Afro-Americans
African-descent US citizens
Afro-Americans is an older term for Americans of African descent, now largely replaced by African Americans or Black Americans.
The term gained currency during the civil rights era of the 1960s and 1970s as a way to acknowledge African heritage while asserting American identity.
Though it appears in historical documents and older publications, contemporary usage strongly favors African American, which emerged in the late 1980s as the preferred designation.
Ownership of people
- emancipationRelease from legal bondage
- ReconstructionPost-1865 national reunification period
- Jim CrowRacial separation laws
- segregationForced separation by group
civil rights · Great Migration · Middle Passage · abolition · freedmen · sharecropping · redlining · desegregation
Traditional Black Southern cuisine
- jazzImprovisational American music genre
- bluesMournful American music genre
- hip-hopRhythmic spoken-word music
- gospelSacred choral tradition
spirituals · Kwanzaa · HBCU · barbershop · church · double dutch · juke joint · call and response
Civil rights advocacy organization
- Black Lives MatterCivil rights movement against racist violence
- protestPublic expression of disapproval
- equalitySame status for all
- justiceFair treatment under law
liberation · empowerment · advocacy · organizing · resistance · uplift · freedom struggle · marches
Scattered population sharing origins
- heritageInherited cultural legacy
- ancestryFamily line of descent
- rootsUnderground nutrient absorbers
- communityCollective of connected people
people of color · descendants · lineage · ethnic identity · self-identification · cultural pride · kinship · belonging
Creators of new devices
- scientistsSystematic knowledge seekers
- artistsMakers of creative works
- athletesSports competitors
- writersText composition professionals
musicians · entrepreneurs · scholars · leaders · pioneers · trailblazers · innovators · changemakers
slavery
Ownership of people
- emancipationRelease from legal bondage
- ReconstructionPost-1865 national reunification period
- Jim CrowRacial separation laws
segregation · civil rights · Great Migration · Middle Passage · abolition · freedmen · sharecropping · redlining · desegregation · Juneteenth
soul food
Traditional Black Southern cuisine
- jazzImprovisational American music genre
- bluesMournful American music genre
- hip-hopRhythmic spoken-word music
gospel · spirituals · Kwanzaa · HBCU · barbershop · church · double dutch · juke joint · call and response · griot
NAACP
Civil rights advocacy organization
- Black Lives MatterCivil rights movement against racist violence
- protestPublic expression of disapproval
- equalitySame status for all
justice · liberation · empowerment · advocacy · organizing · resistance · uplift · freedom struggle · marches · boycotts
diaspora
Scattered population sharing origins
community · people of color · descendants · lineage · ethnic identity · self-identification · cultural pride · kinship · belonging · solidarity
inventors
Creators of new devices
- scientistsSystematic knowledge seekers
- artistsMakers of creative works
- athletesSports competitors
writers · musicians · entrepreneurs · scholars · leaders · pioneers · trailblazers · innovators · changemakers · intellectuals
Afro-AmericansEuropean Americans
US citizens of continental descent
Anglo-Americans · WASP · Caucasians · WASPs · Asian Americans
Afro-Americansnew arrivals
fresh off the boat · immigrant communities · naturalized citizens