Black folk, sound off

[sockmonkey]

Okay, in addition to my passion for understanding alternative lifestyles, I love to converse with (intelligent) people about race and the social dynamics thereof. Obviously with the historic page we're turning in the U.S. right now, this is a topic that's been on many minds over the last couple years.

This is a thread just for my chocolate friends. (And I'd like this not to get too political; the questions aren't meant to have any political connotation behind them.) There are two simple questions, which may be more complicated to answer than it might appear at first blush.

1.) Which do you think is more insulting: when a white person tries to talk all "hood" to you, or when a black person talks to you like they know you just because you both have the same skin colour?

2.) What does Barack Obama being elected mean to you? Not to the black community, but to you personally.


I'm looking forward to the answers.

[Fox]

1.) Which do you think is more insulting: when a white person tries to talk all "hood" to you, or when a black person talks to you like they know you just because you both have the same skin colour?

2.) What does Barack Obama being elected mean to you? Not to the black community, but to you personally.


I'm looking forward to the answers.

1. I'm not insulted by either, really. I don't come across people who pretend to know me though, black or white.

2. It means that my people will never be invisible again. It means that another young cat who didn't grow up with a father doesn't have to up being a statistic to the pitfalls that are usually born from it no matter their ethnicity. It means the world gets a positive view of a black man. That is important because even though it's almost 2009, some people still have draconian and stereotypical views about us so every little bit helps. I know you asked for a personal opinion, but this one is one in the same. ;)

[KiraHarden]

1.) Which do you think is more insulting: when a white person tries to talk all "hood" to you, or when a black person talks to you like they know you just because you both have the same skin colour?

2.) What does Barack Obama being elected mean to you? Not to the black community, but to you personally.


I'm looking forward to the answers.

1. I'm not insulted by either, really. I don't come across people who pretend to know me though, black or white.

2. It means that my people will never be invisible again. It means that another young cat who didn't grow up with a father doesn't have to up being a statistic to the pitfalls that are usually born from it no matter their ethnicity. It means the world gets a positive view of a black man. That is important because even though it's almost 2009, some people still have draconian and stereotypical views about us so every little bit helps. I know you asked for a personal opinion, but this one is one in the same. ;)

I love what you said Fox :)

[PrinceVince99]

Yea I was going to say the same thing, that was a very intelligent answer.

[sugdaddie69]

On the first question,neither bothers me.
Obama getting elected means a great deal to me personally,and for this country.Honestly,i never thought i live to see a person of color be President
of USA.That said i'll most likely get slammed for this next part.The racism in this country is so DEEP
that Obama,Tiger,Jeter,Halle,or any other bi-racial
person born in this country is automatically declared
black,whether their other parent is a white male,or
female.

[blckhaze]

Okay, in addition to my passion for understanding alternative lifestyles, I love to converse with (intelligent) people about race and the social dynamics thereof. Obviously with the historic page we're turning in the U.S. right now, this is a topic that's been on many minds over the last couple years.

This is a thread just for my chocolate friends. (And I'd like this not to get too political; the questions aren't meant to have any political connotation behind them.) There are two simple questions, which may be more complicated to answer than it might appear at first blush.

1.) Which do you think is more insulting: when a white person tries to talk all "hood" to you, or when a black person talks to you like they know you just because you both have the same skin colour?

2.) What does Barack Obama being elected mean to you? Not to the black community, but to you personally.


I'm looking forward to the answers.


1) a- I laugh @ white people who act "hood". Key word is act. Its down right side splitting.
b- Doesnt happen often. Every city/neighborhood/block has its own slang and shit, so its impossible, to me at least, to assume anyhting abotu someone.

2) It mean when I have kids, I don't have to say "You can be anything if you work hard. Except President." Other than that, Im happy for, but Im sad my grandparents, who were apart of the civil rights movement, didnt live to see it.

[Instrumental]

1.) I suppose it would depend on how the hypothetical black person acts in that case but generally the former is more insulting.

2.) Nothing. *shrug*

[blckhaze]

The racism in this country is so DEEP that Obama,Tiger,Jeter,Halle,or any other bi-racial person born in this country is automatically declared black,whether their other parent is a white male,or
female.

well, from my experience, if your half black, you might as be full black until you do something grand, and only then are you bi-racial.

[gimmeurblood]

1) neither, until we've developed some kind of interpersonal relationship i hate people plus it takes a lot more to insult me

2)nothing, he's still a politician and politicians are evil

[Alyssa87]

lol @ BLACK FOLK.

