What’s ‘native’

Columnist Jane Bowron and correspondent Jeff Sheerin (January 17) appear to be battling over semantics and ethnicity.

Today, millions of Americans can call themselves ‘‘native Americans’’ – because they were born within the US. However, as a people neither European Americans nor African Americans can call themselves ‘‘native Americans’’ on the basis of ethnicity. Their legal claim to ‘‘native’’ status is only based on their verifiable place of birth, within the US.

The true ‘‘native Americans’’ are the ‘‘Amerindian’’ or American Indian peoples – those people who were living within the North American continent before the ‘‘discovery’’, arrival and settlement by Europeans or the importation of peoples from the African continent – initially as slaves.

Yes, President Obama can substantiate a claim to be a ‘‘native-born American’’, as can those before him – but, probably, no US president can claim to be ‘‘native American’’ on the basis of ethnicity. DON ALLAN Upper Hutt