magician

I found this story very interesting: it's about a high school boy in Omaha who, with the help of friends, put up hundreds of posters promoting him to win the "Distinguished African American Student Award".

He is from South Africa.

He is white.

He and his friends were disciplined for their conduct.

So, I put it to you:

Is he African American?

Should he be eligible to win this award?

Why or why not?

Russian

he's definetly african-american, that's hard to argue. But being white he didn't ahve the same struggles and such, therefore the award should go to black people.

ninegrand

hmmmmm..interesting. I'll have to try to look into this

eSeM

There are mostly two types of white South Africans:

Those of Dutch descent known as Afrikaners are usualy big, rough and thick as pig shit so they make very good rugby players.

The others are of English descent and like every where else on the planet they think of themselves as superior to everyone else.

ruexp67

What about a Jamacan that is black? Does he qualify? He would not be African.

thunderchicken

I had a friend in college from South Africa (White).

I still don't understand why he didn't apply for scholorships.

I'm glad this is finally brought out because this shows how racist people are.

If you want to define people by groups, African-American, that means your from africa, right?

So why distinguish by the color of your skin?

Elements

I think the kid should be able to win the award. The title of the award doesn't say anything about being black. I agree with the guy above me, Jamacians are black, but they wouldn't be called african americans. Also I am willing to bet that this kid might be the only one "nominated" to win the award that is actually from africa.


kevin

magician

[QUOTE]Originally posted by ruexp67
What about a Jamacan that is black?

cykogirl

this is a really interesting topic...

according to the US Census Bureau, the definition of African American is "A person having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa. It includes people who indicate their race as "Black, African Am., or Negro," or provide written entries such as African American, Afro American, Kenyan, Nigerian, or Haitian."

so in that context, he wouldn't be eligible for the award. i guess the government is at fault for even providing such a definition.

magician

So a Black Haitian is eligible, but a Black Jamaican is not?

What about a Haitian whose ancestry is completely indigenous to Haiti? (Were there native Haitians before the influx of Africans?) The definition you provide makes them sound eligible, without any African ancestry.