When someone says "native American" do they mean Mexican? or Hawaiian?

That's not bad. In Canada, the descendants of the aboriginal inhabitants are referred to as the "First Nations."

There was a fun story in the news of a young white gentleman who was born in the nation of South African and as a joke used that fact to run for some African American homecoming position at his high school.

Believe it or not the school adminstation did not enjoy the joke and punish him for so doing or to try to.

Posted: January 25, 2004
3:37 pm Eastern


By Joe Kovacs
© 2009 WorldNetDaily.com


The Omaha suspension of a white high-school student originally from South Africa is sending shock waves across America as debate rages over who can claim rights to the term "African-American."


South African native Trevor Richards suspended over African-American campaign

The case centers on Trevor Richards, a junior at Westside High School, who moved from Johannesburg to Nebraska six years ago.

Richards and his classmates, 16-year-old twins Paul and Scott Rambo, were booted from classes last week after distributing posters touting Trevor as a candidate for Westside High's "Distinguished African-American Student" award on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

"The posters were intended to be satire on the term African-American," Scott Rambo told the Omaha World-Herald.

Principal John Crook says the posters were disruptive.

"It was offensive to the individual being honored, to people who work here and to some students," Crook told the paper. "My role is to make sure we have a safe environment, physically and psychologically. We can't allow that kind of thing to be hung up on our walls."

Records from 2002-2003 indicate only 56 of Westside's 1,632 students were black, and some in this year's student body were reportedly upset by Richards' poster.

Ironically, the first two recipients of the student award were white.

"It was not intended at the beginning to be one race only," Clidie Cook, who helps organize the annual event, told the World-Herald.

But Westside officials pushed to change that, feeling the spirit of the honor meant giving it to a black student, and by 2001, the ministerial alliance in charge specified it was for blacks only.

I have had the same question about the term African-American. Lets say 98% of blacks were not born in Africa how can they be African-Americans? They are no more African-Americans then I am Italian-American. Just because your grandparents or great great great great grandparents came from another country doesn't mean you are from that country.

People born in another country and who move here and become Americans can claim this not their children or childrens children. If you were born here then you are an American.

I believe you are correct. Many people like their ethnicity though. Many people stopped trying to be like WASP's, possibly?

Native American refers to anyone who is native to the north american continent before european exploration. Mexicans are native american because their ancestors were here before european conquest. I am mexican but I usually refer to myself as North American Indian since Mexico is on the North American continent and my ancestors were here for thousands of years. Mexicans are mestizos or mixed bloods they are both native and european. They have a right to identify as both. It makes me wonder how people don't do research on indigenous americans, including mexicans, and all natives to north and south america. The inca were not a "different" race they were and still are "Native to the Americas"

Serves 'em right, Captain Cook sailed halfway round the world to civilise them and he ended up in their cookpot, so I'm glad the USA went and took Hawaii off 'em, they asked for trouble and they got it..

Cook's last words were probably "Zimmy! Zimmy! where the hell are you when i need you?"

Well, i've gone completely through this thread, and i can't find any post in which i claimed that the "Inca" (actually, they called their nation Tawantinsuyu, which referred to the districts into which they had divided it) were a different race. As you obviously ignored what i was saying (and my disclaimer, repeated) in order to launch your politically correct screed, i have nothing more to say to you.