# Colored Swimmers and Cyclists

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/colored-swimmers-and-cyclists/468516>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [October 18, 2008, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/colored-swimmers-and-cyclists/468516 "2008-10-18T12:30:44Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\
**Post date:** [October 18, 2008, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/colored-swimmers-and-cyclists/468516/21 "2008-10-18T19:51:06Z")

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> [@elmwood](#):
>
> In the US, “people of color” seems to be used most commonly among those who are very self-consciously politically correct. The term is usually used in a context to describe those _aren’t_ whites of European or Afrikaaner/South African/Rhodesian/Zimbabwean/Namibian decent; this includes blacks, Asians, Asian Indians, Hispanics, Arabs, American Indians/First Nations members, and so on.
> 
> In the US, blacks are more-or-less comfortable with “black” to encompass the racial group, and “African-American” to describe an ethnic and sociocultural group distinct from that of recent black immigrants from Africa, the Caribbean, and so on. “Negro” tends to be used mostly in an anthropological or historical context nowadays; e.g. “Negro baseball leagues”. “Colored” remains in use mainly among the less educated in rural areas, and the less enlightened elderly.

But in no case is “That One” acceptable.

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**Author:** ![NineToTheSky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5a626/32.png) [@NineToTheSky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NineToTheSky)\
**Post date:** [October 18, 2008, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/colored-swimmers-and-cyclists/468516/22 "2008-10-18T19:56:11Z")

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> [@DanBlather](#):
>
> Surely you mean “coloured”.

I was trying to ingratiate myself with you lot.

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**Author:** ![ctnguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@ctnguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ctnguy)\
**Post date:** [October 18, 2008, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/colored-swimmers-and-cyclists/468516/23 "2008-10-18T20:04:36Z")

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While we’re on this hijack, in Southern Africa “coloured” (with a ‘u’) describes [a specific ethnic group](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coloured) distinct from the group generally described as “black”.

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**Author:** ![Simple\_Mind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7cd45c/32.png) [@Simple\_Mind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simple_Mind)\
**Post date:** [October 19, 2008, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/colored-swimmers-and-cyclists/468516/24 "2008-10-19T07:42:35Z")

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> [@WF\_Tomba](#):
>
> Cut him some slack, he lives in the Philippines (judging from his other posts) and I don’t think he’s up on the latest American racial etiquette.

Thanks, I am of non english speaking European desent.  
And i was asking the question in a general way, i did not ask for the exeption to the rule, as i can see now from the different answers that it probably has nothing to do with Genetics but rather with the surroundings and circustances of growing up.  
Have a good time everybody…

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