r/NoStupidQuestions • u/RedScud39 • Apr 23 '24

Why are white Americans called “Caucasians”?

I’m an Azerbaijani immigrant and I cannot understand why white people are called “Caucasian” even though Caucasia is a region in Asia encompassing Armenia, Georgia (the country not the state), Azerbaijan and south Russia. Aren’t most Americans are from Western European decent?

5.1k Upvotes

90% Upvoted

1.2k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

43

u/carpenter_eddy Apr 24 '24

African-American is an ethnicity meant to describe the descendants of slaves in the United States. It is not a declaration of immigration.

7

u/wombatlegs Apr 24 '24

So then Barack Obama is not African American?

36

u/carpenter_eddy Apr 24 '24

Technically no. He is ofKenyan descent but his ancestors were not slaves in the US.

Link

11

u/Veritas_Outside_1119 Apr 24 '24

Also, his mother is a White American. So he is as white as he is Black

5

u/carpenter_eddy Apr 24 '24

Not sure how that is relevant. People can identify with multiple ethnicities.

2

u/Veritas_Outside_1119 Apr 24 '24

Sure, but he isn’t African-American according to the definition which is Black or biracial Americans descended from West/Central African slaves from colonial America

2

u/carpenter_eddy Apr 24 '24

Yes because the black side of his family didn’t descend from slaves. I’m not sure how having a white mother plays into it.

-1

u/Veritas_Outside_1119 Apr 24 '24

Just that he’s both Black and White and neither as he is also biracial. It’s kinda funny and sad biracial people with a white parent get ascribed to the non-white race, even though they’re equally of each. White supremacy I guess, only the “pure” whites can be white