zoony Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 She turned me off after that statement. I won't apologize to anyone because my parents taught me to express myself like I had some sense. Well I won't pretend to know what that is like for you and SSM, but I can imagine that would be very, very frustrating. :mad: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gortiz Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Welcome to my world, fellow Extremers. My parents always taught me to use proper English and act like I had some sense. I was always teased by other black kids by that and black girls thought either I was "trying to be white" or gay. And, yes, I get the "you talk real nice" comments and other crap like that. In fact, just recently, I discovered that some women at my church thought I was guy, and one even suggested that I "lose some of my properness." Believe me, it's very frustrating. Man, that is just plain sad. I don't know what to say abou that? I think that time is the only cure to remediate that kind of brutal ignorance. Thats plain sick ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Air Force Cane Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 "it just really annoys me when I hear someone say that someone is not "black enough", "acts white", "acts black", etc" You might want to talk with Clarence Thomas, Condi Rice, Thomas Sowell, Ken Blackwell and Michael Steele because they agree with you :applause: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stwasm Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Man, that is just plain sad. I don't know what to say abou that? I think that time is the only cure to remediate that kind of brutal ignorance. Thats plain sick ... It's the big reason why I date outside my race. I find it funny that, when I offer friendship to a black woman, I've had it mocked and thrown back in my face, yet when that same friendship is accepted by a white woman, she gets angry and calls me "Uncle Tom." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hu-bison-skinsfan Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 The other thing that I've noticed, and that annoys me as well is when people say someone is talking black, or talking white. Again, I've had black people and white people tell me that I talk white. Someone said it was because I talk so proper, and I don't use a lot of slang. Usually, I find that when people say someone is talking "white", it's because the person is not talking ignorant, imo. I don't doubt what you say but I have never (ever!) seen someone equate good grammar, not using slang, etc. with talking white. I see this discussed on TV but maybe I'm in denial. Now, I will admit that I am spoiled. I spent two years of high school and all of my time as an undergrad and grad student at an institution where African Americans were the majority. Thus, we did not associate being articulate (or whatever) with anything other than being black. I will say this (hopefully without offending anyone): just as there are regional drawls and accents, some white or black people use certain inflection, body language, etc. Perhaps this is where "acting white" or "acting black" comes in. But given the number of accomplished, educated brothers and sisters, particularly in the nation's capital, I'd be hard pressed to believe that this "acting white" is related to "not talking ignorant". If that were the case, there are gazillions of black people who "act white". Could there be something else that explains why people say you "talk white"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoEd Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 I've been in the military now for 16 years and have been exposed to all races from all walks of life from all over the world. There is a lot of prejudice, racism and sterotypes out there to deal with. From what I've seen it's usually "white" people being tagged with being racist but I can assure you there are as many if not more blacks that are prejudice against whites. Maybe because of upbringing or incedents in their lives they have a reason to be. The fact of the matter is until we all learn to live with one another it will never go away. So talking white/black. My problem with this is it almost seems like talking improperly or lazily is becoming acceptable. When writing performance reports in the AF one of the things a person is rated on is how well does he or she communicate with others. If I can't understand you or you talk to someone of authority like they're one of your buddies hanging out in the dorms, how can I give you a high mark. I've seen people who talk to a Colonel the way they'd talk to one of their cousins. Unacceptable, but believe it or not it's starting to be ignored. We call this the dumbing of the AF. I don't why standards are lowered to accomodate a growing population of young adults who don't feel like it's necessary to talk in a manner that's respectful and understandable. If you want to call it talking white then so be it, if you want to call talking lazily with slang words talking black that's on you. I call it talking right and talking crap. As far as sterotypes go, I'm a white boy from West Virginia who likes to hunt and fish, guess what I'm a redneck. That's all I've heard my entire life. What is a redneck? My definition of a redneck is an ignorant person who doesn't want to speak properly and has a tendancy to dislike everyone who's a different color than him/her. Funny thing is you'll see rednecks driving around in their jacked up trucks with rap thumping through their speaker boxes crammed behind the seats. Ironic isn't it? Well I'm just a hillbilly raised to