# African-American Hurricane Names **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 5, 2003, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-hurricane-names/193217 "2003-08-05T22:12:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![newcrasher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b3f665/32.png) [@newcrasher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newcrasher)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2003, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-hurricane-names/193217/1 "2003-08-05T22:12:27Z")
[http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/954799/posts](http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/954799/posts) Sheila Jackson-Lee wants some hurricanes named with African-American names. Should we be listening to her, or is the concept of a “black” name racist in and of itself. If we DO adopt her policy, I suggest the 1st “S” hurrican be named Sheila. That’s a “black” name, isn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![newcrasher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b3f665/32.png) [@newcrasher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newcrasher)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2003, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-hurricane-names/193217/2 "2003-08-05T22:57:07Z")
Damn. I looked to see if there was a thread on this already and I didn’t see that there WAS! Sorry. dop-pas ( as opposed to faux pas) ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2003, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-hurricane-names/193217/3 "2003-08-05T22:59:02Z")
This could be easily solved by just assigning hurricanes numbers rather than a somewhat odd practice of giving them names. Fires, floods and earthquakes aren’t given names, after all. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2003, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-hurricane-names/193217/4 "2003-08-05T23:03:07Z")
Fires are usually given names, but generally place names. ---
**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2003, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-hurricane-names/193217/5 "2003-08-05T23:18:40Z")
Well, you can’t see a fire coming - it’s just _there_, all of a sudden. Because there’s this buildup to a hurricane (first it’s a swell, then a tropical storm, or something along those lines), the anticipation leads so-called weather forecasters to name it. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2003, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-hurricane-names/193217/6 "2003-08-05T23:58:48Z")
If they add African-American sounding names, I think they should also include more Asian-American names. You know, names such as “Cindy”, “Julie”, “Robert” and “Charles”. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2003, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-hurricane-names/193217/7 "2003-08-05T23:59:54Z")
Why not include Italian-American names? It would make following Hurricane Vito, Hurricane Paulie and Hurricane Rocco much more interesting. If the NWS adds African-American sounding names to the hurricane name pool, I think they should also include more Asian-American names. You know, names such as “Cindy”, “Julie”, “Robert” and “Charles”. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2003, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-hurricane-names/193217/8 "2003-08-06T03:03:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dantheman \* > \*\*Because there’s this buildup to a hurricane (first it’s a swell, then a tropical storm, or something along those lines), the anticipation leads so-called weather forecasters to name it. \*\* What? And “Hurricane 12” wouldn’t take care of that? I’ll agree it doesn’t have the same menace as “Hurricane Mike” but it seems like it would do. ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2003, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-hurricane-names/193217/9 "2003-08-06T04:34:18Z")
**Moderator’s Note:** I’ll go ahead and close this thread, and direct everyone to [Black hurricane names…necessary?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=202505)