The other day on radio I heard an advert on a book written by one South African author (did not get his name) .. The book apparently explains what an African is. The advert starts out with President Mbheki's famous "I am an African" Speech, then a white accent voice says "I, too, am an African", then an indain accent, colored and afrikaaner. Then this vioce laughs out and says "Everybody today is an African." It then goes on to sell the book being advertised. I would definately want to read that book, "What is an African?"

For me, there's two side..........Firstly an African is a black man. That is why African-American is synonymous with balck-American, and that is why in most of the career sites in which I have put my CV in will ask me....."Are you: African, White, Colored, Indian, or other (I suppose the other would be asians?). Obviously I wll say African, I'm a blck woman. So there, an African is a black man.

Secondly, an African is a child born into the motherland., who's roots as far as is generations and generations of ancestors is planted in the African soil. That is what an Africa is. Some of the White famers in Zim for example, who's generations were rooted here many years ago. Yes they are products of colonialists but let not man pay for the sin of his forefathers. Only The higher Being can judge right? Can't they call themselves African? A black man was asked once on radio, "What is being African?" He said Africans were balck. Then the radio personality asked him, "but what if you were to move to China and 10 generations down, your childern continue the legacy you started in China. Will they not then be regarded as Chinese?" He said" Not Chinese, citizens of China yes, but not Chinese" He has a point because chinese are not black right?

Anyone with a clear definition of what an African is?

I have concluded that whatever you choose to call yourselves, we are all citizens of the global village and if we can learn to live in harmony and look beyond race, beyond clolour, we will find that there really is enough room for all of us, whether in Africa, America, Europe or Asia, black, white, colored, indiann, chinese or other.