treat everyone the same no matter what color they are. Until I joined the military I didn't even know people were as racist as they are. When I left home in 89 we didn't call people black, that was an insult, black people were colored. Sounds crappy but it's true, if you asked a black person what they prefered to be called they would tell you "I'm not black, do I look black to you". Can you imagine the hell I got the first time I called a black person "colored". Thank god it was an older NCO that schooled me before I got my ass whooped. A young extremely intelligent young black man stationed with me at Andrews AFB was given hell on a daily basis by all the other black men in our shop because he spoke properly and treated people with respect. He listened to rap, rock, country whatever, he's an outcast because of this. He's a southern boy from south Alabama and still speaks clearly and properly because that's how his grandmother raised him. He's an outcast, how is this acceptable? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Air Force Cane Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Times are a changing I believe. there are now too many well educated minorities, who are not only middle class but rich. they put paid to the lie that you have to be "ghetto" to be authentically black. especially in the military we don't have colors- we are all green/blue/tan.. with Lynn Swann running for Governor in Pennsylvania, Mike Steele running in Maryland and Ken Blackwell in Ohio you are seeing very well spoken black men run as Republicans. the rappers and PDiddy are much smarter than they let on- even they are starting to dress well and "thug life" is not as important as it used to be. Keep on the good fight.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ntotoro Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 I don't think there's really truly a way of acting white or black. What there is is acting foolishly or without class. It seems, unfortunately, that black people (especially younger ones) are often chastised for not being fools or talking like morons. They're called "acting white" or what other saying is out there. Just as unfortunately, there are white kids, Asian kids, etcetera who think acting like fools is cool and emulate it. That's just what I think, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hu-bison-skinsfan Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 It's the big reason why I date outside my race. I find it funny that, when I offer friendship to a black woman, I've had it mocked and thrown back in my face, yet when that same friendship is accepted by a white woman, she gets angry and calls me "Uncle Tom." Talk about stereotypes! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stwasm Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Talk about stereotypes! It's really messed up. And growing up, I really didn't understand it. There were times I didn't want to speak in class because of all the snickering. Taking education seriously is nothing of which to be ashamed, nor does it make you "less black." I'd rather be educated with a job, than "cool" and in jail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexRS Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 It is so sad that people would redicule their own for not being ignorant. Who decided that this whole "inner city" crap is black culture, anyways? I know it is all marketing, but I've heard some interesting theories... for example that this is ultimately a plan to keep black people down - uneducated and confined to inner cities. I do not believe in it, but it does have that effect. To have blacks reinforce it themselves is just so freakin sad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ball Coach Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 It is so sad that people would redicule their own for not being ignorant. Who decided that this whole "inner city" crap is black culture, anyways? I know it is all marketing, but I've heard some interesting theories... for example that this is ultimately a plan to keep black people down - uneducated and confined to inner cities. I do not believe in it, but it does have that effect. To have blacks reinforce it themselves is just so freakin sad. Marketing? So rich white people on Madison Avenue are responsible for infiltrating the inner cities and imposing their will on black culture? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexRS Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Marketing? So rich white people on Madison Avenue are responsible for infiltrating the inner cities and imposing their will on black culture?Not one single thing or group can be blamed for this, just like not one thing or group can stop it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chomerics Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Alex and Die Hard, spot on guys. For anyone that THINKS they are racial neutral, and hold no bias towards black people I challange you to take THIS test. https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/Instructions Even black people are biased towards white people, it is a product of our environment. BTW, my results were: Your data suggest a moderate automatic preference for European American compared to African American. