What defines a "Woman of Color" in Today's World?

by RubaDub 28 Replies latest jw friends

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  RubaDub

  We hear daily "a woman or color". One person here mentioned that Nikki Haley (parents are from India) is a woman of color.

  What defines "woman of color?" Is there some scan gun that they put point at your head and defines the pigmentation?

  I am mostly Northern European and my Columbian wife is as "white" or more so than I am. As she always complains about surveys or other things here in the US, they have Caucasian as one check box and Hispanic as another. What if you are both, white and speak Spanish. As she correctly argues, Hispanic is simply the language you speak.

  I used to work with a guy who always called jokingly himself an African-American. He was born in Africa, South Africa, probably after some generations of the British rule. His skin was as white as a KKK hat. So was he a "man of color"?

  In today's world, color is a very difficult thing to determine.
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  Pete Zahut

  In the U.S. a person of color is a way to describe anyone who is not considered white or is of European parentage. But this doesn't always make sense such as in the case of Barak Obama who is considered the first "black" president even though he is caucasian on his mother's side and was raised by that side of the family.

  I'm guessing that one day, that reference will be considered "offensive" because it's like making the Caucasian a stand alone race and then everyone else, no matter what their parentage, is "of color" and it also tries to squeeze people into a box that doesn't describe them at all. I believe the reason it exists was for the purpose of collecting data and understanding certain trends or what was taking place in each segment of the population whether it be with males or females, with racial, economic or religious demographics etc.

  I know people who's parentage is European, Asian and Black. You can't even tell what race they are and I imagine in about a hundred years, the matter of race will be a non issue. Right now we are experiencing the growing pains of a world that has become smaller due to jet travel and human migration. Like children we are learning how to share and get along with new people and new ideas. We'll hopefully do a lot better once we grow up a bit. Till then we're gonna' have to be patient with one another.
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  RubaDub

  @Pete ...

  Excellent points. The world is more, well, as the movie title was, 50 Shades of Grey.
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  Anna Marina

  It's the concept of alienation.

  I am a ... [fill in whatever you want so long as you can spin it] = alienated.

  
  
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  minimus

  Anybody not white
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  RubaDub

  Anybody not white

  @min ...

  But what today is "white"? My Columbian wife is "whiter" than I am. She has that Spaniard/Andulusian flamingo dancer white complexian. She needs like SPF 1000 to go to the beach or on the boat. Very white complexion. But of course, she is Hispanic.

  I don't know, is she considered "white" or a woman of color?
  
  
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  stan livedeath

  my wife is a woman of colour--filipina. photo taken yesterday:

  
  
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  RubaDub

  @stan ...

  Very beautiful.
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  stan livedeath

  @Rub...she really is a beautiful lady--inside. everyone loves her. a gentle--kind--caring person.

  in every way the exact opposite of me.
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  minimus

  If she looks white she’s white unless she is Elizabeth Warren.