What to officially refer to a "Black" person as of today?

[Remobz]

Let me get this straight please.

"Benedict Cumberbatch sorry for 'coloured' comment"

http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/30994775


"Why the term 'colored' is so offensive"

http://edition.cnn.com/videos/world/2015/01/27/history-of-the-word-colored-orig-mg.cnn


Please remember that the term "colored" is used in other Countries with no negative connotations. My Dad (76 years old) still uses the word and nobody corrects him or seem offended. He even did so on a recent trip to the USA. He did not mean it in a bad way and was just the word he knew to use growing up in another Country.

On the other hand, I heard one "Black" person say that they are more brown than Black or more lighter skin. Some hate the word "African American" because they were never born in Africa and grew up in America. And the list goes on.

So what the heck is a "safe" word to use you think?

I am slowly weening my Dad off the word "colored" but what word might be UNIVERSALLY safe? I can't use African American for a person living in Jamaica for example.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

Why do you have to refer to people by their skin color? I would think "black" would be the least offensive, but as a Caucasian American of Western European and Scandinavian descent, I don't know if I'm qualified to judge the relative offensiveness of racial terminology.

 

[First]

"Colored" probably isn't terribly offensive depending on the context, intent, tone, etc. Negro is worse. The N-word is of course bottom of the barrel bad.

Appropriate as of today are "black" and "African-American".

 

[Atreus21]

Why do you have to refer to people by their skin color? I would think "black" would be the least offensive, but as a Caucasian American of Western European and Scandinavian descent, I don't know if I'm qualified to judge the relative offensiveness of racial terminology.

Why can't we refer to people by their skin color? It's a distinguishing characteristic, just as eye color, sex, facial hair, or height are.

 

[realibrad]

Why do you have to refer to people by their skin color? I would think "black" would be the least offensive, but as a Caucasian American of Western European and Scandinavian descent, I don't know if I'm qualified to judge the relative offensiveness of racial terminology.

Me>"Excuse me officer, I saw the women who was kidnapped"

Officer>"Can you describe the woman"

Me>"she was a woman in her 20s"

Officer>"um, anything else"

Me>"Nope, because skin color does not matter"

 

[schmuckley]

black person..derp!~
/thread
Maybe if they're red..Redbone,

 

[Moonbeam]

Why do you have to refer to people by their skin color? I would think "black" would be the least offensive, but as a Caucasian American of Western European and Scandinavian descent, I don't know if I'm qualified to judge the relative offensiveness of racial terminology.

Think of them as the best protected against skin cancer.

 

[realibrad]

black person..derp!~
/thread
Maybe if they're red..Redbone,

Someone likes porn :awe:

 

[Atreus21]

Think of them as the best protected against skin cancer.

Aren't blacks particularly susceptible to skin cancer?

 

[schmuckley]

Aren't blacks particularly susceptible to skin cancer?

I've worked with black people in the sun and they got burned and I didn't .

 

[smackababy]

Aren't blacks particularly susceptible to skin cancer?

Not that I've heard. Just that they are well protected against sun burns.

 

[Kadarin]

Someone likes porn :awe:

Everyone likes porn :awe:

 

[Printer Bandit]

i heard black people had their dna spliced into them from aliens where their planets were hot, sweaty jungles.

 

[Remobz]

Not that I've heard. Just that they are well protected against sun burns.

People with dark skin are indeed more likely to die from skin cancer than those with fairer skin.

Although the disease is less common in darker skin, when it does occur it is typically more aggressive and diagnosed later, which leads to more deaths.
People with darker skin do have a natural sun protection factor (SPF) of 13 but this is still not enough to give an appropriate protection against harmful effects of UV light.

 

[Meghan54]

People with dark skin are indeed more likely to die from skin cancer than those with fairer skin.

Although the disease is less common in darker skin, when it does occur it is typically more aggressive and diagnosed later, which leads to more deaths.
People with darker skin do have a natural sun protection factor (SPF) of 13 but this is still not enough to give an appropriate protection against harmful effects of UV light.