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chomerics Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Marketing? So rich white people on Madison Avenue are responsible for infiltrating the inner cities and imposing their will on black culture? Hmmm, it is a tough question, but there is a lot of truth to it. Why are black people more disposed to smoking Newports (70%) compared with white people (<5%). How about looking at rap as favorable, whereas many white people look at rap as a problem with society. Madison Ave markets to black people, as they can delve into the culture and exploit is just as they do white people, we are ALL products of Madison Ave, but as long as you recognize this, you will understand more about your own choices. Read the book "Blink", it is about making split decisions in the matter of an instance, and why we make those decisions. It is also about how society is manipulated into chosing certain things in life, yet they don't know why they are making the choices. It is a book on our subconcious brain, and how it makes decisions for us without even realizing conciously we are making those decisions. It should be required reading for every person who is about to enter the world, because it forces you to start to think about certain judgements and stereotypes you have, along with how these stereotypes came into play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexRS Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Hmmm, it is a tough question, but there is a lot of truth to it. Why are black people more disposed to smoking Newports (70%) compared with white people (<5%). How about looking at rap as favorable, whereas many white people look at rap as a problem with society. Madison Ave markets to black people, as they can delve into the culture and exploit is just as they do white people, we are ALL products of Madison Ave, but as long as you recognize this, you will understand more about your own choices. Read the book "Blink", it is about making split decisions in the matter of an instance, and why we make those decisions. It is also about how society is manipulated into chosing certain things in life, yet they don't know why they are making the choices. It is a book on our subconcious brain, and how it makes decisions for us without even realizing conciously we are making those decisions. It should be required reading for every person who is about to enter the world, because it forces you to start to think about certain judgements and stereotypes you have, along with how these stereotypes came into play. Yeah, and imho the danger comes from thinking "they" do it... There is no "they" or evil plan. We want to externalize things as a way to avoid taking responsibility for them - but it is all inside. There are levers inside our brains that get pushed. Our levers get pushed, and it will keep happening. The only thing we can do is claim control over the process since we cannot stop it. People often do not realize how much control they can have over themselves. You can look inside or swim with the current. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissU28 Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 sweet sassy, even though it may be considered "politically incorrect", I know exactly what people are talking about when somebody says a black person acts white or a white person acts black. Personally, sometimes I've gotten that stigma as well. The majority of guys I've dated have been black, and I have people asking me, "do you wish you were black?" or some nonsense. It's also about labels...I have a few things in my closet that the majority of the public would consider "urban" or "black", such as a few Rocawear tops and a couple pair of Baby Phat jeans. Am I trying to "dress black?" No....BUT... there IS a difference in the two cultures. I've spent a lot of time with black families and of course a lot of time with white families as well. While there are many similarities between both types of families, we also have to remember that our cultures are very different. Stereotypically, black people like certain things and stereotypically white people like certain things. Are they always correct? No. Are they sometimes correct? Yes. Same with all stereotypes. I don't like people asking me, "do you think you're black?" just because I've dated black guys or listen to hip-hop/r&b. Just as I'm sure you don't like to be told you act white. It IS the media but it's also based on reality. People want to conform to what seems "right" to the majority. They want to fit in. That is why there are very few black country singers or cowboys. The majority of them aren't black and it's not in their culture so others don't really want to break into it. Same thing with surfers... sure there are black surfers out there but how many? Then there are people who don't give a damn and seek out wherever they feel comfortable. If you feel comfortable doing what you're doing, that's great. You'll probably be hit with "you act white" and it might piss you off...but I don't see that changing anytime soon. You may not be the stereotype of the "black culture." So what? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camyj15 Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 SSM I can kind of see your gripe. I grew up attending predominately black schools and I have heard people say to other blacks that they are acting white or talking white. I rarely speak slang or broken English and no one accuses me of talking or acting white. My speculation is that you are being judged more on your company and cultural tastes than by your manner of speaking. I'm not saying this is the right thing to do because it's not. In my experiences of growing up attending predominately black schools and then going on to attend a predominately white college, I have seen that some blacks will shun all or most things black, particularly when it doesn't suit them. Some blacks will perceive this as a slight and try to hurt such a person by calling them "white". They say "white" not so much to