If I grasp the question properly:
it's because an atom of carbon-12 has 12 nucleons, 6 protons plus 6 neutrons (and 6 electrons). So the atomic mass unit is the mass of one nucleon.
Some luck helped here, as the mass of a neutron resembles the mass of a proton plus an electron. So in a neutral atom, protons+electrons count as much as neutrons, in a first approximation.
The ancestors could have chosen 1/1 the mass of a hydrogen atom, or 1/16 of an oxygen atom, or 1/59 of a cobalt atom, 1/232 of a thorium atom... Choosing an element that consists essentially of a single isotope makes sense. Then, as nucleons don't weigh exactly as much in all atoms, the choice of a reference has consequences. Carbon simplifies organic chemistry, and is somewhere between heavier nucleons in hydrogen and lighter ones in iron.