Can I say something about all this black and white talk....?

[garybeck]

"black" people are not black.

"white" people are not white.

It's always bothered me that we use these terms to describe someone's race.



When was the last time you saw a person whose skin looked like either of those? Still, on government forms I sometimes have to check a box that says I'm "white" but I'm looking at my skin right now and it sure as hell isn't white.

black and white are opposites, there is nothing more separate, more different. why do we use these terms to descibe our races and/or our skin colors, when this only further separates us subliminally?

I realize many people in these circles have found better terms to pertain to a person's race, but I look forward to the day when the media shifts away from calling people black and white. Like here:

http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2008/black.in.america/

maybe you think i'm being politically correct.

i just like to be correct

and keep the politics out of it.

peace.

[XemaSab]

1. John McCain

HA! Gotcha! :P

[Jamastiene]

2. I look forward to the day when media AND OUR GOVERNMENT

stops categorizing us. We are just people, people.

And if our government is having THAT hard of a time keeping up with us, maybe they should STOP keeping up with us so closely. Yes, I said that, Agent Mike.

People are just people.

[silverojo]

3. I hate being called "white"

I'm Irish-American!

[pecwae]

4. I'm Scots-Irish-American!

[illuminaughty]

5. I'm Irish, Choctow, Welsh and German ....and American n/t

[garybeck]

6. I'm Jewish, and my skin is certainly not white

but I've had to check that checkbox a few times in my life.

[Joe Chi Minh]

7. I agree with you whole-heartedly. I was only wondering the other day why we don't say,

"pinkish", "brownish", "pale", "pallid", "swarthy", "brown", "olive", "orange" or "varnishy" (strange lotion). It's as if describing a person's skin colour was kind of racist or wrong in some way, so we do it in the boldest strokes possible.

Oddly enough, we call Indians and Pakistanis in the UK, "Asians", presumably in the knowledge that they do not have low self-esteem; yet we call people African people or people of part African extraction, not Africans or part-Africans, but "West Indians" (maybe I'm out of date on that) or "blacks", even when they're mostly white.

On some official document - I thought mistakenly it was my passport - I was described as "sallow", which Chambers dictionary describes as, "of a pale-yellowish colour". I could be related to the Simpsons. "Simpsonish", maybe? But at least an effort was made at capturing gradations of colour.

It would have made more sense to write, "pale-yellowish colour", as I didn't know the meaning of the word, "sallow", and perhaps many other people don't. I'd always thought of myself I was a little "swarthy" or "olive-skinned" - kind of "brindle". Well, it's close enough to "pale-yellowy", I suppose. What's the odds?

I think the "black" thing originally came about because people of African extraction were fed up with the notion that a person being black or dark brown was something to be ashamed of, and for others to "tip-toe" around. The Black Pride movement, wasn't it called?

[eowyn_of_rohan]

10. burnt sienna, raw umber, peach, ivory (Crayon colors!)

Nobody is black or yellow or red or white!

-opps-spelled umber wrong

[End Of The Road]

11. When I was a kid (eons ago) the "peach" crayon was labeled "flesh" nt

[eowyn_of_rohan]

13. oh- that's right! Sure wasn't my flesh color! Way too pinkish

[Joe Chi Minh]

14. I like those names, Eowyn! You have a very poetic soul. Are you sure it's not "burnt umber and

"raw sienna"? I'm sure you are sure. But when I took my eyes off your post, I found myself saying "burnt umber"!

[eowyn_of_rohan]

25. lol - I only have the 64 crayon box, KC!

But you are right that burnt umber and raw sienna are also colors. I am not sure if Crayola makes them , but they are in my paint box.
Cheers!

[Joe Chi Minh]

26. Are you an artist or a poet?

[eowyn_of_rohan]

31. well... I like reading poetry but have only dabbled in writing

I haven't painted very much in a few years, but am usually involved in some type of art project. Like now I am doing some mosaic work for Christmas gifts. How about you? You certainly are a good writer.

[curse of greyface]

20. Swarthy? nt

[Joe Chi Minh]

24. Why the question? Does it have bad overtones?

[curse of greyface]

28. It does where I come from. It often refers to Pirate like. nt

[Joe Chi Minh]

30. Pirate? Sounds good! Ask Autorank. He's a great fan of them. Well, you know,

you Americans had more than your share of pirates marauding the high seas... Muscling in on our Brit territory even then. Mind you, you also had sailors in Nelson's navy, black, white and Muttley! Maybe you should all call Rahm, Dastardly Jeff. I've got a touch of the tar-brush, too, the Muttley's. Be sure not forget the capital M.

[Sparkly]

23. Or coffee colors -- latte, cappucino, machiato...

With caramel for the yellow hues and I dunno what for the pink ones. Cinnamon for freckles.

I agree that "black" and "white" don't make much sense.

[treestar]

8. True

With rare exceptions, we are really tan, beige, and brown with some pink or red highlights.

[eowyn_of_rohan]

9. Bothers me too. I am not white, I have color, so I too am "of color"

Can't we all be "of color"?

[garybeck]

15. I like it, we are ALL "of color"

why not focus on what we share, rather than exaggerating our differences?

[Joe Chi Minh]

18. It's crazy pompous circumlocution. In how many cirumstances is there any need

for discriminating between whether a person is a "person of color" or "white", bereft of color, wan? Don't we talk about the colur being drained from a person's face, as a result of a terrifying experiece or some trauma or other? Actually, I think "wan" is a better, more accurate word than "white".

[LatteLibertine]

12. I'm a member of the human race first

Most differences between the "races" are simply cultural or tradition.

[garybeck]

16. and the whole world is becoming a giant melting pot

n/t

[martiko]

17. Correct. And we are forgetting Hispanics

Who are mixed as they come. Black, aborigen and white.

[CatWoman]

19. your heading made me think of this Star Trek episode

[Bucky]

21. You goober, if we described people by their actual skin color, racism would fall apart

Think about all of those unemployed stand up comics. Have you no heart?

[readmoreoften]

22. No, but I have white privilege and some folks don't and I can't fail to account for that.

[specialed]

27. I'm a MUTT

My family tree represents up into my generation, Black, white, jewish, scott, english, native american.

[spoony]

29. Never thought of it like that, how opposite that makes it sound

Food for the brain. For my part I'll try to avoid those labels from now on.