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Trup1aya

Literally a train safety expert
Member
Oct 25, 2017
21,356
I myself don't like the term blacks. Just say African American.

African American's at Xbox sounds much better.

Ugh. You do know how and why you got here though right?

"African-American" doesn't work for all black people though...

What if the guy is from Brazil, or the Caribbean, or France, or UK. Etc...

Black people live all over. The term African-American requires too many assumptions, it's way overused.
 

Nuri

Member
Jan 4, 2018
256
Hahaha, wow.

What is this?

Need I remind you that there's been about 600 years of absolutely vile cultural destruction of whatever ties to whichever African countries that black individuals may originally be from. That's just kind of what happens when you throw a bunch of kidnapped people with completely different languages and customs together and force them all to abandon those ties or else face death in the pursuit of enslavement and white supremacy.

You eventually get a culture of displacement and loneliness.

A lot of us do not feel African. We're black.
I never get this... Why would you call people who have no connection to Africa in the last 200+ years of ancestry, African? Why is this only with black people? Why is it normal to call non black people with family that came to America less than 100 years ago just American? Black has always seemed like it made more sense than anything else. When I hear African-American I think of the many African's that immigrated to the US not black people even though it is used that way to talk about all darker people even if they are from France,England, Dominican republic etc.
 

Soprano

Banned
Oct 28, 2017
990
everyone's ancestors come from Africa my guy.

Have you ever wondered why European decent people never have this issue or confusion on what to call themselves or where they come from? I'll just leave it that.
Seriously lol, I'm ADOS if we're getting technical but this isn't about all that...

Ahhh ADOS. Boy do i have words for that group. It's like you guys self defeat yourself without even trying.

As if we needed to be divided more that we already are.
Hahaha, wow.

What is this?

Need I remind you that there's been about 600 years of absolutely vile cultural destruction of whatever ties to whichever African countries that black individuals may originally be from. That's just kind of what happens when you throw a bunch of kidnapped people with completely different languages and customs together and force them all to abandon those ties or else face death in the pursuit of enslavement and white supremacy.

You eventually get a culture of displacement and loneliness.

A lot of us do not feel African. We're black.

So you do know you come from Africa and that it's because of the slave trade why we're all over the place.

Saying you don't feel African and that you're black makes zero sense. Sorry. Doesn't matter what you feel, that's what are. Why even separate the two.
 

Budi

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,883
Finland
I'll check it out as a topic that I'm interested in. I typically try to avoid Twitter as no good ever comes of me browsing it.
Well it's mostly just reaction gifs and pics, so not that insightful really. I just initially thought this discussion was going on mainly in Era, but seems like plenty of people are having issues with it.

Edit: There seems to be some console war shit going on too.
 
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Oct 26, 2018
2,222
I've never called myself an Afro American in my entire life.
That our blacks reads kinda weird but people should know no malice is behind it. I have no issue with it sataya talks about all the different diversity groups Microsoft has in the company I would rather be called black than African i don't know anything about Africa and all do respect don't care to I'm American.
Glad I'm not the only black person that thinks this isn't as bad as people are making it out to be. I've never heard anyone say afro American, it usually just black. Usually saying African American sounds awkard and forced when black is just easier.
I'd bump some Brand Nubian HELLA loud in the background with my RBG Xbox controller FOH
Nah you gotta do it right... Bump that big daddy Kane and De LA soul
 

Nepenthe

When the music hits, you feel no pain.
Administrator
Oct 25, 2017
20,694
Sorry. Doesn't matter what you feel, that's what are.
tenor.gif

Haha, who are you talking to like I'm your daughter?
 

Ascenion

Prophet of Truth - One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,098
Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Have you ever wondered why European decent people never have this issue or confusion on what to call themselves or where they come from? I'll just leave it that.

So you do know you come from Africa and that it's because of the slave trade why we're all over the place.

Saying you don't feel African and that you're black makes zero sense. Sorry. Doesn't matter what you feel, that's what are. Why even separate the two.

Europeans? they don't have that issue because they weren't fucking stolen from their goddamn homes and enslaved in a foreign land. It's easy to track your ancestry when you willing leave a country and have relatives there than know where the fuck you went.

I'm black because that's all I can be. The rest was stolen from me.
 

Giever

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,756
Unfortunate phrasing going by the reaction in this thread. I totally get why they wouldn't think to do it, but probably would've been better if it was something like:
This week at #GDC2019 our community, Blacks at Xbox, was awarded the 2019 Jerry Lawson Grants for Career Development.
Other than the phrasing I feel like it makes sense to go with the name if that's what the black people of the group wanted to go with. If it's actually really offensive to other black people then I guess a discussion should be had about it, but it should probably be with the group itself, though I don't really get how that would be arranged.
 

Kirbivore

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,925
Have you ever wondered why European decent people never have this issue or confusion on what to call themselves or where they come from? I'll just leave it that.


Ahhh ADOS. Boy do i have words for that group. It's like you guys self defeat yourself without even trying.

As if we needed to be divided more that we already are.


