First, very few people call them Indians. You're telling me to learn history, and yet you use a word that was mistakenly attributed to them in the late 15th century. They're either Native Americans, First Nations or indigenous people's. And they came from Asia across the bering strait at the beginning of the last ice age... Before that, we all migrated out of Africa and settled at different locations at different times thousands of years ago. What are you trying to say? No one doubts native Americans/first Nations weren't here as the first people on the land, but you're saying they had their own nation based on modern definitions, that America has no history etc. Well what do you base it on? The modern nation state of "America" was founded almost 230+ years ago. To say otherwise is wrong.
Akon: 'America was never built for Black people'
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First, very few people call them Indians. You're telling me to learn history, and yet you use a word that was mistakenly attributed to them in the late 15th century. They're either Native Americans, First Nations or indigenous people's. And they came from Asia across the bering strait at the beginning of the last ice age... Before that, we all migrated out of Africa and settled at different locations at different times thousands of years ago. What are you trying to say? No one doubts native Americans/first Nations weren't here as the first people on the land, but you're saying they had their own nation based on modern definitions, that America has no history etc. Well what do you base it on? The modern nation state of "America" was founded almost 230+ years ago. To say otherwise is wrong.
Rest
All these years later I still chuckle at what a fucking moron that guy is.
Well, indians aren't extinct, so there's no past tense about it with them. Also, almost all of the founding fathers (and the population of the colonies) were born in America. They weren't immigrants. Aborigines and natives aren't the same thing.
IamSuperman
Banned
Yes. When African people travel to America, then they birth child, child grows up and can also feel truly american. Yes he can be american if he feels like this, but my point is that there is difference beetween true native americans and just americans.
If you look Europe history, then France and Germany people had their own nation centuries and native people but america is just full group of people who came from other countries and live in america.
IamSuperman
Banned
Immigrants came into america, and populated america peoples. Indians were killed. Only few Indians are left and only indians are native americans but noone else.
Rest
All these years later I still chuckle at what a fucking moron that guy is.
Who founds a society, how they found it, and how long that society has existed have no bearing on the validity of a society.
Native refers to where a person is from, not where their ancestors were from. Being part of a group of aborigines doesn't give someone a stronger claim to say they are the rightful inhabitants of a place. Land ownership and national borders are fluid.
there is definitely a wide gap. I've heard the "you lazy American" speech a few times myself.
Omnipunctual Godot
Member
And Irish people.
GTP_Daverytimes
Member
The bolded is such bullshit its not even funny, as a Nigerian the ignorance i encounterd from African-American was on such a different level that at one point i detested them (thank god i caught myself and stopped). It almost always seemed like Whites actually knew more about Africa than the supposed "African-Americans", shit was infuriating. When i came to the US i came expectin to connect more with African-Americans but what i learnt was that African-Americans--despite there skin color--were faaaaaaaaaaaaaarrr removed from the continent, in hindsight it should have been obvious. Now Jamaicans and Haitians are a different story, i connected more with Jamaicans (being Nigerian) but Haitians also showed great admiration towards the continent. I personally know a few Hatians and Jamaicans who absolutely love Nigerian music (The biggest music industry in Africa), have yet to see an African American that even knows that Nigerian has a music Industry.
titiklabingapat
Member
Other states explicitly even banned non-whites from living in them even though they were against slavery back in the day. Look up the history of Oregon's founding for instance.
BearFlexington
Member
Still waiting on an apology from Akon
for unleashing Lady Gaga on the world.
I can relate (Although not neccessarily the detest part). Even though I was raised here, there has always been this disconnect. African-Americans would ask if I was Jamaican (And some believed Jamaica was part of Africa). The said I wasn't a real "African-American" , which I found weird as a child, considering I am literally Nigerian-American. Then there was the obvious "Do you live in a hut/hunt lions/beat drums/African booty scratcher/live in abject poverty"? And when I would attempt to correct them, they would just continue on in their ignorance with a sense of smugness that at least they weren't "African". Never have I encountered a white person who called me "the whitest black guy I know", yet because of my dialect and good grades, I was constantly called that. Neither did I meet one who didn't at least know that not all Africans are literal mudwellers (Although the abject poverty part is still a problem). I'm going to make a thread about African-American and African relations one day.
