-American. The standard answer was that their lineage was from African soil.
Of course, I pointed out to them that that made me "Afrtican-American, too, since a lot of scientific data seems to indicate that the earliest man came from Africa. Of course, they disagreed with that assessment.
So, I told them that I respected that they did not want to be identified as black. And I asked what I should identify them as. Of course, I was told to identify them as "African-American".
So, I told them that they have to stop calling me white. I am not white. My roots point to being an American of black Irish heritage. So, I insisted that I be identified as "African-American-Irish-American".
That didn't go over too well.
So, I got to wondering. What would a white African who became an American citizen be called? Would they be an "African-American'? Would they get any sort of affirmative action benefits where they were applicable?
And, why do we call American Indians "Native Americans"? American is, after all, a creation of European man who came and conquered the new world. Shouldn't they be called something else that is a little more accurate? Actually, if we really want to be respect ful to them, they shouldn't have a "-American" in their identication.
And why aren't Indians (from India) considered to be Asian-Americans? After all, India is in Asia.
What about Libyans who have become American citizens? Shouldn't they be called "African-Americans" too? After all, Libya is in North Africa.
While we are at it, shouldn't white American folks be called something other than white? Something like "Conqueror-Americans". Because, really, using "white" to identify folks is not politically correct - it might offend someone.
And, I was wondering why all black folks in the USA are called "African-Americans". Not all black folks originated in Africa. How come we still call them "African-Americans"?
Hey, what if a black guy comes down from Canada? How do we Identify him? Is he an "African-American-Canadian-American"?
And what about an American black guy going over to Africa and getting citizenship? Would they call him an African-American-African"?
And finally, now that illegal immigrants are being referred to as "undocumented immigrants", does that mean that when I commit an illegal act, like a murder, that I can refer to it as an "undocumented homocide"?
Just askin'.
