Should there be an "African American Unconnected Profiles" Category? [closed]

Question

I've started adding "[US State] Unconnected Profiles" Categories to the unconnected profiles that I've created for cemeteries and other projects.  I was thinking that having a separate African American category would be a really good idea, since connecting African Americans to the Global Family Tree has its own unique challenges.

As far as I can tell the category doesn't exist yet.  There's a "Black History Month Unconnected Profiles" category with a few names in it, but that's specifically for famous people (who of course aren't all American), although I'm sure many could use the category I'm proposing as well.

I've tagged an example of an African American profile that I manage which is unconnected, and which I feel could benefit from an additional category (along with his parents).

What do y'all think?  Is there any reason why I shouldn't make this category?  I'd love to hear from the Connectors Project folks!

~Sarah Heiney (Murtaugh-30)

Comments

Whooshed over to Policy and Style since that's where we discuss categorization.

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Thanks!

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I think so my maternal side is Black Carribean and currently I'm not finding much luck. As all my black African family have English/Scottish/Irish surnames.

Answer 1

Thanks for bringing this up, Sarah. I had considered something similar, but wasn't sure what to call it. I know that I have friends who are black and do not consider themselves African American, just American, so wasn't sure what the right name should be. I had set up the Black History Month category because we were going to do a challenge, but with the Oscars pool in February, ended up not doing it as there was already a lot going on. We could definitely use that category for more than just famous folks. That was the original goal, but when the challenge was left for now, I stopped actively searching out people to add to it. What are your thoughts on the name? Is African American okay?

Comments

I am not black so my opinion on the term is pretty much irrelevant, but my understanding is:  black is a more inclusive term because "African Americans" typically refers to the descendants of enslaved Africans who were transported to the United States during slavery. I don't know about your friends, but for many people who do not identify as African American it is because they are recent immigrants to the US or descendants of relatively recent immigrants; for example, an American whose distant ancestor was enslaved in the Caribbean, and whose descendants grew up speaking Spanish, might identify more as Afro-Caribbean and/or Hispanic rather than African American.

I don't think there's any fear that the term isn't appropriate as long as it is being used for the profiles of black Americans from the United States who did not immigrate and whose close family did not immigrate, which can be reasonably assumed for most pre-21st century profiles of blacks in the South. I would not start adding it to the profiles of chronologically recent black profiles, especially living people, for the reasons you mentioned.

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I agree with Sarah.

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I think as long as it's well-defined, it's a go. Go ahead, Sarah. We might consider breaking it down further if it gets too large-geographically maybe? Otherwise, I know there are a lot of folks who would like to work on these, so thank you for taking the lead on it!

Answer 2

Since this question has been rebooted, I thought I'd mention what I've been up to lately. . . creating a load of unconnected African American profiles. While working on Ohio, I've gotten knee-deep in former slaves and African-American communities.  So, for whoever wants to dig in and help flesh these people out, here is where I'm keeping those I find and profile:

The Randolphy Slaves:  https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Category:Roanoke_Plantation%2C_Charlotte_County%2C_Virginia%2C_Slaves

The Gist former slave settlements:  https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Category:Gist_Settlement%2C_Eagle_Township%2C_Brown_County%2C_Ohio

African American Settlements in Ohio:  https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Category:African_American_Settlements_in_Ohio

Thanks!!!!