[ARMANIXXX]

1. Don't care as long as it's not intentionally condescending towards me.


2. Obama getting elected means alot here. But it also means people of other countries will be forced to view black people differently, if only just a little bit, because over the last 2 years or so, I learned that people in other countries, because of media portrayal, black people there are often thought of as dirty scoundrels. That bothers me, and now, now with Obmama, I smile.

[sockmonkey]

lol @ BLACK FOLK.


It's like Arlo Guthrie, if Arlo Guthrie was the RZA.

[trish]

I’ve met a lot a people and almost everybody presents a facade of one sort or another when meeting others for the first time. My inclination is to ignore the façade and try to get a glimpse behind it.


I was attracted to Obama when he was running for the Senate in my state of Illinois. When I first heard him speak at a small town meeting everyone around me said, “This man’s going to be president some day.” He spoke to each question clearly and truthfully. I was struck by his intellectual integrity. That and the fact that his political vision aligns fairly well with my own fairly liberal perspective is why I voted for him. Of course I identified with the fact that he was black and was excited by the fact that a black man had such an excellent chance of becoming president. But I suppose I didn’t consciously allow myself to dwell on that. I wanted him to win because of his moral, intellectual and political take on the issues that we all face. I wanted myself to judge him on those merits and to argue for or against him on those merits. It wasn’t until I watched his acceptance speech through bleary eyes and watched my family and friends reacting emotionally to what had just happened, that I realized how deeply we all felt and how long we have all waited for this moment.

[unctrld1]

1.) Which do you think is more insulting: when a white person tries to talk all "hood" to you, or when a black person talks to you like they know you just because you both have the same skin colour?

I have only had this happen to me once, in a bar in Las Vegas. A White man began speaking to me using slang and a voice that obviously not his. It was Jamie Kennedy-esqe. I just looked at this fool like he was speaking a foreign language. He eventually stopped and walked away. I was not insulted, i just had pity for him.


2.) What does Barack Obama being elected mean to you? Not to the black community, but to you personally.

To me personally the election of Barack Obama means nothing. My personal politics slant militant. I am of the H. Rap Brown, Kwame Toure [Stokley Carmichael], Huey P. Neuton, Malcolm X school of thought. I believe that Africans in America try to identify with their masters in every respect. Obama represents the ultimate dream of the intergrationist - final acceptance by those who rejected and oppressed them. I have seen in the eyes and words of my people since November 4 a sense of great relief. Relief in that after 400 plus years of begging their oppressors for acceptance, their wish has finally come true. Time will tell if their wishes have been fulfilled. I personally do not believe that the election of this man be beneficial for the millions of African people in this country.

To paraphrase a scene from the movie Malcolm X: They let one Black Man be president, that does not cancel out the greatest crime in history.

Uhuru.

[speck]

I don't understand people who say they never thought they would live to see a black president. Really? Really?

Colin Powell, had he chosen to run, would have won the presidency in 2000. He was off the charts in his popularity ratings and it wasn't even close.

We've had a number of black senators and governors.

Two black Secretary's of State....arguably the second most powerful person in the country.

And a couple of black supreme court justices.

IMO, it was just a matter of time before we had a black, latino, or asian president.


The racism in this country is so DEEP that
Obama,Tiger,Jeter,Halle,or any other bi-racial person born in this country is automatically declared black,whether their other parent is a white male,or female.

Appearance plays a great deal into everything. All of the above people look black and at least a few of those you listed consider themselves black. I know a black guy who everyone thinks is white until he tells them that he is actually black. So whatever. Considering one of you listed people black has nothing to do with racism and everything to do with appearance.

[bte]

Okay, in addition to my passion for understanding alternative lifestyles, I love to converse with (intelligent) people about race and the social dynamics thereof. Obviously with the historic page we're turning in the U.S. right now, this is a topic that's been on many minds over the last couple years.

This is a thread just for my chocolate friends. (And I'd like this not to get too political; the questions aren't meant to have any political connotation behind them.) There are two simple questions, which may be more complicated to answer than it might appear at first blush.

1.) Which do you think is more insulting: when a white person tries to talk all "hood" to you, or when a black person talks to you like they know you just because you both have the same skin colour?

2.) What does Barack Obama being elected mean to you? Not to the black community, but to you personally.


I'm looking forward to the answers.


1. I don't find it insulting but whether annoying on the first thing you mentioned but not the latter.

2. I voted for McCain, but Obama win hopefully will show the world that America can transcend race. Although I don't believe racism is dead, but a black man being elected president shows that America is changing.

[BlkJewels]

1. As long a they r real, I can b insulted.

I can't answer the 2nd question til he's actually sworn in. I really need 2 see it happen..

[sockmonkey]

1) a- I laugh @ white people who act "hood". Key word is act. Its down right side splitting.

