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Blackness Primer Revisited
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Posted By:
Genna at 03/24/2008 1:32:15 PM
Comment:
This article and the response to the earlier one reminds me of a conversation I had at work about Christianity. I refused to define or to accept a definition of Christianity if it let gay and *** people out. The argument was counterintuitive to me. If you accept that this basic premise than you can exclude those that don't adhere to that premise.
Here you say blackness is a continuum, you are neither black or not black based on adherence to a core premise or set of propositions. I can agree with that. There is a diversity in black circles that I had to learn coming from a majority high school, going into a HBCU, and leaving to attend a majority graduate institution. I had incredible misfortune thinking everyone was black when I went to work thereafter.
It makes sense to understand all aspects of blackness if we are going to be functional. I liked this piece. -
Posted By:
jesus christ was a black man at 03/20/2008 2:30:00 PM
Comment:
Deep-frying originated in Africa, for what it's worth. Apparently the Scottish in the American south deep-fryed their chicken, but they likely had adopted it from Africa previous to their migration to the New World. Cetainly, the spicy element in fried chicken was directly African. -
Posted By:
jesus christ was a black man at 03/20/2008 12:25:58 PM
Comment:
Deep-frying originated in Africa, for what it's worth. Apparently the Scottish in the American south deep-fryed their chicken, but they likely had adopted it from Africa previous to their migration to the New World. Cetainly, the spicy element in fried chicken was directly African. -
Posted By:
kanye west at 03/10/2008 3:43:14 PM
Comment:
I think that Mchorter was trying to address the self hatred that is present in many blacks in our community more than he was trying to impress people by saying something new or innovative. Before new conclusions that our formed about our culture can be shared some of us must first get to a place emotionally/pschologically where we can accept many of the very simplistic old truths about our culture overall that we already know. -
Posted By:
aja at 03/03/2008 11:17:42 AM
Comment:
as previously, i really wondering about the blackness, according to this definition, of black americans who do not happen to have southern roots. are they mere shadows of american blackness? looking dark enough to the naked eye, but because they maybe don't fry their chicken or go to church, they actually don't have black substance? my best guess would be that the things indentified herein as foundations of black culture--black english, church membership, fried chicken (all, so over-simplified), etc, are not so much foundations of culture as manifestations of culture--that is, the difference between saying that black people join churches or the black culture organizes itself around spiritual centers. -
Posted By:
liz at 03/03/2008 3:19:14 AM
Comment:
this piece still does not answer the previous one. the question still is: who cares if you are blacker because you eat more chicken? what are we supposed to do with this question? is McWhorter's lesser blackness an absolution for the fact he wrote an irrelevant piece on "blackness", without saying anything new. perhaps the fact he is an educated man is supposed to make this article 'news'? -
Posted By:
thrasher at 03/02/2008 4:36:00 PM
Comment:
McWhorter is a yoyo who has zero street cred and is an Black apologist for white folks and conservatives. He resents being Black and has a low opinon of Black culture. I am not surprised by his now willingness to assert blackness given Blacks apologists will be out of work when Obam becomes the prez.. -
Posted By:
Dirk3rdd at 03/01/2008 9:20:04 PM
Comment:
retarded. period. -
Posted By:
adisa at 03/01/2008 1:02:11 AM
Comment:
Oohh the irony of John McWhorter passing as a arbiter of Blacknes!!!! -
Posted By:
dnA at 02/29/2008 4:26:03 PM
Comment:
I tend to think black culture is like love...everyone has a different definition, and we know it when see it, but it's really hard to draw the line. I also think it's problematic to do so, because there are negative traits associated with black culture that are really American cultural idiosyncrasies, and it is a function of American culture to see those things as bad or ugly only when black people do them. -
Posted By:
ceelady at 02/29/2008 3:00:11 PM
Comment:
that's silly blessinggirl. baby mama has nothing to do with being black. Are you ok?? -
Posted By:
ceelady at 02/29/2008 2:58:55 PM
Comment:
blessinggirl, What do you mean "the writeralso ignores the horrendous problems within our communities."? The things you brought up have nothing to do with blackness or being Black. Too bad you feel that way!-
Posted By:
blessinggirl at 03/01/2008 10:52:32 AM
Comment:
Dear Posters, I'm just fine. If I ws unclear in my comment, let's try this: Fried chicken and dancing do not make a culture. Everyone eats fried chicken and white people are learning to dance rather than jump around not in sync with the beat. So what? Sadly, the hallmarks of our culture--dignity, hard work, thrift and laughing in the face of outrageous obstacles--are diminished by touting stuff that does not matter. And "baby mama" and "baby daddy" are terms of dysfunction that we should not be proud of.
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Posted By:
blessinggirl at 02/28/2008 10:55:46 PM
Comment:
I have head some of the writer's commentary, but I find this essay just plain foolish. The writer fails to catch the paradigm shift in American and global culture occurring in this century. The writer also ignores the horrendous problems within our communities. If the media's appropriation of the terms "baby mama" and "baby daddy" is something to be proud of, count me out. Each of us has the right to pursue our intellectual priorities. I simply see his commentary as worthless and silly. -
Posted By:
lalady at 02/28/2008 5:49:48 PM
Comment:
okay. that made me hungry!!! :-) -
Posted By:
SilkCity_1 at 02/28/2008 4:09:41 PM
Comment:
So when do you publish the blackness continuum? I'd like to know where I fit in. Just kidding! -
Posted By:
Tara at 02/28/2008 3:41:22 PM
Comment:
Okay. I hear ya. And why is any of this important? I mean that respectfully. Let's say you're 100% correct. What's the difference? What about this dialogue is important to you? Or why do you think this is important for the Black community to consider? -
Posted By:
Qusan at 02/28/2008 11:54:24 AM
Comment:
Isn't this the dude that called Obama a mammy? He is bi-racial and married to a white woman yet just seems fixated on who is black and what black is. He's starting to wear on my nerves. -
Posted By:
tstwine at 02/28/2008 11:29:17 AM
Comment:
If fried chicken, dancing and ebonics are things that define blackness then we are a shallow race of people. I beleive most of the older black people, those of us over 50 were raised to beleive education, church and familly was black traits. Ebonics is a sympton of laziness, ignorance and and complacency. I seriously pray that those traits will die in black america -
Posted By:
ken at 02/28/2008 9:45:23 AM
Comment:
Riddle me this Mr. McWhorter; if Ebonics isn't "bad grammar" how come you don't use it when you write?-
Posted By:
grapecranberry at 03/03/2008 7:05:04 PM
Comment:
THANK YOU-
Posted By:
kanye west at 03/10/2008 3:51:37 PM
Comment:
My guess would be for the same reason that professional whites do not use venacular english or the slang of their social/ethnic group (especially if they're under 35) when they write.
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Posted By:
homelandcolors at 02/28/2008 8:56:17 AM
Comment:
It???s good to see some one speak about American Blacks, or African Americans, as a culture as opposed to a race. It???s a point that, much more often, needs to be made. -
Posted By:
tobaccoschild at 02/28/2008 1:36:38 AM
Comment:
i don't agree with you often, but this was truly interesting and i have to agree -
Posted By:
deangelo starnes at 02/28/2008 12:10:44 AM
Comment:
A pretty weak rebuttal despite all the verbiage.
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