Raven Symone Responds To Critics Over Not Wanting To Be Labeled “African American”

Earlier this week Raven Symone was criticized for telling Oprah that she does not want to be labeled as gay, because she’s a lover of people, and that she does not want to be labeled as African-American, but as an American, because she doesn’t know where her lineage goes.

Myself, personally, understood her reasoning for not only wanting to escape labels, but also not refer to herself as a certain ethnicity if she does not know where she’s from. I’m an actual African American and can trace my roots back to Africa, Raven on the other hand can not do that. Many people don’t realize, not all brown people are of African descent. She may not even be “African American.” I think everyone should at least take the time out to learn their roots, but if they don’t want to be labeled, what’s the problem? Many other countries don’t label their people at all.

Well, Raven took the time out to clarify her statements. 

“I never said I wasn’t black… I want to make that very clear. I said, I am not African-American. I never expected my personal beliefs and comments to spark such emotion in people. I think it is only positive when we can openly discuss race and being labeled in America.”

I don’t see anything wrong with what she said, especially after hearing it all. Most people that got mad only watched a 15 second clip on Instagram, or only read a headline from another blog. Context is key.