[ilbegone]

Originally Posted by LAPhil

A term like "Oriental" refers to racial characteristics rather than nationalities, and is therefore a valid term if one is referring to the racial characteristics of people from the Far East. This may be why it's no longer considered an acceptable term, even among so-called "Asians" who come from the Far East. The concept of race itself has become virtually a taboo subject.

The concept of race is not a taboo subject at all. For example, what is considered unbridled racism in one person is considered "cultural pride" in another. That's what all those "ethnic studies" classes are all about - minority racism masquerading as "diversity".

Thus, the diverse (and sometimes mutually exclusive) peoples from Asia somehow shed their diverse characteristics in the American imagination and become the same exact person when they come to America, and their American children and grandchildren are supposed to be that person as well.

As well, Mexicans; Guatemalans; Bolivians; Argentinans, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, and their American descendants are "Hispanic" or "Latino" and are somehow all supposed to wear Mariachi outfits and that all those "authentic" shit on a plate eateries somehow represents their "Hispanic" cuisine - notions born out of white American ignorance or clueless white American interpretation of brown American separatist agenda.

Take someone whose ancestors came from Ireland in the 1840's. He might be of a mind to go to an "Irish" festival once a year, put on a costume which would be silly in daily wear, and pretend he is Irish for a day. If he were to go to Ireland and proclaim himself to be Irish, the American would be laughed at.

But, there are some Americans with Mexican ancestors who pretend to be "Mexican" every day of their life, and it flies in America - reinforced by white Americans.

I knew a man whose parents are Irish, yet he himself grew up in London. He is not accepted by Irish to be be Irish, nor by Britons to be English.

There are Millions of Americans with Mexican ancestors who are not accepted by Mexico as being Mexican, nor by much of America as being American. Thus the concept of "Aztlan", with its fabricated "culture" of far left American ideology and selectively incorporated Latin American elements - just as silly as a white American man who wears a kilt and carries around bagpipes he doesn't know how to play everywhere he goes on a daily basis, but somehow it flies in America. It runs right through from the local university "to film at eleven".