Genuinely asking and not trying to stoke the flames but I have a friend who was born in South Africa, grew up in South Africa, spent the majority of her life in South Africa and has recently moved to America where she plans to become a citizen eventually. How would you identify her? I never have heard anyone identified as a South African American. I understand the cultural norm of who the term African American typically refers to, but I always thought I should identify her as an African American as she is an African person who has become an American. But based on what is being said here, the only reason she should not be identified as such is because she's not dark skinned.