Celebrities continue to speak out against labels that reduce them to a mere aspect of their physical appearance, rather than being recognized for who they are: human beings. This time, it was Raven-Symoné‘s turn, who in an interview with Oprah expressed some frustration and mentioned that she is not “African American,” which many people took offense to and attacked her without even understanding the context in which she said it.
Raven does not deny saying that she is not “African American”; however, she has clarified that she did not say it to deny her Black roots. She never said she was not Black. She was trying to convey that she does not want to be labeled as such because she is simply American. She was born in the US, and her parents, grandparents, and even her ancestors, as she mentioned in an interview clarified the situation.
“When I say that African American does not align with me — that label – It doesn’t mean that I’m negating my Blackness or I’m not Black,” Raven-Symoné said. “It means I am from this country. I was born here. My mom, my dad, my great-great-great-great-great — that’s what I’m saying. The pure logistics of it.”
“I also understand how much blood, sweat, and tears they soaked into this earth in order to create the America that I live in today — free, happy, tax-paying American citizen,” Raven-Symoné added.
Raven asserts that she wanted to bring the topic back to light due to a video that began to go viral after a segment of Real Time With Bill Maher mentioned Idris Elba saying that people “are obsessed with race.” The host used a part of the interview Raven had with Oprah in 2014 immediately after those words, and that’s when people began attacking Raven with hatred. She not only addressed race in that interview; even at one point in the Oprah show, Oprah asked her if she also doesn’t want to be labeled as “gay,” to which the former Disney star shook her head. She later directed these words:
“I want to be labeled a human who loves humans. I’m tired of being labeled — I’m an American, I’m not an African American. I’m an American.”
Raven-Symoné Fights Against Labels
It might sound crazy, but this speech that Raven delivered in 2014 is super important for the struggle of self-acceptance and destigmatization of people in general. Other celebrities also fight against labels that become hurtful, such as Hunter Schafer, who has recently said that she is tired of being referred to as a “trans” woman. It is completely unnecessary to use the word “trans” because that’s precisely why she transitioned because she felt like a woman and she is a woman.
We need to gradually rid ourselves of prejudices and stop labeling people by reducing them to their physical appearance; there are more important things than judging them solely based on how they look.
