Sineater - Yank questions :)

[lobs211]

Sineater - Is "Yank" like racial vilification? Is that politically incorrect?

Anyway - trying to take my mind off my business in other thread and I have some questions 🙂

ok so I really wanna know: Do black Americans have a connection with Africa? Do they consider it home? Do they like go back and find their people/ tribe/ families?

Can they trace that? And do they identify by tribe? So eg) If Oprah met Obama - do they talk tribes? Areas thier people from or do they just consider themselves American?? and have no connection to country?

I really wanna know this - thanks 🙂

[sineaterdoodah]

okay,first thing,i am trying really hard not to laugh at thisconversation,because i understand what lobs is asking. i ask the same (what could be considered"silly") questions of my friends here! 🙂

now,seriously . i'm going to answer you questions from  MY point of view,okay?

i have many black friends,and over the years,i've had many black coworkers as well. very few of them actually know their tribal ancestry,and most don't really care. and no,they WOULDN'T go to africa,it's scary there!! they aren't crazy! 

and with the people i know personally,they DON'T use the phrase"african-american". they are americans,period. they are black,i am white. our coworkers and friends range from MY white  to SHACK'S black(he's so black,he looks navy blue,in sunlight),and we all get on just fine.

our circle,and MY neighborhood,includes blacks,whites,asians,indians,latinos,you name it. color,religion,sex,age,gender,it doesn't matter to US.

i live in wichita,kansas,pretty much the center of the USA,mapwise. that's MY world. i grew up in new england,i have most of my family in wisconsin or florida. those are DIFFERENT worlds,sometimes.

and i will say more later,or tomorrow,okay? just want you to know that what you see on the news isn't usually real life HERE! 🙂

[sineaterdoodah]

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@love*today wrote:
I said others and I was referring not to aboriginals.

If the family is a strong proud family of their heritage I cannot see why customs and stories would not be handed down? Even through 15 generations. Children's customs come from their upbringing.
I cannot speak for African Americans but some celebrities come across as very proud of their history.

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oh,we ALL do that,no matter wjhat color,or culture! and we SHARE them too! 

[tcmsecretuseid]

Yes, many celebrities are proud of their black heritage. I don't think they are thinking about Kunta Kinte though. I think it's more about equality in America. 

There is still quite a bit of racism in America. It is sad. There are still many Americans who think poorly of all Black people.

My own G'ma was racist. It put a wedge on our relationship at times. 

When a black person becomes President, or wins an academy award, it validates their equality. If that makes any sense. 

There are also some black people who hate whites. They are just as racist as any white person. 

[this-one-time-at-bandcamp]

If the family is a strong proud family of their heritage I cannot see why customs and stories would not be handed down? Even through 15 generations. Children's customs come from their upbringing.

one-time - 15 generations is nothing - try 60,000 years LOL  and yep still going strong

I'd love to hear about someone's ancestry that they can identify through 60,000 years.........

[tcmsecretuseid]

My neighbors kids are half black. They played with my kids every day while they were growing up. I think of them as part of my family. They have no idea what tribe their fathers ancestors came from in Africa. I'll ask them if they've ever thought about it the next time I see them. 

[tcmsecretuseid]

If a person were to say to an American black person, why don't you go home, back to your tribe? That person would be considered very racist, prejudiced, and ignorant. 

[kopenhagen5]

My knowledge of the word Yankees stems from the civil war.

Confederates vs Yankees, South vs North.  

North - Yankees

South - Rebels

Often shortened to Yanks and Rebs.

But early on it referred to the descendants of English settlers or residents of New England.

[the_great_she_elephant]

I'm only guessing here,and am happy to stand  corrected if I am not geting this quite right, but I suspect the concept of "country" may not be the same for those of African heritage as it is for Aboriginal people. The Aboriginal sense of country is unique in that it signifies not only an ancestral home but a womb. They belong to and are a part of their country - they came out of its belly  and will sink back into it when they die.  They believe they are part of the very earth of their country and therefore need that connection in a way that perhaps, those of African descent do not.

[this-one-time-at-bandcamp]

At the start of the American Revolution the British had a song, deriding the colonists as "hayseeds", which was called, "Yankee Doodle Dandy"............ironically, after a series of British defeats, the Americans adopted the song as their own.

[channys_mum]

I truly wish that it was possible for all Australians to be proud of their ancestry AND live together as one nation equally treated,

ie: rewarded/punished (disciplined), All respecting and living by the rules of the land in which they live.

If you have the quals you get the job, if you do the crime you do the time. Not excusing bad actions in the name of culture.

I had a boutique in Sydney many moons ago. A relative from north western NSW asked me to bring the "shop" out. I loaded up the van and off I went.

I set up shop with my Sydney fashions lol, and girls young and old came to shop. Two young aborigine girls came in and asked me if they could look at the clothes. Obviously I said yes and wondered why they didn't just cruise on in.

Then they asked if I thought a couple of particular dresses would fit them, and I said it would be best to try them on.

The girls stared at me gaping for a second and said, but we are black. I said oh really I hadn't noticed, now go try on whatever you want, just hang it up again if you don't want it. Two excited girls went shopping like two teenagers should.

Later the elders came to see me. They told me that the other shops didn't let black girls (their words) try stuff on. I was horrified. 

I went there regularly after that. It was good for them and certainly good for business.

It cuts both ways. I used to do juvie. My indigenous little gems of society were able to get so much more help than any of the others.

Will it ever happen that we really all will be created equal.