Sunday, May 10, 2009

African-American vs. Ebonesian

We Black people can't figure out our identity. We think we are most closely aligned with Africans and thus think of ourselves as primarily of African descent. In reality, we are an indigenous people group to this country. We represent the best of all the other people groups whom are all immigrants to this land. All the other people groups traveled here from somewhere else. WE WERE BORN HERE. That makes us natives to this land. We are made up primarily of African, Indo-European, Native American peoples with some Asian thrown in for good measure. Don't forget that Mexican people are made up of European and Aztec and Mayan people. We are a mixture of many people groups. African slaves were brought here and mixed with the White slave owners. Freed or escaped slaves mixed with Native American (Indian) peoples. Some of us have taken that and mixed it with Asian people. Is it any wonder that Tiger Woods referred to himself as a Cablinasian? We are not any of these people exclusively. Certainly we are NOT African-American. That would be someone like our President who is a first generation progeny of an African and an American. We are polyracial, made of many ethnic groups. No, we need a new name that gives us indentity and dignity. We should dispense with calling ourselves African-Americans and call ourselves Ebonesian. Prof. Robert G. Walker, Professor Emeritus, San Francisco State University first coined this term. In his essay "The Ebonesian Village", he says it refers to a person who is polyracial and disassociates themselves from racial labelling. When next you have to identify your race or ethnicity somewhere, cross out African-American, unless that really applies to you, and write in Ebonesian. We are Ebonesian. Beautiful in color, with all of our magnificent shadings, rich in culture from cooking to music to art and beyond, dignified in appearance and standing, wise in the ways of this world and this country, intellectually equal to all and second to none, and spiritually grounded to a firm foundation. WHO ARE WE? WE ARE EBONESIAN!

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