I'm American, well half, and I was born there so I guess that counts:P

Or like calling a native of Quebec a Canadian??:P

You know, thinking about this, it's actually a perfect example.

 

There are plenty of separatist Quebecois who would find it offensive to be called Canadian. But they are still Canadian as long as Quebec is part of Canada, and we're going to keep calling them Canadian for the sake of the country. We love them and don't want to leave- they'd take a part of our country's heart and soul with them if they left; they're such an integral part of who we are as a country. If they compete in the Olympics, they've still got a maple leaf on their uniform. Stepping on toes doesn't make the term Canadian any less applicable.

 

And my main point is, to not call someone from say the east coast or the prairies Canadian for fear of upsetting separatists would be just plain madness. It is what we are, and most of us Canucks quite like the term. It's not about race, it's about national pride in all it's fractured, battered, multiethnic glory.

This is not news... Separatist regions are everywhere around the world... Spain, Belgium, Germany, Russia, China... etc... just to mention some examples... Even in my country... Altough here, poverty keeps us united :P

In France, it's commonplace to say "British" without any connotation whatsoever.

{QUOTE=email]

Michael Richards Court Speech

 

Makes one stop and think after reading this:

 

Michael Richards is better known as Kramer from tv's Seinfeld series.

This was his defence speech in court after making racial comments in his comedy act.

He makes some very interesting points. He said :

I'm proud To Be White

Someone finally said it.

How many are actually paying attention to this ?

There are African Americans, Mexican Americans,

Asian Americans, Arab Americans, etc.

And then there are just Americans.

You pass me on the street and sneer in my direction.

You Call me 'White boy,' 'Cracker,' 'Honkey,'

'Whitey,' 'Caveman' ... and that's OK.

 

But when I call you, Nigger, Kike, Towel head,

Sand-nigger, Camel Jockey, Beaner , Gook, or Chink .

You call me a racist.

You say that whites commit a lot of violence against you,

so why are the ghettos the most dangerous places to live ?

You have the United Negro College Fund.

You have Martin Luther King Day.

You have Black History Month.

You have Cesar Chavez Day.

You have Yom Hashoah.

You have Ma'uled Al-Nabi.

You have the NAACP.

You have BET.

If we had WET (White Entertainment Television) we'd be racists.

If we had a White Pride Day, you would call us racists.

If we had White History Month , we'd be racists.

If we had any organization for only whites to 'advance'

OUR lives we'd be racists.

We have a Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, a Black Chamber of Commerce, and then we just have the plain Chamber of Commerce.

Wonder who pays for that ?

 

A white woman could not be in the Miss Black American pageant,

but any color can be in the Miss America pageant. If we had a college fund that only gave white students scholarships you know we'd be racists. There are over 60 openly proclaimed Black Colleges in the US . Yet if there were 'White colleges' THAT would be a racist college.

 

In the Million Man March, you believed that you were marching for your race and rights. If we marched for our race and rights,

you would call us racists. You are proud to be black, brown, yellow and orange, and you're not afraid to announce it.

But when we announce our white pride, you call us racists.

 

You rob us, carjack us, and shoot at us.

But , when a white police officer shoots a black gang member or

beats up a black drug-dealer running from the law and posing a

threat to society, you call him a racist.

I am proud.

But you call me a racist.

Why is it that only whites can be racists ?

I got that in an email. what do youse think?

{QUOTE=email]

Michael Richards Court Speech

 

Makes one stop and think after reading this:

 

Michael Richards is better known as Kramer from tv's Seinfeld series.

This was his defence speech in court after making racial comments in his comedy act.

He makes some very interesting points. He said :

I'm proud To Be White

Someone finally said it.

How many are actually paying attention to this ?

There are African Americans, Mexican Americans,

Asian Americans, Arab Americans, etc.

And then there are just Americans.

You pass me on the street and sneer in my direction.

You Call me 'White boy,' 'Cracker,' 'Honkey,'

'Whitey,' 'Caveman' ... and that's OK.

 

But when I call you, Nigger, Kike, Towel head,

Sand-nigger, Camel Jockey, Beaner , Gook, or Chink .

You call me a racist.

You say that whites commit a lot of violence against you,

so why are the ghettos the most dangerous places to live ?

You have the United Negro College Fund.

You have Martin Luther King Day.

You have Black History Month.

You have Cesar Chavez Day.

You have Yom Hashoah.

You have Ma'uled Al-Nabi.

You have the NAACP.

You have BET.

If we had WET (White Entertainment Television) we'd be racists.

If we had a White Pride Day, you would call us racists.

If we had White History Month , we'd be racists.

If we had any organization for only whites to 'advance'

OUR lives we'd be racists.

We have a Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, a Black Chamber of Commerce, and then we just have the plain Chamber of Commerce.

Wonder who pays for that ?

 

A white woman could not be in the Miss Black American pageant,

but any color can be in the Miss America pageant. If we had a college fund that only gave white students scholarships you know we'd be racists. There are over 60 openly proclaimed Black Colleges in the US . Yet if there were 'White colleges' THAT would be a racist college.

 

In the Million Man March, you believed that you were marching for your race and rights. If we marched for our race and rights,

you would call us racists. You are proud to be black, brown, yellow and orange, and you're not afraid to announce it.

But when we announce our white pride, you call us racists.

 

You rob us, carjack us, and shoot at us.

But , when a white police officer shoots a black gang member or

beats up a black drug-dealer running from the law and posing a

threat to society, you call him a racist.

I am proud.

But you call me a racist.

Why is it that only whites can be racists ?

I got that in an email. what do youse think?

 

He makes some very interesting points. If you really want to get rid of racial prejudice, "colour" labels need to be eliminated altogether.