Speaking as a white dude, I just don't get it. I mean, I understand the idea of trying to adopt a fashion in pursuit of acceptance and all that, but shit, the practicality of it is nonexistent. I always figured black people look at whites who dress like this as clowns; I know I damn sure do. It's one thing if you're white and you're raised in the ghetto for one reason or another, but people like myself, who are as middle-class as can be? Come on, who are you trying to fool? My black friends just judge me on the content of my character, same as I do them. And I feel blessed in a lot of ways, in that when they look at me, they don't see just a "typical white dude." Although I've always said, I don't necessarily want to be the white guy with black friends; I just want to be the guy with friends. Either way, there's a definite level of respect there; when I talk to them, I don't talk down or condescend to them, or change my tone of voice or try to change my manner of speech. I feel that if I were to do that, like a lot of white people do, that would be inherently racist.

But to get back to the point (in a convoluted, round-about sort of way), I think if I were black, I wouldn't be able to help but take a great amount of pity on white people that pretend to be something they're not in such a fashion because, sadly, they Just Don't Get It.


Doesnt happen often. Every city/neighborhood/block has its own slang and shit, so its impossible, to me at least, to assume anyhting abotu someone.

I think it's a little bit different here in the midwest; everybody's slang and other idioms tend to blend together as a result of the demographics and georgraphy out here.


2) It mean when I have kids, I don't have to say "You can be anything if you work hard. Except President." Other than that, Im happy for, but Im sad my grandparents, who were apart of the civil rights movement, didnt live to see it.

Yeah, that sentiment really sort of brings it back down to earth, doesn't it? If there is a God (which I don't believe, but that doesn't matter), you'd really tend to hope that they're smiling down from the afterlife and aware that all the pain and suffering and horror they went through is making a difference in the lives of their descendants.


Good conversation, Haze; I'm enjoying it.

[peggygee]

1.) Which do you think is more insulting: when a white person tries to talk all "hood" to you, or when a black person talks to you like they know you just because you both have the same skin colour?

2.) What does Barack Obama being elected mean to you? Not to the black community, but to you personally.


I'm looking forward to the answers.

1. In responding to the first question, I had to think for a bit 'what
speaking hood' connoted.

If we mean that a person of the 'caucasian persuasion' is speaking in a
faux ebonics, then yes that is problematic.

However, if he or she were using hip hop jargon and rhetoric, then that
is acceptable.

Hip hop cuulture, much like rock and roll and jazz before it, have
transcended cultures, and been co-opted by the masses.

2. On Obama; I am old enough to remember when many Blacks were
legally denied the right to vote.

I remember the passing into legislation of The National Voting Rights Act
of 1965 (42 U.S.C. § 1973–1973aa-6). Which oulawed discriminatory
voting practices that had been responsible for the widespread
dsenfranchisement of African Americans in the United States.

I remember Shirley Chisholm, Jesse Jackson, and Al Sharpton running
for President.

I knew it was not a matter of when not if a person of color
would be elected to the presidency.

Though, I was, and still am aware that there remains much work to do to
heal the wounds of slavery and colonialism.

[blckhaze]

1) a- I laugh @ white people who act "hood". Key word is act. Its down right side splitting.

Speaking as a white dude, I just don't get it. I mean, I understand the idea of trying to adopt a fashion in pursuit of acceptance and all that, but shit, the practicality of it is nonexistent. I always figured black people look at whites who dress like this as clowns; I know I damn sure do. It's one thing if you're white and you're raised in the ghetto for one reason or another, but people like myself, who are as middle-class as can be? Come on, who are you trying to fool? My black friends just judge me on the content of my character, same as I do them. And I feel blessed in a lot of ways, in that when they look at me, they don't see just a "typical white dude." Although I've always said, I don't necessarily want to be the white guy with black friends; I just want to be the guy with friends. Either way, there's a definite level of respect there; when I talk to them, I don't talk down or condescend to them, or change my tone of voice or try to change my manner of speech. I feel that if I were to do that, like a lot of white people do, that would be inherently racist.

But to get back to the point (in a convoluted, round-about sort of way), I think if I were black, I wouldn't be able to help but take a great amount of pity on white people that pretend to be something they're not in such a fashion because, sadly, they Just Don't Get It.


Doesnt happen often. Every city/neighborhood/block has its own slang and shit, so its impossible, to me at least, to assume anyhting abotu someone.

I think it's a little bit different here in the midwest; everybody's slang and other idioms tend to blend together as a result of the demographics and georgraphy out here.


2) It mean when I have kids, I don't have to say "You can be anything if you work hard. Except President." Other than that, Im happy for, but Im sad my grandparents, who were apart of the civil rights movement, didnt live to see it.

