she was born in the DR. moved to the US in '02. She referred herself as just a Dominican. I thought she was black until she told me she is from the DR.
I understand her train of thought. In DR she is not black nor african american, she is dominican. I had the same issue, I was really confused when applications asked if I was african american. In the end to those it matters to, if your skin is dark or bear any resemblance to africans, you are black.