connote speaking properly, as much to say that "here is a black person that is shunning her race." I don't know you, so I'm not saying this is you, but this is what I have seen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chomerics Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Yeah, and imho the danger comes from thinking "they" do it... There is no "they" or evil plan. I would have to disagree with you here because there are definately evil plans that stem from Madison Avenue, Joe Camel comes to mind off the top of my head. That's not to say that Madison Avenue is inherently bad, they are just more in tuned to the way society thinks, and they make billiond off this knowledge. Dick Morris and Karl Rove are the politican version of Madison Ave, and Frank Luntz is close behind. All know how to manipulate the public to get them to think something which is not true actually is. We want to externalize things as a way to avoid taking responsibility for them - but it is all inside. There are levers inside our brains that get pushed. Our levers get pushed, and it will keep happening. The only thing we can do is claim control over the process since we cannot stop it. People often do not realize how much control they can have over themselves. You can look inside or swim with the current. I agree, good post Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kosher Ham Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Joe, I got some opinions on this, but dont have the time to make a long post right now, as I am headed out in a second. I think you and I have probably experienced a lot of the same things growing up (As well as my little brother). Although you are younger than me I bet they are a lot of similarities. Is it my fault that I took getting an education seriously and that my parents were disciplinarians who wanted me to talk like I had some sense ? Funny thing is that my fiancee always gets, " you dont sound like your are from Boston". Well hello idiot, her mother is a freakin' teacher and raised her children not to talk with that retarded accent. And its not just from blacks or whites, its from all kinds of people. Anyway, I will back on this thread for certain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexRS Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 I would have to disagree with you here because there are definately evil plans that stem from Madison Avenue, Joe Camel comes to mind off the top of my head. That's not to say that Madison Avenue is inherently bad, they are just more in tuned to the way society thinks, and they make billiond off this knowledge. Dick Morris and Karl Rove are the politican version of Madison Ave, and Frank Luntz is close behind. All know how to manipulate the public to get them to think something which is not true actually is. I hear ya! But what makes those evil plans work? We do. We make them work by succumbing to them. Does it matter if Karl Rove uses those mechanisms knowingly or Joe Marketing stumbles upon them by chance? I offer that it does not. You cannot prevent evil from scheming or Joes from trying. The only way to stop it is to take away the lever. Marketing imho makes this more apperent by shedding away everything that does not "work," thus leaving levers increasingly exposed. Maybe I am talking just about Hollywood... EDIT: I think it would be too dangerous to start blaming somebody or something for scheming. That would make us too likely to try and fight the face of evil rather then the mechanism by which it works. There will always be another Karl Rove you see... must take away the lever Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
praise_gibbs Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 I do not stereotype people whom "act" white or black by there color but, by there taste in music. Now I know that sentence above can be confusing and maybe even taken the wrong way--so I will explain the best way I can. Lets use Eminem for example, He is claimed by many to "act" black. Why because he raps? That is just bogus if you ask me. It all comes with the culture he is brought up around. In my eyes he would not be considered "acting" black but expressing the hip-hop culture. Same goes for, say, DeFord Bailey [the first black star of the Grand Ole Opry] and Charley Pride [who has unquestionably been the most well-known black country singer (and one of the most successful country artists of any color) of all time]-- They are country musicians, so does that make them white by association? Of course it does not. They were brought up in the country (Bailey in Tennessee and Pride in Mississippi) listening to that type of music. This is just the world we live in and it, to be honest, does not seem to be getting better fast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raub Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 In a few thousand years everyone will be the same skin color and all this won't matter. Let's hope we can all get along long enough to let it happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riggins44 Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 I've never understood this as well. In college had a black roommate. He was one of the best roommates ever had. I would say he acted like himself, not black or white, but as an individual. Did have a buddy (during parents weekend at a private school) told me he was going to teach me to walk black. We got some weird looks, but we had some great laughs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kilmer17 Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 stoopid star bellied sneeches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.