CrocMother
Banned
That people migrated across the Bering Ice Bridge is still just a theory.
elrechazado
Banned
Supported by tons of evidence. But sure, just a theory, like evolution!
The native americans spontaneously appeared in 1492.
I kinda agree with some of what Akon says, I wasn't brought up rich but I had it a billion times better than a lot of people in Nigeria. Growing up it was something that I was reminded off often. I do think about stuff like what have I done to improve the living situation of Nigerians, I have met British Carribean girls who have done voluntary work in Africa and there is me, Nigerian born and brought up in London but I haven't done National service, in some ways I kinda regret not doing so.
kame-sennin
Member
Yeah, how on Earth would that be beneficial to Africans? A group of people with more money, obvious ethnic differences, and American sensibilities show up and populate the area. What could go wrong?
efyu_lemonardo
May I have a cookie?
The Silver
Member
I don't what going to Africa would do for me, I have no idea what part of Africa my ancestors came from. Africa is a massive very diverse continent, does he expect me to pick some random place and declare it my ancestral homeland?
Akon there's nothing more American than making a song with a bunch of white dudes from SNL.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQlIhraqL7o
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQlIhraqL7o
What certain ignorance are you speaking of? If you are hanging in the hood then of course you experienced ignorance, but that is in no way representative of African Americans as a whole. Even people who don't fit a narrow view in that sense are subject to ignorant thought or actions. Brothers would even give me a hard time for having a mother that looked indio and spoke with a pronounced Puerto Rican accent...its just part of the game. The African American intelligentsia circle has shown nothing but admiration and love for Africa though, and history is testament to this. Hell, you had people living and teaching in Ghana mid last century.
Could it be you connected more with the children of immigrants and immigrants because you too are an immigrant/child of an immigrant?
CassidyIzABeast
Member
Maybe it wasnt built for us but a good chunk of it was built by us.
n00bsauce87
Member
FTFY, He was just collecting his cut off of what Lady Gaga did. It's no better than saying to a lottery winner that America did that for you. Being lucky is more like it.
DragonSworne
Banned
Which parts?
Because a lot of modern day America was built by cheap immigrant labor after slavery.
hobblygobbly
Member
Yeah and that Lonely song he made.
Similar things are done in the U.S. at Plantations that were converted to museums or tourist destinations.
Just picking a place in the most vast continent on the earth seems a bit wrong to me. The UK is different from Ukraine is different from Italy - nobody would claim that those places are pretty much the same. Yes, countries are artificial,but we interact with them every day, so I'm not sure how that's relevant.
I'm not just gonna say, "hey, I feel Nigerian, I'll adopt that as my culture". Just rings false to me.
Akon also ignores/dismisses just how expensive it is to travel abroad, particularly for one of the most economically disadvantaged (if not he most) in the U.S. I'm lucky to have a good job and I still haven't left North America yet due to costs.
GotEmRunnin
Member
As someone from a family who legitimately tried to trace our roots...coming from South Carolina we found out that we simply don't have enough information to know what African country we came from. My old man and I are thinking about getting DNA test but how many of us are actually wiling to do that.
Side note: I hate those ancestry.com commercials because I know they don't apply to me.
Side note: I hate those ancestry.com commercials because I know they don't apply to me.
Can we stop saying this ? "White" people aren't the 1% or founding fathers. If they believe they are, it's because they're delusional republicans. They're just playing a part in a system rigged for the very top and little else. Lumping the vast majority of poor whites with the 1% is stupid and just reek of racism.