If you put people in a "box", they're going to identify with it, pure and simple.

Are the MOBO Awards necessary? Do Radio 1 really need Trevor Nelson to bang on about BLACK MUSIC all the time? Do book shops like Borders need BLACK literature sections? I know this has nothing to do with being British, I'm just responding to that email.

Difficult topic. Black people still suffer from disadvantages when it comes to education or employment. You can't easily eliminate labels of colours because they're very still very much in people's minds.

 

I think there is nothing wrong with the things that guy mentioned and I don't think they are racist either. I generally find it a positive thing to create awareness of black history. I don't see why there shouldn't be specific shops, simply because a lot of African food or literature can't be found nowhere else... same with music.

 

Black consciousness isn't a bad thing s long as it's about knowing one's history and celebrating roots. Some people obviously take it too far and see their race as superior or support racial segregation. It too annoys me how some people seriously assume that only white people can be racist, which doesn't make sense.

Well there really are no black people, nor are there any while people - just differing shades of skin pigmentation - a complete set of tones! But the racism of the past, which still lingers on to this day (I'm dismayed by the language I hear locally..), and that racism is often hidden, in things like employment decisions - so it's necessary to counteract it, and offer competitive positions based on skin tone, because of the backward past's presence even today. Maybe we could change the language to get a better fit - instead of the terms such as "white" or "black", it seems better to say "light tone" or "dark tone" to get past the images conjured in the mind, and on to a better understanding of the minor differences.

But here's something to consider: Africa has something like 13 different genetic sub-populations of we humans, of which 1, the Namibians from SW Africa, had migrated first out of Africa to populate the rest of the entire globe - so to call Africa one culture or population is a non-sequitur. But the identity of many Americans (and I suspect Europeans) of recent African ancestry was lost in the bad happenings of the past, and from there the history is one of great importance, for it represents a rise to equality against segregation and racism, so that we may accept one-another as individuals, and not classify one-another in so incorrect and hurtful ways, but note the general mindsets and mannerisms that are the true hallmarks of cultural identity.

I am glad to see that historical archives and DNA tests are helping many Americans of African ancestry locate their family's original cultural group and sometimes their families in Africa. What an unusual world that must be, to have not until recently known where one's ancestors came from!!

But as far as the British designation - What would one call oneself if you're a resident of Great Britain, without the term British? To me, the divisions of Great Britain into England, Wales, Scotland, and so forth makes sense - British being the over-arching term to bind all the different groups together..

umm aren't their white and black "British" people? How is it racist?

What the hell?

 

I don't fucking get this at all.

 

Politicial correctness gone mad? Absolutely.

The Kramer guys speech made 100% sense to me, and I am known in my family to advocate anti-racism, I despise racism.

Anyways, In Australia, the term 'British' (How many T's does it have? sorry) is used very lossely, and many people only associate it with White people from England. That being said, of course it's not racist. Australia is a good example for this I think, because IMO it is like me (a Victorian) getting offended by the term 'Australian' because my state's name is not a derivative of the term Australia like that of South and Western Australia. And that my friends, is madness!

Well there really are no black people, nor are there any while people - just differing shades of skin pigmentation - a complete set of tones! But the racism of the past, which still lingers on to this day (I'm dismayed by the language I hear locally..), and that racism is often hidden, in things like employment decisions - so it's necessary to counteract it, and offer competitive positions based on skin tone, because of the backward past's presence even today. Maybe we could change the language to get a better fit - instead of the terms such as "white" or "black", it seems better to say "light tone" or "dark tone" to get past the images conjured in the mind, and on to a better understanding of the minor differences.

But here's something to consider: Africa has something like 13 different genetic sub-populations of we humans, of which 1, the Namibians from SW Africa, had migrated first out of Africa to populate the rest of the entire globe - so to call Africa one culture or population is a non-sequitur. But the identity of many Americans (and I suspect Europeans) of recent African ancestry was lost in the bad happenings of the past, and from there the history is one of great importance, for it represents a rise to equality against segregation and racism, so that we may accept one-another as individuals, and not classify one-another in so incorrect and hurtful ways, but note the general mindsets and mannerisms that are the true hallmarks of cultural identity.

I am glad to see that historical archives and DNA tests are helping many Americans of African ancestry locate their family's original cultural group and sometimes their families in Africa. What an unusual world that must be, to have not until recently known where one's ancestors came from!!

But as far as the British designation - What would one call oneself if you're a resident of Great Britain, without the term British? To me, the divisions of Great Britain into England, Wales, Scotland, and so forth makes sense - British being the over-arching term to bind all the different groups together..

 

I disagree. What's wrong with mentioning someone's skin colour as long as you don't attach value to it? It obviously shouldn't be used to put people in groups but it doesn't make sense not to mention someone's skin colour when describing their looks.

 

The Kramer guys speech made 100% sense to me, and I am known in my family to advocate anti-racism, I despise racism.

Anyways, In Australia, the term 'British' (How many T's does it have? sorry) is used very lossely, and many people only associate it with White people from England. That being said, of course it's not racist. Australia is a good example for this I think, because IMO it is like me (a Victorian) getting offended by the term 'Australian' because my state's name is not a derivative of the term Australia like that of South and Western Australia. And that my friends, is madness!

 

Even some British people associate the term "British" with being white. Like I went to citizen advice with my housemate the other day and they asked him what his nationality was (even though he speaks with a local accent) whereas they just assumed I was British, which I'm not.

 

Btw British and English is not the same

I'mEnglish first, then British.

British is used to cover anyone from Great Britain way. It's a broad group term used to identify general location, not racist.