So you do know you come from Africa and that it's because of the slave trade why we're all over the place.

Saying you don't feel African and that you're black makes zero sense. Sorry. Doesn't matter what you feel, that's what are. Why even separate the two.

I mean I guess it wouldn't make sense if you never had the European beaten out of you.
 

Bjones

Member
Oct 30, 2017
5,622
User Warned: Inappropriate joke.
They should have called themselves "crushed" blacks at Xbox.
 

Raider34

Banned
May 8, 2018
1,277
United States
Have you ever wondered why European decent people never have this issue or confusion on what to call themselves or where they come from? I'll just leave it that.


Ahhh ADOS. Boy do i have words for that group. It's like you guys self defeat yourself without even trying.

As if we needed to be divided more that we already are.


So you do know you come from Africa and that it's because of the slave trade why we're all over the place.

Saying you don't feel African and that you're black makes zero sense. Sorry. Doesn't matter what you feel, that's what are. Why even separate the two.
No we are Americans who are black you may be African American but we aren't I don't know anything about Africa or relate to people from Africa I just know a lot of them don't like Africa to much either since they do anything in their power to get over here to America.
 

NLCPRESIDENT

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
5,969
Midwest
I never get this... Why would you call people who have no connection to Africa in the last 200+ years of ancestry, African? Why is this only with black people? Why is it normal to call non black people with family that came to America less than 100 years ago just American? Black has always seemed like it made more sense than anything else.
Because those people wanted to come here willingly, to seek opportunities. Africans were enslaved and made to come here as slaves... I dont know where you're from (you cant be American) but the ramifications are still present to this day. And even throughout those last 2-400 years, America never let's you forget it (not that I as a black man ever want too).
 

KCsoLucky

Member
Oct 29, 2017
1,585
No we are Americans who are black you may be African American but we aren't I don't know anything about Africa or relate to people from Africa I just know a lot of them don't like Africa to much either since they do anything in their power to get over here to America.

Most of my African friends growing up were taught by their families to not let themselves be called Black. People really want to associate with a continent(how ridiculous is that, a whole fucking continent) of people that want to not be categorized with us.
 

Nuri

Member
Jan 4, 2018
256
Europeans? they don't have that issue because they weren't fucking stolen from their goddamn homes and enslaved in a foreign land. It's easy to track your ancestry when you willing leave a country and have relatives there than know where the fuck you went.

I'm black because that's all I can be. The rest was stolen from me.
This
 

faceless

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
4,198
So you do know you come from Africa and that it's because of the slave trade why we're all over the place.

Saying you don't feel African and that you're black makes zero sense. Sorry. Doesn't matter what you feel, that's what are. Why even separate the two.
i'm of Caribbean descent and i share that identity with millions of others that also are of Caribbean descent. the majority of whom are Black, but many, many, many are not.
 

Deleted member 835

User requested account deletion
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
15,660
Glad I'm not the only black person that thinks this isn't as bad as people are making it out to be. I've never heard anyone say afro American, it usually just black. Usually saying African American sounds awkard and forced when black is just easier.

Nah you gotta do it right... Bump that big daddy Kane and De LA soul
Blacks is the problem for me not black. If they said black people, black gamer, etc etc am all good
 

Ryan.

Prophet of Truth
The Fallen
Oct 27, 2017
12,882
Not sure why anyone at Xbox would think it's important to create such a community. They may think it's cool but it doesn't matter what your skin color is. We're all human beings, some more talented than others.

Nah, allow people to embrace who they are in the work place (and everywhere else). That can ultimately make a much better work environment for everyone.
 
Oct 27, 2017
1,690
I'm assuming they mean the millions of blacks that aren't either African or American. There's dozens of countries with blacks outside of those two.
we all came from Africa lol. And why don't we ever get this myopic in discussions about Irish-Americans or Italian-Americans?


Because a Haitian man living in America is not an African-American. Why is that hard to understand?

Yet he still has the presence of mind to understand that 'AA' is what black people in America fought to be called.
 

Kewlmyc

Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
26,702
Find this more funny than anything.

At the end of the day, there isn't a problem. The name was chosen by the founders of said community, so they only have themselves to blame.
 

Soprano

Banned
Oct 28, 2017
990
What the heck am i reading. You guys are lost.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZX0fwkf6Ayg

Europeans? they don't have that issue because they weren't fucking stolen from their goddamn homes and enslaved in a foreign land. It's easy to track your ancestry when you willing leave a country and have relatives there than know where the fuck you went.

I'm black because that's all I can be. The rest was stolen from me.
Yes exactly.

History stolen and dropped off everywhere but we are still African.

No we are Americans who are black you may be African American but we aren't I don't know anything about Africa or relate to people from Africa I just know a lot of them don't like Africa to much either since they do anything in their power to get over here to America.
No. We are Africans in America. You don't have to be connected to Africa culturally. It's in your genes.

I'm from a majority black country that is not in Africa.
What?

What about all their ancestry?

Pretty simple to understand

No it really isn't.
 

