I wanted to share this information from GOOGLE:
Racism in the English Language by: Robert B. Moore
Language and Culture A Short Play on "Black" and "White" Words
"Some may blackly (angrily) accuse me of trying to blacken (defame) the English language, to give it a black eye (a mark of shame) by writing such black words (hostile). They may denigrate (to cast aspersions; to darken) me by accusing me of being blackhearted (malevolent), of having a black outlook (pessimistic, dismal) on life, of being a blackguard (scoundrel)‑which would certainly be a black mark (detrimental fact) against me. Some may black‑brow (scowl at) me and hope that a black cat crosses in front of me because of this black deed. I may become a black sheep (one who causes shame or embarrassment because of deviation from the accepted standards), who will be blackballed (ostracized) by being placed on a blacklist (list of undesirables) in an attempt to blackmail (to force or coerce into a particular action) me to retract my words. But attempts to blackjack (to compel by threat) me will have a Chinaman's chance of success, for I am not a yellow‑bellied Indian‑giver of words, who will whitewash (cover or gloss over vices or crimes) a black lie (harmful, inexcusable). 1 challenge the purity and innocence (white) of the English language. I don't see things in black and white (entirely bad or entirely good) terms, for I am a white man (marked by upright firmness) if there ever was one. However, it would be a black day when I would not "call a spade a spade," even though some will suggest a white man calling the English language racist is like the pot calling the kettle black. While many may be niggardly (grudging, scanty) in their support, others will be honest and decent‑and to them I say, that's very white of you (honest, decent).
The preceding is of course a white lie (not intended to cause harm), meant only to illustrate some examples of racist terminology in the English language."
ADDED:
Question: Do you model such language correctness for your children? Is it important to you?
from Huffington Post "11 Things White People Need to realize About Race"
...8. Before you speak, think about the impact the words you choose could have on the people around you. At one point in “White People,” a black student breaks out in tears when a white girl doesn’t understand why casually calling her white friend’s behavior “ghetto” was a problem. As BuzzFeed’s Tamerra Griffin put it, when a white person says “That’s ghetto,” black people hear, “That is a negative thing I associate with blackness and/or the working class.” See Griffin’s list of 14 Words That Carry A Coded Meaning For Black People for more phrases you should consider banning from your vocabulary. (Yes, describing a trend as “urban” is racist.)
9. The conversation about race implicates you, but your voice should not be at the center of it.
As Taylor Swift learned from her recent Twitter back-and-forth with Nicki Minaj, when people of color criticize structural inequality it’s not about you, personally. Again: It’s. Not. About. You. Personally. So don’t try to make it all about you. White people need to take responsibility for the big and small ways we perpetuate racism. But often that means taking a step back and listening to the people who are impacted by racism day in and day out. If you’re going to add your voice to a dialogue — which you should — make sure you’re adding value to the conversation, and not just silencing the grievances of people of color."
Thank you MyNewNickName, 2kidmama, Rosebud (including those who agreed with them) for listening. That is all I asked originally. If listening (to what words may seem innocuous) had occurred then this post would have been unneeded.
What? I stepped out a couple days and see this?
I don't get the motive for the post. I've not witnessed anything racial on this site. I've witnessed some super sensitive people though.
I always taught my daughter to treat others the way you want to be treated and color of skin does not come into play.
Wait, what??
I think it's a complete shame when people can't use their brains and immediately take any reference of the word "white" or "black" to mean something racist. My 9 year old said to me "not to sound racist, but the black man over there" in order to point out a shirt he liked. I told him that it's NOT racist, it's a describing word. He could have just as easily said "the white man over there" or something along those lines.
I missed your comment on the other post because it was pulled, but I saw some responses to you and I agree with them. The question had NOTHING to do with race at all, and it's unreal to me that you, as an adult, would turn it in to that. You know better. Or you should.
Oh - and my response is coming as the white wife of a black man and the mother to three mixed race children. People need to get over the need to make EVERYTHING about race and start loving people for who they are.
Things are seldom all black and white - there's room for infinite (or at least 50) shades of grey.
Personally I think things are not all binary - there's more than 2 choices, and instead of defining things as all good vs all bad, I see all things as any given balance of yin and yang.
You can't have one without the other - every coin has 2 sides (well, three if you count the narrow edge) - and they are all necessary.
Also - attempts at perceived 'correctness' political or otherwise are just totally whacked.
There's more than one way to play with language. :-)
Really??? I have seen nothing on this Board that should be construed to be racist in any way.
Interesting. I am raising my kids to be kind to everyone and that skin comes in all different shades yet we are all people just the same. My son was shocked last year when they taught about past U.S. slavery in school...he was completely upset and flabbergasted that people would treat other people in such a way. I have a question for you...Did you know the phrase that everyone uses "rule of thumb" comes from the rule that a husband was only allowed to beat his wife with something no bigger around than his thumb. I hear people using this all the time and I know they do not think of it that way, so I choose not to take offense. I understand that they do not mean any harm and are not being sexist. Added: Ok, well thank you for giving us something to think about...that many common phrases that people use can be hurtful for some people. There are lots of things like this in our language. Honestly, I don't really use any of those phrases you mentioned in my every day speech. But it is good to know.
