Why is Obama Black?

[Juniper]

But, correct me if I am wrong, Obama isn't African American - at least not in the same way others, say, Oprah for example, are. His father's lineage is directly from Africa, specifically Kenya.

Not that it matters as far as whether or not he'd be a good president. But if other black voters are supporting him on the basis of "he's one of us" then that info would be a little misleading, hm? In my experience (my daughter had a good friend a few years ago who was born in Africa...a black girl, yes) they are not of the same culture as the African Americans who were descended from slaves. I hope this doesn't sound racist, I don't mean it that way at all.

BTW I have a good friend who is also African American; he was born there and just got his citizenship this year. He's whiter than I am. Or isn't he African American, if he was born in SA, and isn't black? Just goes to show, labels can be misleading.