Deleted member 835

User requested account deletion
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
15,660

Nepenthe

When the music hits, you feel no pain.
Administrator
Oct 25, 2017
20,694
No. We are Africans in America. You don't have to be connected to Africa culturally. It's in your genes.
My genes also include blackfoot Native on my mom's side and- considering my racial features- probably some white in there too.

I was also born in Texas. I'm an American.

EDIT: Like... do you literally think black people can ONLY be from Africa? At this point I'm less angry and more fascinated.
 

Yushi

Member
Nov 27, 2017
703
This is so complex, like no matter what you do, someone is going to be mad.

Like i fucking feel bad for the people of that community.
They just wanted to create a community for themselves within the office, they wanted to share it with people outside of xbox and turn in into something positive and people are shitting on them.

Sure maybe there could of been an extra "," or two, but still.
 

Powdered Egg

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
17,070
I prefer "Black people" in general but if we came up with the name ourselves then it's fine. I'd have thrown the idea of "The Blacks" as tongue in cheek.
 

Dark Cloud

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
61,087
This has become a big thing on Twitter now because people don't know the origins and are calling MS out.
 

Nuri

Member
Jan 4, 2018
256
What the heck am i reading. You guys are lost.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZX0fwkf6Ayg


Yes exactly.

History stolen and dropped off everywhere but we are still African.
I look just like every other black guy but because of my ancestry/history, my DNA says I am 25% African Decent, 40% northern European and about 35% Native American. To be black is not to just to be from Africa because through all of the years of oppression and rape many people who consider themselves black are less African than some people who consider themselves white.
 
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TooLive

Member
Jan 28, 2019
194
Well I can only speak for myself and here it goes. I don't give a damn about what Africans think about blacks in America. It's how I chose to self identify, African American. I don't claim a tribe, town, or even a country in Africa. But I do know that majority of my ancestry originated in Africa and was brought to America as slaves. African American (IMO) is a term for decedents of US slaves from Africa. Blacks from specific country in Africa normally are identified by that country such Nigerian-American, Liberian-American, etc.,

I'm not just black, I'm not just American, I am African-American. I am the decedent of a people who survived unimaginable horrors of the middle passage, slavery, jim crow, and various forms of disenfranchisement. That means something to me.. That's why I claim the name.


Aside from my African Slaves in America heritage, I have West Indian/African (Caribbean) heritage (my great grandmother) and white (European American) heritage (great grandfather).
 
Nov 4, 2017
7,372
Should have gone with "Xblax"

As a white dude, I wouldn't be comfortable saying "Blacks as Xbox". I feel like it's not ok for me to use that word, nor my place to say if it's OK or not. As a rule of thumb, I'd use the word as an adjective but not a noun. E.g. "Dave Chappelle is my favourite black comedian" seems ok, but "Dave Chappelle is a black" sounds wrong and offensive to me. Does that sound about right?
 
Jan 9, 2018
858
Black people working on Xbox: We should do a group to foster our community, let's call it "Blacks at Xbox"

Resetera: woo that's racist


I understand that as European, I don't have the same background regarding this than American fellows here, but come on. Stop making racist everything even when it is not, and try to just treat everyone well and supportive.

Is clear that a lot of black people identify as "black", stop implying that even the word black is racist, is not. In all my encounters with black people here, every time the word black came up always, was fine. I think to make a ruckus because of this kind of things only cause keep making a distinction between people because of their skin color.
 

Deleted member 835

User requested account deletion
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
15,660
Black people working on Xbox: We should do a group to foster our community, let's call it "Blacks at Xbox"

Resetera: woo that's racist


I understand that as European, I don't have the same background regarding this than American fellows here, but come on. Stop making racist everything even when it is not, and try to just treat everyone well and supportive.

Is clear that a lot of black people identify as "black", stop implying that even the word black is racist, is not. In all my encounters with black people here, every time the word black came up always, was fine. I think to make a ruckus because of this kind of things only cause keep making a distinction between people because of their skin color.
Again it isn't the word black, it blacks. This isn't just a US thing.
 

KCsoLucky

Member
Oct 29, 2017
1,585
It's always the "one" who's enlightening the many who are "lost". Drop this fucking 5%er mentality and learn to accept that we're not your fucking livestock to shepherd Soprano.
 

Budi

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,883
Finland
Should have gone with "Xblax"

As a white dude, I wouldn't be comfortable saying "Blacks as Xbox". I feel like it's not ok for me to use that word, nor my place to say if it's OK or not. As a rule of thumb, I'd use the word as an adjective but not a noun. E.g. "Dave Chappelle is my favourite black comedian" seems ok, but "Dave Chappelle is a black" sounds wrong and offensive to me. Does that sound about right?
Dave Chapelle is a black comedian, shouldn't feel wrong or offensive.
This has become a big thing on Twitter now because people don't know the origins and are calling MS out.
Yeah I just find it weird that why now and why with Blacks at Xbox. Thousands of people have visited Blacks in Gaming event at GDC among the years, I assume many of these people were black (atleast as speakers). Yet the name for the event seemingly wasn't considered very offensive since it never has been changed.
 
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