I think it is useful/interesting to think about the words/phrases we use, where they come from, and the biases that might be present in our language that we don't even think about.
I have tried to model politeness to my children.
I refuse to play along with the offensive-word-du-jour thing. We are teaching our children that they have rights but not that they have responsibilities. We're teaching them that they may demand to be free from any implicit or explicit insult, but we're not teaching them how to respond, reply, or react to others with kindness and politeness and civility.
I don't like the terms that have cropped up that are used to describe an entire group of a type of person. I believe you can be heterosexual but not feel hatred towards homosexuals, and vice versa. I hate the fact that the words homophobia and transphobia have overtaken our conversations, as though certain people are afraid of people who follow a different lifestyle. Call it what it is: some people are filled with hate and anger and some people live their lives in peace with those around them, regardless of differences.
And I don't like, and refuse to kowtow to (ha! irony there!) referring to anyone as being "of color". What am I? Colorless? I am of Swedish and Dutch descent, so pretty fair-skinned, green eyes, blond-ish hair, etc. But I'm not transparent. I have a color. Everyone has a color.
I think that we are teaching our children the exact opposite of what we should be teaching them. We actually are teaching them to separate groups of people according to race. Examples: major awards ceremonies that are only for black people who have achieved a certain notoriety (often sponsored or led by someone who is squawking about being equal and ridding the world of black vs white animosity). And schools that observe _____ History Month (Black, Asian, Pacific Island, etc), where people are only on the list because of their skin color or ethnicity. Why don't we celebrate human being's contribution to humanity? For example: Performing Arts Month, where people like Kiri Te Kawana, Ray Charles, Yo Yo Ma, Beverly Sills, Taylor Swift, Paul McCartney, Itzhak Perlman, Marian Anderson, Paul Robeson, Bernadette Peters, Lena Horne, to name just a few, are celebrated for their efforts, their relentless pursuit of their craft, the way they overcame certain obstacles. And see? That list encompasses many races and ethnicities, genders, disabilities, performing styles, etc. Do that for medical contributions, government and politics, visual arts like painting and sculpture, technology, architecture, first responders and law enforcement officers, military, etc. Teach children to look past colors and towards being a productive citizen of this planet.
I understand that if we examined the colloquialisms and expressions that we use, from a psycholinguistic and etymological perspective, we'd be surprised, shocked, saddened, amused. How many of us have used the term "grandfather clause" when describing a rent increase or business arrangement? How many of us have complained about being in the "peanut gallery" at a sporting event or concert? We can't realistically cleanse our language of all phrases that may be based in a practice that we abhor.
What we can do is help our children realize that words can hurt, that words can heal, and to think carefully before they speak about which choice they're making - the hurtful or the healing? And we can help them realize that sometimes words are spoken with intentional cruelty, and how to respond without stooping down to the bully's level, and that sometimes words are spoken that are innocent in intention, and how not to find offense in everything that happens during the day.
Wow! I love this! I guess I missed what all the furor is about, but I think the thing you quoted is interesting and valid.
My husband (Mexican) and myself have 3 children together. We are careful not to use blatantly racist words, towards any race.
We do have an issue right now though...the boy that lives accross the street from us is black and calls my son a "n****" Not quite sure why, but when my son called him it back, all hell broke loose. I was horrified and we had a huge discussion about it. But what it all came down to, after my whole conversation with him, is why is it ok for the neighbor to use that word and he couldn't? He had a very hard time understanding my reasoning and I finally told him it's sounds ignorant coming out of anyone's mouth, no matter their color.
These words have been around forever. For example, black ball has been around since the 1700's. I wonder if it was really used as something of a racist term or if, perhaps, back in the day, making marbles that were black and white, distinctly different colors, was a lot easier then trying to make orange and purple balls? And maybe people saying things are black and white really comes from the Bible, where we believe angels (inherently good) were cloaked in white and fallen angels (bad) were cloaked in black?
I do believe there are some really large issues that need to be addressed here in the good ol' US. Maybe we should have the GOP frontrunner step down since he is obviously racist. Maybe our police departments need to go through training again and again and again so that they stop their blatant racial profiling. Maybe we need to stop using OTHER derogatory words to other races, not just black people. Maybe this conversation needs to happen in all of our schools and homes...and it doesn't. Maybe the issue isn't always about white people, but other races too.
I get it, I really do. I am enraged when I see racial injustice happen and when I hear racial phrases...I don't care what color you are.
But what is your solution? Do you want to change the English language? Words and phrases that have been around for hundreds of years? That may or may not be racially motivated, depending on who you talk to. People find a lot to be offended by these days. I would like to start with the blatant racial phrases, blatant racist government officials, blatant racial profiling...then I will look at some of those phrases you mentioned.
errr. i got real stuff to worry about then being careful who will take what as offensive.
never do i censor myself about anything. i know i am not racist, and i know words are just that "words." and i am tired of people using everything as a mean to get offended.
so we can't use color words of any kind any more, got it...
no more ''gee, the sky sure looks black, maybe a storm is coming'' or ''look at those white puffy clouds, sure is a pretty day'' because of course we are being racist by using such adjectives....
GIVE ME A BREAK... not everything is about race, in fact barely anything is about race in most people's lives
