Sorry if this is an ancient solved problem to ask in 2019, but I googled about this and Quora isn't really answering me. I searched for the words black and race and politically as key-words on this website but still not a satisfactory answer.
The setting is 2013 in the UK, and my character is approaching three people two of them are sitting on a bench in a garden and one guy who is an elderly black man is standing.
As my character is approaching them, my novel reads;
I walked towards the trio who looked like they were having a conversation. They all seemed welcoming. A teenage looking girl and elderly women were sitting on the log and an elderly black man was standing in front of them.
I don't want to say it as black man and I am not sure of using the word African (will that clearly indicate without being broad). I want to express this just to mention the diversity in that environment although later on in my novel I have clearly expressed him in detail.
Answer
Describe them.
There's nothing wrong with mentioning that he is black. However, in that segment, you're missing an opportunity to actually describe them, which will both make for a more interesting read, and illustrate his ethnicity.
E.g.
"I walked towards the trio. They were engrossed in a spirited conversation; it was as though they'd known each other forever. The first person was a teenage girl. She cocked her head to the side as she listened. Auburn hair fell across her shoulders, muting the bold plaid of her shirt. The woman opposite her gesticulated as she spoke. Dry paint speckled her horn-rimmed glasses. Was she a painter? It was hard to tell. Her clothing matched her hair: mute silver. Hardly a creative choice. The third participant nodded. Lines covered his earth-brown skin, as though he'd spent long years in the sun. He watched the painter with a slow warmth, like an old friend, or perhaps more."
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