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Meandering about Race, Ethnicity, and Culture
I see racial stuff come up all the time, here and in the news. Thing is, people act like the "lines" between the races are all clear and crisp. Black is black, latino is latino, asian is asian, white is white, right? Wrong!!
Let's look at some examples: a classic one is the multigeneration "african-american". "Black", right? Ummmm, no. Most likely to be mixed black, white, and even native american. Unless that person can trace all of their ancestors cleanly to the slave ships, with no white master taking liberties, or NA slaves in the mix, they're not pure 'black' - more like a heinz 57.
Then we have latino: spanish? some; indian? some; other southern european? maybe. Again, you can't tell the mix from appearances, either.
How about asian? With all of the history of raids and invasions in the asian countries - which "asian" is the real thing? None? Most asians, like most whites, who have a minority (defined as "anything not the dominant ethnic group where the ancestor comes from") in their bloodline, don't talk about it.
So the color theory of racial integrity is straight out, and very bogus when you're talking american born people, and those from other melting pot areas. The race is "human", folks.
So we get to ethnicity. Some days ethnicity seems to be race myths dressed up in fancy dress. Other days, it's a way to describe the genetic precursors to an individual: their ancestry, if you will. So my ethnicity isn't "white" - it's Danish, German, English, Irish, Welsh and French, in various levels. Does it have other stuff, like NA or jewish? I don't know, but it's possible. Do I have the "right" to enjoy and practice the cultures of all the ethnic inclusions I know of? I sure as hell think so!
So my "black" friends could just as easily be German, English, Scottish, Welsh, South African, and Nigerian. Do they have the same "right" to enjoy all of the cultures of their ancestry? Hell yes!
So then we come to the "american" cultures - and they all seem to base themselves off of skin tone.
So a guy who is, say, half German, half Nigerian, would be expected to act "black", talk "black", listen to rap and dress ghetto. Dumb. He may well be bilingual in German and English, dress in a button down suit or ironed jeans, and listen to Bach and QueensRyche.
A woman who was mostly european, with a little black, might be expected to dress like a yuppie and listen to teen pop, but instead really find resonance in R&B and Rap and delight in african tribal print dresses.
Are they wrong? I don't think so.
Maybe we should start looking at our cultures and subcultures, and who "belongs" in them, in other terms than just the nominal color of someone's skin, and our assumptions about "race".
Disagree? OK, but keep it polite, or I reserve the right to roast your ass. I'm in a mood.
Let's look at some examples: a classic one is the multigeneration "african-american". "Black", right? Ummmm, no. Most likely to be mixed black, white, and even native american. Unless that person can trace all of their ancestors cleanly to the slave ships, with no white master taking liberties, or NA slaves in the mix, they're not pure 'black' - more like a heinz 57.
Then we have latino: spanish? some; indian? some; other southern european? maybe. Again, you can't tell the mix from appearances, either.
How about asian? With all of the history of raids and invasions in the asian countries - which "asian" is the real thing? None? Most asians, like most whites, who have a minority (defined as "anything not the dominant ethnic group where the ancestor comes from") in their bloodline, don't talk about it.
So the color theory of racial integrity is straight out, and very bogus when you're talking american born people, and those from other melting pot areas. The race is "human", folks.
So we get to ethnicity. Some days ethnicity seems to be race myths dressed up in fancy dress. Other days, it's a way to describe the genetic precursors to an individual: their ancestry, if you will. So my ethnicity isn't "white" - it's Danish, German, English, Irish, Welsh and French, in various levels. Does it have other stuff, like NA or jewish? I don't know, but it's possible. Do I have the "right" to enjoy and practice the cultures of all the ethnic inclusions I know of? I sure as hell think so!
So my "black" friends could just as easily be German, English, Scottish, Welsh, South African, and Nigerian. Do they have the same "right" to enjoy all of the cultures of their ancestry? Hell yes!
So then we come to the "american" cultures - and they all seem to base themselves off of skin tone.
So a guy who is, say, half German, half Nigerian, would be expected to act "black", talk "black", listen to rap and dress ghetto. Dumb. He may well be bilingual in German and English, dress in a button down suit or ironed jeans, and listen to Bach and QueensRyche.
A woman who was mostly european, with a little black, might be expected to dress like a yuppie and listen to teen pop, but instead really find resonance in R&B and Rap and delight in african tribal print dresses.
Are they wrong? I don't think so.
Maybe we should start looking at our cultures and subcultures, and who "belongs" in them, in other terms than just the nominal color of someone's skin, and our assumptions about "race".
Disagree? OK, but keep it polite, or I reserve the right to roast your ass. I'm in a mood.
no subject
1) The word "ethnic" used when people mean "race" and are trying to be P.C. or simply don't know the difference. I am ethnically ENGLISH, racially I'm white. The guy on the other side of the screen to me as I type this is also ethnically English, he just happens to be black. We both grew up in the same culture.
2) The word "ethnic" used to describe anything the user considers exotic. "Ethnic design", for example, with no reference to what culture it (supposedly) comes from.
Culture and ethnicity are learned and can _be_ learned. Whilst my culture is English, learning to make that culture more Heathen is an ongoing process. Anyone who thinks that ethnicity is purely a matter of genetics is, to use a very English saying, talking bollocks.
[1] Okay, lots of things, but two related to your post.
no subject
My ancestry (and ethnicity) isn't "white", it's various European tribes and migratory groups, plus whatever other groups crept in to the woodpile. "White" only describes my arbitrary racial designation based on skin color.
Essentially, people try to use the term "race" to label the polyglot of ethnic backgrounds that occur in the US, and try to force people into a stereotype due to their skin color.
Ethnicity is not learned. Culture is. Your genes, including the interesting little physiological factors engendered from various tribes at various locations, can't be "learned". "Race" is a null in a ethnically non-homogeneous population. The "white" and "black" races *aren't*. They're just rubbish bins in which to arbitrarily sort people.