Inspired by another thread I just responded to, I thought I would start this one.
So, do you think I'm being unreasonable for wanting to tell you about what it means to be Caucasian?
The reason I want to tell you about it is because when most people hear the term 'Caucasian' their thoughts most often go to a dark place. White supremacy. Racism. But reality is, Caucasians are not "white". "White" being someone of, say, Germanic, Scandinavian or Anglo-Saxon heritage. For those that might know this, there is a rather large region in Central Asia called the Caucasus. It consists of countries like Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, but also lots of regions in what we know as Russia. People that originate from the Caucasus - such as myself - we are called Caucasians. The reason why I want to tell people about the Caucasus and Caucasian people is because I feel like our name is being misused so much, and almost always in negative contexts. I shouldn't have to be worried about offending someone by telling them I'm Caucasian. Just because, in their mind, a Caucasian must be a white supremacist.
I really hope that even one person might read this thread might think twice about their reaction next time they meet someone that tells them they are Caucasian. Because some of us genuinely are Caucasians, and very proud of our ancient heritage, our culture and our history. We do not want to be associated with racism, superiority of any kind, or anything else that's negative and so far away from us / who we are.
Thank you for reading...