Racial terminology (part 1)
MrDeuce
Illinois
This question is primarily directed at black TUSCLers. Those of you who are melanin-deficient are of course free to chime in, but I don't much care what you have to say on this subject.
In my 60ish years on this planet, the term used by well-intended white people for black people has shifted from "colored people" to "Negroes" to "blacks" and I have personally gone along with these changes -- until the term "African-American" came along in the 1980s, when I refused to change again. It wasn't a case of an old man resistant to change -- I was only about 30 when I first heard "African-American" -- but rather of refusing to replace the perfectly good one-syllable word "black" with the seven-syllable monstrosity "African-American", especially since it was advocated by Jesse Jackson, whom I can't stand.
My question is: Do black people care whether white people call them "black" or "African-American"? My gut feeling is that they don't, but I would like to hear from some actual black people. Note: I live a very white existence, residing in an almost entirely white suburb and employed at an overwhelmingly white workplace, so for long periods of time the only black people I see are strippers (!) -- and I don't treat strippers' opinions as typical.
In my 60ish years on this planet, the term used by well-intended white people for black people has shifted from "colored people" to "Negroes" to "blacks" and I have personally gone along with these changes -- until the term "African-American" came along in the 1980s, when I refused to change again. It wasn't a case of an old man resistant to change -- I was only about 30 when I first heard "African-American" -- but rather of refusing to replace the perfectly good one-syllable word "black" with the seven-syllable monstrosity "African-American", especially since it was advocated by Jesse Jackson, whom I can't stand.
My question is: Do black people care whether white people call them "black" or "African-American"? My gut feeling is that they don't, but I would like to hear from some actual black people. Note: I live a very white existence, residing in an almost entirely white suburb and employed at an overwhelmingly white workplace, so for long periods of time the only black people I see are strippers (!) -- and I don't treat strippers' opinions as typical.
22 comments
I never try the political correct route either. I Just avoid the labels and describe people by their personality traits and it's all cool. That's what most people do when they describe me as "that asshole!"
During contract negotiations with lawyers representing my potential customer I was trying to convince the lawyers to spend more money initially so I could finish the contract quicker and in the long run save money for the prospective client. I tried to convince the two lawyers to be less 'niggardly' in their approach to my daily expense rate.
Instantly, I was verbally assaulted by one of the lawyers. He called me several racist-tinged names. At first I was flummoxed over this outrageous outburst but I finally realized that the doofus lawyer had no clue what the word 'niggardly' meant. I was angered and responded with some choice insults of my own about the lawyer's intelligence and poor education. I wanted to reach across the negotiating table and bitch slap the asshole.
Negotiations were unsuccessful: I did not gain the business of that prospective client.
Fortunately, the head of the NAACP came to his defense:
"You hate to think you have to censor your language to meet other people's lack of understanding"