Black hyphenization

'African-American' Becomes a Term for Debate By RACHEL L. SWARNS

...in the 1960's after changes in federal immigration law led to increased migration from Africa and Latin America, have been accompanied in some places by fears that newcomers might eclipse native-born blacks. And they have touched off delicate musings about ethnic labels, identity and the often unspoken differences among people who share the same skin color...

Sociologists say foreign-born blacks from majority-black countries are less psychologically handicapped by the stigma of race. Many arrive with higher levels of education and professional experience. And sociologists say they often encounter less discrimination...

"We've suffered so much that we're a bit weary and immigration seems like one more hurdle we will have to climb," said [Bobby] Austin [an administrator at the University of the District of Columbia], 59, who traces his ancestors back to slavery. "People are asking: 'Will I have to climb over these immigrants to get to my dream? Will my children have to climb?'

"These are very aggressive people who are coming here," said Dr. Austin, who is calling for a frank dialogue between native-born and foreign-born blacks. "I don't berate immigrants for that; they have given up a lot to get here. But we're going to be in competition with them. We have to be honest about it. That is one of the dividing lines."

Mr. [Barack] Obama says such arguments do not reflect the views of black Americans who have joined forces over the years with Africans and people from the Caribbean to fight colonialism and poverty.

So fighting colonialism takes precedence over dealing with the corrupt thugs that govern former colonies?

...The term African-American has crept steadily into the nation's vocabulary since 1988, when the Rev. Jesse Jackson held a news conference to urge Americans to use it to refer to blacks.

"It puts us in our proper historical context," Mr. Jackson said then, adding in a recent interview that he still favored the term. "Every ethnic group in this country has a reference to some land base, some historical cultural base. African-Americans have hit that level of cultural maturity."

I'm not sure I understand, but I think "ethnic group" is a code word for minority--if it's not, Americans of British ancestry ought to see themselves as Anglo-Americans, and I don't think we do. As a matter of fact, I'm not so sure every third- or fourth-generation Italian- or Irish-American cares much about their ancestry. As a matter of fact, I know a few Chinese-Americans who care less about Chinese culture than I do.