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Re:Gaijin Engineer in Tokyo by krapp on Sunday March 18, 2018 @03:15PM (#16613697)
>Your black Japanese student would be considered "African American", which is beyond absurd.

No they wouldn't, for the same reason Americans don't call Africans "African American."

Re:Gaijin Engineer in Tokyo by mazerackham on Sunday March 18, 2018 @05:33PM (#16614511)
They would. Listen closely to how you and your friends tell stories next time. Race and gender are almost always used to describe people. "My landlord, who's a black guy, <STORY DETAIL THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH BEING BLACK OR BEING A MAN>"
Re:Gaijin Engineer in Tokyo by krapp on Sunday March 18, 2018 @06:01PM (#16614690)
>Race and gender are almost always used to describe people. "My landlord, who's a black guy, <STORY DETAIL THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH BEING BLACK OR BEING A MAN>"

I don't refer to people primarily by their race, and I don't recall my friends doing so. While I don't deny that sort of conversation happens, it's probably not as idiomatic as you seem to believe.

I'm sure you can understand how easily a stereotype like that can fail when applied to a country as populous and diverse as the US.