How Are You a Descendant of Africans and NOT Black?!
I was talking to a Jamaican fellow the other day, and he was adamant that he was “not Black.”
Like… WHAT?!
First of all, that makes no sense.
I tried to explain to him that maybe he’s not Black American, but he is indeed Black, to which he denied and promptly “corrected” me by saying he’s Jamaican.
I told him, “That’s your ethnicity. Ethnicity is different from race. But who you are, race-wise, falls under being Black!”
After a few more exchanges, this conversation went no where, so I just dropped the topic altogether.
(We’re still cool, by the way.)
But anywho…
I just don’t get why certain ethnic groups in the African diaspora have an inherent problem with being called Black. How the fuck are you a descendant of Africans and not Black?! That has to be an oxymoron of some sort.
Black people can be characterized by (dark) brown skin, kinky black (or dark brown) afro hair, and dark brown eyes, but due to the effects of colonialism, we come in a wide variety of features. Yet, no matter how physically diverse we are, it’s easy to recognize us.
That said, the Jamaican man in question is obviously Black. Not Black-passing, not racially ambiguous, but Black. His skin is a few shades darker than mine. I’m sure if he grew his hair out, it would be kinky — basically, if he walked out of his house and you didn’t hear him speak, you wouldn’t know he’s Jamaican. He just looks like a regular Black man. And I tried to explain this to him, too!
The same can be said for Haitians, some Cubans, some Dominicans — hell, I just learned about Afro-Mexicans last year! Not “Blaxicans,” but actual Black Mexicans. And they thoroughly acknowledge their roots to The Motherland, so why is it a problem for everybody else?!
I don’t know.
Am I wrong? Because I actually feel offended at the notion that anyone would deny their African ancestry.
