African Americans

[drdaveperry]

I just had a stimulating conversation with an elderly American friend of mine. He said, "Come on...... The African Americans are the last group with racial protection left in the world. Do not, I repeat, do not touch the African American race. You can bad mouth any other race in this blankity blank world but not the protected African Americans. They finally have their President now let them have their protection." I just about fell out of my chair. I can not understand why there is so much hatred against the African Americans. Leave everyone alone............. Let them live their lives as long as they don't bother you or your family.

[Ulysses G.]

Why is it always African American? Very few blacks in America are actually African. We don't call anyone else by their origins,

When I was very young we called them colored people, then negros, then black and now African Americans. I wish that they would make up their minds.

What are you, like 150 years old?

55. How time flies.

[zzaa09]

Why is it always African American? Very few blacks in America are actually African. We don't call anyone else by their origins,

When I was very young we called them colored people, then negros, then black and now African Americans. I wish that they would make up their minds.

Ironically, these labels were put on them by the ever-PC white folk and their yearning for the omnipresent [and illusional] American exceptionalism.

[xthAi76s]

Why is it always African American? Very few blacks in America are actually African. We don't call anyone else by their origins,

When I was very young we called them colored people, then negros, then black and now African Americans. I wish that they would make up their minds.

Yes, but unfortunately, it was not the Blacks who gave themselves multiple names. Overwhelmingly, the social construct of race (which has no taxological meaning for humans, as we are all part of the human race) by all academic accounts is a European invention. So, who should make up their minds?

To another poster who wonders why there has been some confusion over racial category, he need look no further than any link/text about race theory to understand ...

Anyway, aside from all the silly posts (which invariably crop up when we talk about Blacks), if you were to meet a Black American (aka African American) here in Thailand who was not a tourist, chances are he/she would be from quite a better socioeconomic level than the majority of your White 'farangs' here in Thailand. I've met several around. Business owners, teachers at prestigious universities, expats in oil, etc. It's a numbers game. You have far fewer Blacks from America coming over here for any reason at all, and you especially don't have many Black American retirees leaving America to retire to Thailand. While there are a great number of quite successful White expats here, the vast majority are, as you would expect, average or even likely below average back in their homelands. What type of Black would leave America for Thailand? Blacks generally don't do that -- even successful, entrepreneurial ones. So, if you encounter a Black American here who is here semi- permanently, chances are he/she is likely to be on the 'up and up'. That's my educated guess, and so far it's my experience. The Black Americans I've met here are very often quite intelligent, ambitious, educated, polite, a decent percentage moneyed, interested in the culture and generally decent-seeming people. Low quality Black Americans would not likely end up in Thailand in perceptible numbers.

It's a wonder the hordes of (low quality) White expats and retirees don't get belittled and joked on non-stop who leave their below average jobs in the West to come and penny pinch in Thailand, marrying hookers or massage parlor girls (oh, or hair stylists) from the lowest level of Thai society (regarded as 'untouchables' here, really), who sit around many days in bars drinking piss flavored, cheap beer with their disgusting guts hanging over their belts, sweating like pigs, being obscene, who have lived here for 5 or 10 or 15 years but can't speak, read or write the dam_n language and who really care to know nothing of the country they've adopted. Well, aint that the stereotype?

It's strange to move all the way to the other side of globe as a bunch of Westerners and to then bring our silly stereotypes (that don't even apply in our new country) with us and get down on each other. The real division, if any, that could reasonably be reinforced is one with respect to socio economic status in the home country. For instance, a Black American former Wall Street trader would likely have more important 'things' in common with a Scandinavian White expat oil executive than the oil guy would have with a early retiree White former construction worker from the UK ... See what I'm saying. If we're going to stereotype, let's at least do a good job of it. The name of the game is Below Average vs. Average vs. Above Average vs. Exceptional.

Sheesh.

I don't know about the Nigerians, however. There are probably plenty of Nigerians (esp from lower stratas of Nigerian society) willing to leave Nigeria for a place like Thailand.

Edited January 23, 2012 by ThailandMan

[cdnvic]

The etymology of the terms are not the subject here. Please stick to the topic. Any more off topic posts will be deleted without comment.

[KeyserSoze01]

...

Edited January 23, 2012 by KeyserSoze01

[MegaRanter]

It seems people post and say things that I feel thru are claiming the higher moral ground to the OP and the blacks in Bangkok. You lose ground when you start throwing dirt.

[johnbits]

fwiw, I was in Thailand 8 months ago, and I and the GF were taking a German tourist to the airport. On the way back at that station where you have to change to the BTS, while waiting on the platform, I noticed 2 blacks about 30 feet way eyeballing me.

I see on the other side is a BIB, so I am thinking this is going to be some sort of scam. Next thing i know, one of them is standing behind me. He chats me up, blah blah, blah, am I new in town? Since I am obviously coming frorm the airport and wearing a backback, what else would

would he assume?

It was how to make money from gems, at first I said I was only here for the women, but he kept it up. Then I told him thanks but no thanks, but said it in Thai. That really got him, OH you speak Thai. (Not really, that is almost all I know.)

This is what is great about thailand, just a stupid scam. If some strange guy started to talk to me later at night in Chicago, I would look for who was coming from the other sides, likely this is going to be a mugging.

[johnbits]

fwiw, I was in Thailand 8 months ago, and I and the GF were taking a German tourist to the airport. On the way back at that station where you have to change to the BTS, while waiting on the platform, I noticed 2 blacks about 30 feet way eyeballing me.

I see on the other side is a BIB, so I am thinking this is going to be some sort of scam. Next thing i know, one of them is standing behind me. He chats me up, blah blah, blah, am I new in town? Since I am obviously coming frorm the airport and wearing a backback, what else would

would he assume?

It was how to make money from gems, at first I said I was only here for the women, but he kept it up. Then I told him thanks but no thanks, but said it in Thai. That really got him, OH you speak Thai. (Not really, that is almost all I know.)

This is what is great about thailand, just a stupid scam. If some strange guy started to talk to me later at night in Chicago, I would look for who was coming from the other sides, likely this is going to be a mugging.

BTW, I did ask him where he was from, I know africa, I think it was nigeria. Don't know what they teach in school there, but they sure raise a lot of scammers. On TTL I used to get a few said they were in nigeria. Christ, it's like a TAT on a so called ordinary thai girl, who would believe she wasn't working as a bargirl? Why bagirls like tats is beyond me, it's like a permanent job stamp.