From H. LeRoy Whiteley, Jr.:
Gentlemen
Partly because of Baltimore’s unrest, we hear that legislation will be introduced to make racial profiling a felony offense. We hope the definition of racial profiling will be appropriately defined to change the perception or view of races different from our own. In our humble opinion, you, our media, whether written or oral via radio and television, use language we feel is a major contributor to the racial problems that plague our country today and for decades past. We live largely in a black or white society. Yet you insist on segregating us by your verbiage. Bear in mind, white is defined as the presence of ALL color. Black is the polar opposite. It is the absence of ALL color. Thus, when you define blacks as “persons of color” you are completely wrong. Similarly, the medial insists on calling blacks as African-Americans. White people are seldom ever identified as White or Caucasian. We also seldom, if ever, hear of people of other races being defined as Chinese-American, German-American, Italian-American, Japanese-American, Polish American, even Pakistani, Turkish, Vietnamese, or other such identifiers. So, why not change your reporting? Stop putting race-dividing racial descriptions in your reporting and advertisements.
If photos are included in the piece you are presenting, it will be obvious what the person’s color of skin is, if that really matters. If that depicted person’s skin color does not sufficiently define their possible ethnicity, perhaps their garb or speech will give us a clue, again if that matters. You are turning us against each other with your rhetoric.
If you believe in DNA testing and analysis, you can find large amounts of data that links most of the world’s population to origins in Africa. We are white and through our own family genealogy, we can trace our family through 18 generations to England. Further genealogical searching and DNA testing, places our previous generations prior to the 18 from England, as originating in Africa. Does that make us African-American? We do not think so. No more than the many blacks that are so labeled. Like us, they and many of their ancestors have never had a close tie to Africa. Nevertheless, that’s the way you chose to label the blacks, regardless of when or where they originated from.
It is time to change this divisive practice that so severely divides this nation. We hope you will agree and do so.
Cordially,
H. LeRoy Whiteley, Jr.
Let me be the first to say, what an idiotic letter this is. Seriously, I am speechless……..
Your message is very confusing and perplexing?
In 1892 the Baltimore Afro-American newspaper was founded by members of your race.
In 1909 the NAACP was founded. At that time, and for many years, these folks called themselves Colored People, i.e., National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
Negro superseded colored as the most polite word for African Americans at a time when black was considered more offensive. This word was accepted as normal, including by people classified as Negroes, until the later Civil Rights movement in the late 1960s. One well-known example is the identification by Martin Luther King, Jr. of his own race as “Negro” in his famous speech of 1963, ” I Have Dream.”
During the American Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, some black American leaders in the United States, notably Malcolm X, objected to the word Negro because they associated it with the long history of slavery, segregation, and discrimination that treated African Americans as second class citizens, or worse. Malcolm X preferred Black to Negro, but also started using the term Afro-American after leaving the Nation of Islam.
In 1995, the Nation of Islam sponsored the Million Man March in Washington, D.C., to promote African-American unity and family values.
The United States Census Bureau announced that Negro would be included on the 2010 United States Census, alongside Black and African-American, because some older black Americans still self-identify with the term.
The term Negro is still used in some historical contexts, such as in the name of the United Negro College Fund and the Negro league in sports.
Than again, there is the Miss Black America Pageant, the Black Entertainment Network, (BET), American Black Music Awards, and Black History Month.
Seriously, how would you like the world to identify members of this particular race?
You forgot about how the NAACP themselves asked for the term African Americans to be used back in the 80’s. Furthermore, he goes on to say how BLACK means the absence of color, yet I see the opposite in his reference. What other race in the US is as colorful as the Negroes? From their dress to their different shades of skin, everything about them is “colorful”. I think this letter is totally pointless……….
Wally and SoulCrusher,, Thanks both of you for your informative insight. As a white male, gotta admit, it sometimes get confusing when talking about race with other people. One can only listen to others and pray we use the right word or words when we refer to people of color. Me myself,,call me what you want,,just do call me late for dinner….. :-).
*Don’t forget those of “color” (white is a color as well, that is what I was taught in Elementary School anyway), can call each other derogatory “racist” names among themselves to each other and as soon an the “color” changes that is not your own it is oh my goodness, wrong, your a racist, you are my enemy…sticks and stones may break my bones but words may never hurt me. Grow up, be a person in this country who is larger than an ignorant person trying to get under your skin …quit crying…quit being part of the problem.