Where do you think the money came from for that cheap labour? Whole industrys were built off of slavery, many of which remain today. Many infact still use slavery to maintain their profits. CNN write a nice piece on modern slavery around the world, you should google it.
MrPressStart
Member
It amazes me that people make it in the world largely due to hard work and determination... only to say stupid shit like this. Money can make you stupid. Akon needs to understand
a) he is a fucking singer/ rapper (whatever that shit he does is called)
b) it is not wise to bite the hand that feeds you
Dude is the next Chris Tucker.... talented as hell, gets money and forgets where he comes from.... cant pay taxes and bankrupt
a) he is a fucking singer/ rapper (whatever that shit he does is called)
b) it is not wise to bite the hand that feeds you
Dude is the next Chris Tucker.... talented as hell, gets money and forgets where he comes from.... cant pay taxes and bankrupt
I agree to a certain extent, but if you had no other choice or way of knowing, it's better than nothing. And if say I went to Italy or Scotland, both of those places are connected by Rome. However, I bet you could do some decent DNA research and figure out at least one or two specific regions.
D
Deleted member 231381
Unconfirmed Member
It's more difficult than you think. There were a fair few mass migrations in West Africa between the start and end of the slave trade and the lack of literary evidence makes it difficult to establish anything concrete on top of the very vague guesses we can make based on genetics. Your DNA might trace you to a very rough genetic group, but that in and of itself doesn't necessarily help you with a location.
Also, Scotland is not connected to Italy by Rome. Caledonia was never integrated into the Roman Empire.
foxuzamaki
Doesn't read OPs, especially not his own
I know this poster is banned but I want to point out that there is some evidence that native americans most likely came from asia to america, they even share vaguely some culture, like depictions of native american dragons being very similer to the dragons depicted in asian culture.(Very long snake like bodies, short or no limbs, etc)
Ultra Magnus
Member
Literally
Ultra Magnus
Member
I do not understand how you came to that conclusion because in my HBCU Africa is looked at with admiration and going to the motherland is encouraged almost in a sense of a Muslim going to Mecca ;furthermore, where I grew up we were taught to love and respect Africa. Just because you may not here us shouting it from the mountain tops about going to Africa does not mean we don't long for it
RustyNails
Member
I can't completely disagree with what Akon is saying. The Constitution did have this bullshit right here
He is right about the documents. America was not intended to be a racially egalitarian society.
Ultra Magnus
Member
When I get my 40 acres and a mule I'm taking that ish back to Africa
metalslimer
Member
I don't see how anyone can disagree that America was fundamentally not built for black people to equally exist. Some of the other stuff he is going on about is ehhhh
just speaking from experience. no biggie
Ultra Magnus
Member
I wasnt coming at you just really not understanding. Its cool
Mrs. Manky
Banned
The kicked/killed a lot of Americo-Liberian folks 30 or so years ago in a particularly nasty revolution.
family_guy
Member
Shouldn't even be calling black people African Americans anyway. If they came from Africa and got US citizenship then sure, but if you were born a U.S. citizen then drop the label. Some might consider it a derogatory term.
Hexa
Member
I don't get his comments about 'literature'. He didn't really elaborate on how they make it a system not for black people and even mentions that they haven't changed, which I don't quite understand. If you look at the constitution, other than 3/5, there isn't anything racist in them. Plus, with the amendments they have changed to further protect people based on race. What changes to them would make it more a system for black people?
I'd assume he's talking about the constitution as pretty much all other laws and documents have changed quite a bit since America's founding.
I'd assume he's talking about the constitution as pretty much all other laws and documents have changed quite a bit since America's founding.
And how well do you think the Liberian experiment went when: 1. Most slaves/slave ancestors were not from that region. 2. They stole land from native groups living there. 3. They made little attempt to assimilate to the culture there. And 4. per wikipedia:
As one poster pointed, a revolution did not occur for no reason. The colonization efforts of African-Americans in the 1800s was and is a terrible idea.
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