Hell, it's not even enough protection to prevent sunburn. Pretty common knowledge that blacks can and do get sunburned unless one has never interacted with blacks beyond avoiding them.

 

[3chordcharlie]

Why do you have to refer to people by their skin color? I would think "black" would be the least offensive, but as a Caucasian American of Western European and Scandinavian descent, I don't know if I'm qualified to judge the relative offensiveness of racial terminology.

There are many circumstances where skin colour is the easiest way to identify, describe, or differentiate a person from their surrounding group.

It's not weird for me to be referred to as a man, a short guy (in some rare groups, a tall guy), white, bald, chubby, the guy with blue eyes, the guy in the red/grey/green shirt/pants/speedo, or whatever.

When we are told that EVERY word is discriminatory, it's hard to take it seriously.

I feel a little odd referring to casual friends and acquaintances as 'chocolate'.

 

[bradly1101]

Why would anyone refer to someone's skin color? Is this the fifties?

 

[Subyman]

I think "African-American" is funny. I'm white, my family is part Irish, part Scottish, and part English. The Irish and Scot side came over in the 1920's. Most "African-American" people had already been here 100 years or more. I bet there is an argument for "African-Americans" lineage being in the US longer than most white families seeing as the huge immigration from Europe happened in during the turn of the last century.

 

[MrPickins]

My black friends refer to themselves as black, so I do as well.

Why would anyone refer to someone's skin color? Is this the fifties?

Physical appearance is one of the easiest ways to describe a person.

When I ask if someone has met my friend: "you know, the lanky white dude with brown hair".

There is nothing wrong with recognizing color. Discriminating against people of a certain color is the issue.

 

[bradly1101]

My black friends refer to themselves as black, so I do as well.




Physical appearance is one of the easiest ways to describe a person.

When I ask if someone has met my friend: "you know, the lanky white dude with brown hair".

There is nothing wrong with recognizing color. Discriminating against people of a certain color is the issue.

Agreed, yes it can be a helpful identifier, but it seems like a justifiably touchy subject (given our recent history). I just would say, "The lanky guy with brown hair." That should do it.

 

[Ackmed]

I say black. African American is stupid. They're American, born and raised here for generations. We don't call people from Europe, European Americans. Asian Americans, etc. It's black, if they're offended then fuck them.

 

[Moonbeam]

I've worked with black people in the sun and they got burned and I didn't .

People with dark skin are indeed more likely to die from skin cancer than those with fairer skin.

Although the disease is less common in darker skin, when it does occur it is typically more aggressive and diagnosed later, which leads to more deaths.
People with darker skin do have a natural sun protection factor (SPF) of 13 but this is still not enough to give an appropriate protection against harmful effects of UV light.

Hell, it's not even enough protection to prevent sunburn. Pretty common knowledge that blacks can and do get sunburned unless one has never interacted with blacks beyond avoiding them.

Pin heads, I'm surrounded by pin heads. The obvious point of my post was that dark skin color is an evolutionary adaption to solar radiation in the tropics. All our ancestors were black because we evolved in Africa and only turned white to produce enough vitamin D to survive wearing clothes and low levels of sun light. Being white is just like having a CBD. It helps you survive in certain conditions and only helps in those conditions.

 

[Moonbeam]

I say black. African American is stupid. They're American, born and raised here for generations. We don't call people from Europe, European Americans. Asian Americans, etc. It's black, if they're offended then fuck them.

I'm an Irish Italian American. Fuck off.

 

[crashtech]

I say "dark-complected" when describing someone darker than me. I'm sure someone will find that offensive.

 

[mizzou]

I say "Black". It's official use is well established and it is also non-offensive.

Many times, when you say "African American", it's to delineate someone of African slave descent. Noticed I said "slave", because we don't consider anyone else other then this section to be "Black". Everyone else, including Arabs, Asians, pacific islander, hispanic, etc.etc. officially as "White."

Doesn't make any sense to me, I'd rather not refer to anyone by their race at all. Just refer to people by nationality and native tounge. The only reason we still refer to race is because racism still exists.