Barack Obama: African-American ... or Black?

Now that Barack Obama has broken through the highest ceiling in the land, can we stop using the cumbersome and inelegant descriptive "African-American" when we refer to his (or any other black person's) race?

Look at it as a conservation measure (and who's anti-conversation?): using "black" instead of "African-American" will save time, ink and space.

I noticed that President-elect Obama switched, perhaps intentionally, between "black" and "African-American" during his latest 60 Minutes interview. ("President-elect" is also unacceptably clunky, but we only have to use it for 9 more weeks.) I sighed relief when he described my new obsession, Marian Robinson, as a "black woman."

Mind you, I am categorically opposed to the use of "black" as a noun, as in "income for blacks remained steady..."

I'll never forget when I was starring in the Hasty Pudding Show in college. An original student-written musical, we performed it at our theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts, before taking in on the road to New York City. During my junior year, our New York engagement was at the theater at Manhattan's Fashion Institute of Technology. After our last performance at FIT, my friend and castmate John was supervising our dismantling of the set. I was helping to take down the drapes, when I heard John yell, "Take the blacks and throw them out on the sidewalk!"

I'd never heard such blatant racism in all my life! John and I had been friends for two years already, and I'd never imagined he was capable of such hate. I had to say something.

Fortunately it turned out that he was referring to the black curtains that help frame the stage when the proscenium is too wide. These curtains are called "blacks". They had already been folded up and John wanted them taken out so they could be loaded on to our tour truck.

Still the momentary horror I felt at the use of "blacks" as a noun has stayed with me. (In fact there were no black people in the cast, so I may have overreacted.) So when I use "black," it's exclusively as an adjective (black people, black politicians, black panthers, etc.), unless of course I'm talking about stage curtains.

The truth is, I've already stopped using "African-American" and frankly I feel liberated. The only people I've seen discomfited by my use of "black" are, not surprisingly, white liberals.

What do you think? Is it okay to use black instead of African-American?