Usage of "black" vs. "African-American"

Solution 1:

This is a complicated and thorny issue which seems subject to constant change and evolution.

Many people may be happy or even proud to be called "black" while others may find it offensive. Some people may dislike "African-American" as they think it makes them sound like an immigrant, or for other reasons.

Many people use the term "Person of color" now. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Person_of_color

What is more shared is that people dislike being labelled. Race is a social construct - that is to say, there may be more genetic difference between two "black" people than between a "black" person and a "white" person. They're not "races". Skin colour is real, but to put dark-skinned people from hundreds of different countries, some on opposite sides of the planet to one another, into the same category is asking for trouble.

OPINION ALERT: My own personal feeling on this is that we should stick purely to descriptions of skin colour, and thus, if necessary to do so at all, refer to someone as "dark-skinned" or "light-skinned", rather than "black" or "white", "African-American" or "caucasian" etc. Labels should be avoided wherever possible. Saying things like "A black man came into the shop" is an example of labelling which is always liable to cause offense. Just say "A man came into the shop", and if you need to describe his appearance for some reason then you could mention the skin colour, along with what he's wearing, his hairstyle, etc. There is a sort of obsession with skin colour which is born of tribalism, and we should try to move past it.