This is a pivotal time in America. Presidental candidates are defending thier faith, which seems like an oxymoron (separation of church and state). Race is one of the hottest topics in politics. Don Imus, still is not forgotten. Why? Why is race such a big issue in AMERICA? Some would say that its because of America's dirty little secret, of 300+ years of slavery, but I dont think so. The International slave trade spanned Central and South America, people of African origins live all around the world. What is so different about how "black" people are viewed in North America. Well, to answer my own question, I feel that first we need to address our name. A name means alot in a spoken word society. The name I am alluding to is the term "African American". Why, might you ask. When I send in applications for jobs, scholarships, etc, I tend to notice that the box labeled "race" is pretty out of date. First because there are seemingly dozens of racial make-ups, or backgrounds. In America, you have Spanish, Turkish, Asian, Greek, Italian, English, etc. None of these .....-American "labels" are mentioned in the race box. It is simply: White/Caucasian Hispanic/non-white Afrcan American/black Native American/American Indian/Alaskan Eskimo Why? I am not from Africa, nor is anyone I know of. Why cant black people in America be Americans? I am asking this because I was having a conversation with a British Guy named Russel. Russel works on Capitol Hill with my girlfriend. I asked him, "What do you call "black" people in England?". He laughed, then said,"English". I asked him again, "So, they arent called African English, or African Britians?". He again said,"No, we call them what we would call anyone else from England, English, or British." I feel that this is a major difference between America and its European cousins, when talking of race relations. ONLY in America are "black" people singled out as different. This causes young children and those who have not yet developed a view of race to see US differently. When a child goes to pre-school, he/she plays with who ever will play with him/her. He does not pick and choose who he plays with based on skin, especially because of tanned skin. This is what we need to do for our future generations. We must no longer label groups of people. Even if they choose to label themselves. Labeling, or stereotyping, people leads to other problems in our society. How could the government outlaw marriage for a "labeled" group that never existed. For those who are also anti-Affirmative action, this will remedy the situation. There can be no preferential treatment for numbers. Either you are qualified based on your application/resume, or you arent. We need to take a chapter out of the Central American book. Central America was the first place traders brought slaves hundreds of years ago. For a slave to go to America meant that he was fully "broken in". To explain further, it meant that the slave had lost his fight for freedom, and thus was less of an insurance risk, since back then we were property. Having said this, once slavery ended in Central America, freedom was slowly given back to the "African" people. With freedom came their name. It had nothing to do with Africa. If you were in Panama, you were Panamanian, If you were in Mexico, then you were Mexican, and so on and so forth. After hundreds of years of this "unity" in name, there are no longer any percieved difference in the people. Their previously polar distinctions, of Spainish(mainland Spain) origins, or French, or African origins are now melded into one unified people. We need to do the same. America must tear down its walls against inter-racial community living, as well as inter-racial relationships. We must focus on what is important. Our families, jobs, and security. These are the unifying American principles that we must stand on. please rate my blog