How insulting is Colored (vs. African American)

[Shellfish]

A friend of mine used to say, back in the '80s, that her grandmother preferred being called colored. She must have been about 80 then. I reckon she could choose how she wanted to be referred to.

I have one little drop and like to use the term octoroon, but I think that it's not preferred. It needs to be reclaimed.

[PM_Mama00]

Originally Posted by AGDee

I have a co-worker who prefers to be referred to as a "woman of color" than as an African American.

I always wonder about those African Americans who have no family ties to Africa? I mean I guess back down the line it's possible, but I seriously wonder and I'm not being stupid. I've heard of black people who didn't like being referred to as African American because they weren't from Africa. Are black people from Canada referred to as African Canadian? This is an honest question.

Originally Posted by DaemonSeid

I hate cracka @ss crackas named madmax.

How's that?

Please don't use that word. Madmax is a huge dumbass but you using the word "cracka" as a derogatory word towards a white person doesn't make you any better.

[DaemonSeid]

Originally Posted by PM_Mama00

Please don't use that word. Madmax is a huge dumbass but you using the word "cracka" as a derogatory word towards a white person doesn't make you any better.

HAHAHAHA.....wow!!!


You may want to stay out of this one....

remember this:

Originally Posted by PM_Mama00

I do too. Because why is it necessary to wear a shirt, in Arabic that many people cannot understand, that says "We will not be silent". Who is "we" and why won't you "be silent"? What is the silence about? That shit just makes people nervous and I'm sorry, call me racist but if I was at an airport and saw someone, whatever they look like Arab or not, wearing this shirt I'd be nervous.

[I.A.S.K.]

Originally Posted by PM_Mama00

I always wonder about those African Americans who have no family ties to Africa? I mean I guess back down the line it's possible, but I seriously wonder and I'm not being stupid. I've heard of black people who didn't like being referred to as African American because they weren't from Africa. Are black people from Canada referred to as African Canadian? This is an honest question.

Please don't use that word. Madmax is a huge dumbass but you using the word "cracka" as a derogatory word towards a white person doesn't make you any better.

Is this the joke of the day?
Yet, I think you might actually be serious. Are you?

[DaemonSeid]

Originally Posted by I.A.S.K.

Is this the joke of the day?
Yet, I think you might actually be serious. Are you?

well she said she wasn't being stupid.....so....uuuh...

[I.A.S.K.]

Originally Posted by DaemonSeid

well she said she wasn't being stupid.....so....uuuh...

Well, she should have said that she didn't THINK she was being stupid.

[DaemonSeid]

Originally Posted by I.A.S.K.

Well, she should have said that she didn't THINK

Fixed.

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

Aw c'mon. Some of us have figured that one out without having to have it explained to us.

That much is obvious. The whites who haven't are still white.

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by madmax

Does that apply to the blacks that came up with the name NAACP?
Were they blacks or idiots?

You're an idiot.

[SydneyK]

Originally Posted by DrPhil

The whites who haven't are still white.

But the ones who have, aren't?
Sorry, couldn't resist.

[naraht]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

So, he had a "colored" girlfriend? I wonder what he called her!

She was actually OK with being called colored, but her kids were not...

[rhoyaltempest]

Originally Posted by madmax

It isn't insulting. Is the NAACP insulting? Who came up with the name National Association for the Advancement of COLORED People?

Are you Black? If not, then how can you say what is or should be insulting to a person of a different race? And for your information, back then Blacks in the South had come to accept the term "Colored" but today this isn't the case especially up North for most. I am definitely insulted when called or referred to by that term and that is my personal entitlement. As for the NAACP, I'm sure they discussed at some point changing the name since it doesn't reflect the present day but probably decided against it because it has become a historical brand known all over the world.

[rhoyaltempest]

Originally Posted by Shellfish

A friend of mine used to say, back in the '80s, that her grandmother preferred being called colored. She must have been about 80 then. I reckon she could choose how she wanted to be referred to.

I have one little drop and like to use the term octoroon, but I think that it's not preferred. It needs to be reclaimed.

Why would you want to reclaim racist language? Terms like this were created by a racist society that sought to classify mixed slaves by the amount of white they had in them and therefore to access their value as human beings. Mulatto for example is derived from the word "mule" and a mule is the offspring of a female horse and a male donkey. In other words, half and half....as in half black and half white. I think most people don't use such language because they know the history behind it. So let's not reclaim it.

[christiangirl]

Originally Posted by tld221

i feel like, at 83, "colored" is what was used growing up. i mean, "colored" is probably better than other terms he heard coming up.

if someone called me colored... they would get the blankest stare. its up there with calling an Asian "oriental."

Ditto.

Originally Posted by rhoyaltempest

Are you Black? If not, then how can you say what is or should be insulting to a person of a different race?

Bingo.

I just came from a final, so if this doesn't make sense, oh well, my brain is fried.

DISCLAIMER: Why even start the thread? We all know the answer will be "personal preference" after several pages of squabbling even though people probably said it on the first page. That's if it doesn't become a classic GC train wreck first.

Anywho, I think it's determined by region and time period. What names were okay decades ago may not be okay now except for with the people who formed their racial identities decades ago. Someone called me colored and my reaction made her never say it to me again and I bet she hesitates to use it with someone else. I don't mind being called "Black" but that word was used negatively toward my sister growing up (other kids kept comparing her to a crayon or something stupid like that), so she teaches her son that he is not "Black," he is "Brown." You get all kinds and it varies. Some people like "Caramel," but a girl in college said she feels dehumanized when she is reduced to a food comparison. I know a girl who doesn't like being labeled so, when asked what she prefers to be called, she will say "my name" and leave it there. You will never get a straight answer on this one.

[DrPhil]

I don't think it's regional. Regardless of the region, you are more likely to find people who find "colored" to be undesirable than not.