Yeah, that sentiment really sort of brings it back down to earth, doesn't it? If there is a God (which I don't believe, but that doesn't matter), you'd really tend to hope that they're smiling down from the afterlife and aware that all the pain and suffering and horror they went through is making a difference in the lives of their descendants.


Good conversation, Haze; I'm enjoying it.


its what i do.

[ottorocket]

I'm not black, but I did stay in Holiday Inn Express last night...lol :P

[RangeHova]

1) For a white person to come at me all hood is more insulting. If that is who they are theni have no beef with it. But when they feel that they have to change how they act and speak to communicate with me it is an insult.

When a Black person comes at me like we know one another that is not offensive at all. Just being apart of a minority group connects people. Go to a predominately Black part of town and see just how friend whites are to one another. Its natural.

2) Obama being elected means a lot to me but less about race issues than just his politics vs John McCain. I think the right has been bad for the country. Lowering taxes, starting wars, and bending over backwards for corporations are not always the answer. He could have been white, Asian, Latin or whatever.

I respect the historic nature and how far we have come as a nation. It's actually kind of given me more of a connection to the country and to my fellow man. It's made me proud to be a Black man, proud of my country and actually proud of much of white America.

[BeardedOne]

I'm not black, but I did stay in Holiday Inn Express last night...lol :P

Is that considered 'the hood'? Our HIE has a Hooters off the lobby. :D

[HotBoy2k27]

Obama is just as much white as he is black. I'm all for change in this country and giving people of all backgrounds opportunity (if they deserve it); however, completely focusing on BA being black is counterproductive and to an extent, reverse-racism.

He is the President Elect of the US and should be viewed as such. Consistently refering to him as the "1st black President" does little more than further divide this country.

[ottorocket]

I'm not black, but I did stay in Holiday Inn Express last night...lol :P

Is that considered 'the hood'? Our HIE has a Hooters off the lobby. :D

Nice!

[brickcitybrother]

I haven't read other's responses so I don't know whether these feelings have been expressed.


1.) Which do you think is more insulting: when a white person tries to talk all "hood" to you, or when a black person talks to you like they know you just because you both have the same skin colour?

Ignorant people are ignorant. Must I explain? But neither will raise my ire'

2.) What does Barack Obama being elected mean to you? Not to the black community, but to you personally.

To me personally, not very much. The President-Elect has many things on his plate ... of which I do not expect to be on the list. I have my own personal self esteem and do not need to see others do well to appreciate myself or to further motivate myself. I do hope that others will stop seeing black men only as the dangerous predators that we are portrayed as on the nightly news and in the daily papers.

[TomSelis]

1.) Which do you think is more insulting: when a white person tries to talk all "hood" to you, or when a black person talks to you like they know you just because you both have the same skin colour?

Honestly, I wouldn't have that much of a problem with either, as long as that particular person isn't trying to fuck me over. I'm taking your question as some random person I met on the street.

If it were a white person I'd just assume A) They really do talk that way (and it's becoming more and more common) B) They are trying to make me feel comfortable by talking like they think I talk.

If it were a black person I still wouldn't mind. I've been to many places in the world and I always get at least "the nod" from a black person. There's been times where I didn't know what the hell they were talking about or I completely disagreed with what they were saying. I've even had latin people come up to me and just start speaking spanish. I think it's pretty cool.



2.) What does Barack Obama being elected mean to you? Not to the black community, but to you personally.


Personally, I'm thankful we have a seemingly intelligent man going into the White House after eight years of a complete idiot first and foremost. I'm a little sad that it took this country to be damned near on it's knees to elect him. But I definitely don't feel like "YES! In your face white people!" I'm just hoping he's allowed to do some really good things for EVERBODY.

[discarded]

Okay, in addition to my passion for understanding alternative lifestyles, I love to converse with (intelligent) people about race and the social dynamics thereof. Obviously with the historic page we're turning in the U.S. right now, this is a topic that's been on many minds over the last couple years.

This is a thread just for my chocolate friends. (And I'd like this not to get too political; the questions aren't meant to have any political connotation behind them.) There are two simple questions, which may be more complicated to answer than it might appear at first blush.

1.) Which do you think is more insulting: when a white person tries to talk all "hood" to you, or when a black person talks to you like they know you just because you both have the same skin colour?

2.) What does Barack Obama being elected mean to you? Not to the black community, but to you personally.


I'm looking forward to the answers.

1. When someone calls me bro. White or black.

2. It means we have no more excuses. It means I can look anyone(white or black or green) in the face and say YOU CAN DO ANYTHING.