Comments on: The ‘Non-African-American’ Ethiopian Immigrant http://dcentric.wamu.org/2012/03/the-non-african-american-ethiopian-immigrant/ Race, Class, The District. Mon, 16 Jul 2012 03:01:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Mohammed http://dcentric.wamu.org/2012/03/the-non-african-american-ethiopian-immigrant/#comment-1671 Mohammed Wed, 11 Jul 2012 00:13:00 +0000 http://dcentric.wamu.org/?p=14714#comment-1671 This discussion is sooooooo American. To racially identify people, it is typically a western issue, because there you have this strong general umbrella like culture. Where all people speak the same language and have the same history and culture. This is totally alien to us (recently immigrated) Africans . We tend to look at ethnicity and religion as a 'tool' to mentally divide people into groups. And every group has its own language, culture , history , religion and folk heroes. Therefore we feel no instant connection with a random black person. In fact we do not even feel this when we see someone from our home country, except if that person is from exactly the same ethnic group. And this confuses Afro-Americans (the original ones) because they do feel an instant connection when they see us. I am not saying that our way of looking at things is any better, because we as Africans have committed horrible crimes for ethnic nationalist or religious fanatic reasons. All I try to say is that our way of thinking is just a little bit different, not better nor worse. Just different. This discussion is sooooooo American. To racially identify people, it is typically a western issue, because there you have this strong general umbrella like culture. Where all people speak the same language and have the same history and culture. This is totally alien to us (recently immigrated) Africans . We tend to look at ethnicity and religion as a ‘tool’ to mentally divide people into groups. And every group has its own language, culture , history , religion and folk heroes. Therefore we feel no instant connection with a random black person. In fact we do not even feel this when we see someone from our home country, except if that person is from exactly the same ethnic group. And this confuses Afro-Americans (the original ones) because they do feel an instant connection when they see us. I am not saying that our way of looking at things is any better, because we as Africans have committed horrible crimes for ethnic nationalist or religious fanatic reasons. All I try to say is that our way of thinking is just a little bit different, not better nor worse. Just different.

]]> By: Devin O http://dcentric.wamu.org/2012/03/the-non-african-american-ethiopian-immigrant/#comment-1342 Devin O Thu, 22 Mar 2012 03:59:00 +0000 http://dcentric.wamu.org/?p=14714#comment-1342 The guy is an American citizen of African ethnic descent. That is the very definition of the term "African-American." This is similar to the fact that the term "Asian-American" incorporates people of various Asian nationalities and ethnicities (e.g. Chinese, Cantonese, Mandarin and etc). The guy is an American citizen of African ethnic descent. That is the very definition of the term “African-American.” This is similar to the fact that the term “Asian-American” incorporates people of various Asian nationalities and ethnicities (e.g. Chinese, Cantonese, Mandarin and etc).

]]> By: HH http://dcentric.wamu.org/2012/03/the-non-african-american-ethiopian-immigrant/#comment-1317 HH Fri, 16 Mar 2012 16:23:00 +0000 http://dcentric.wamu.org/?p=14714#comment-1317 What does the man's race have anything to do with the fact that he leased her a building that is not up to code.  The real issue is that he's just a bad landlord, that failed to follow the code rules.  AND blacks can discriminate against blacks, whether this man's is AFrican American or not is not at issue, Ethiopians are BLACK, RACIALLY the SAME as AFrican AMericans.   What does the man’s race have anything to do with the fact that he leased her a building that is not up to code.  The real issue is that he’s just a bad landlord, that failed to follow the code rules.  AND blacks can discriminate against blacks, whether this man’s is AFrican American or not is not at issue, Ethiopians are BLACK, RACIALLY the SAME as AFrican AMericans.  

]]> By: Elijah405 http://dcentric.wamu.org/2012/03/the-non-african-american-ethiopian-immigrant/#comment-1316 Elijah405 Fri, 16 Mar 2012 13:10:00 +0000 http://dcentric.wamu.org/?p=14714#comment-1316 Race is largely a social construct, but ethnicity is a whole other thing-I guess I must be slow because I didn't know that 'African-American' was solely reserved for people who are descendants of slaves. Doesn't 'African' encompass all countries in Africa? If the Ethiopian became a citizen in 2010, isn't he Ethiopian-American? Wouldn't that fall under the category of 'African-American'? Needless to say, I'm not sure if I would want that guy as my lawyer using that as one of his stronger arguments. Race is largely a social construct, but ethnicity is a whole other thing-I guess I must be slow because I didn’t know that ‘African-American’ was solely reserved for people who are descendants of slaves. Doesn’t ‘African’ encompass all countries in Africa? If the Ethiopian became a citizen in 2010, isn’t he Ethiopian-American? Wouldn’t that fall under the category of ‘African-American’?

Needless to say, I’m not sure if I would want that guy as my lawyer using that as one of his stronger arguments.

]]> By: ele http://dcentric.wamu.org/2012/03/the-non-african-american-ethiopian-immigrant/#comment-1315 ele Fri, 16 Mar 2012 00:14:00 +0000 http://dcentric.wamu.org/?p=14714#comment-1315 Obviously not, it is not the same. You are shaped (your identity is constructed) by the society you grow up in. Here, all black people grow up with an image of themselves that is not the same as the image an African has of themselves. Here, African-Americans internalized their condition of minorities (and all of what that entails) an immigrant from Africa didn't grow up thinking of themselves as a minority, they were the majority where they came from. Obviously not, it is not the same. You are shaped (your identity is constructed) by the society you grow up in. Here, all black people grow up with an image of themselves that is not the same as the image an African has of themselves. Here, African-Americans internalized their condition of minorities (and all of what that entails) an immigrant from Africa didn’t grow up thinking of themselves as a minority, they were the majority where they came from.

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