Pittsuburgh racist to who? (Pittsburgh: high schools, living, to eat)

[ditchdigger]

Originally Posted by chicknpotpie
And he definitely has a "rural" accent? Is pittsburgh a big farm city like Columbus? He sounds kinda redneckish...

Well, if you're not from here, you probably don't recognize that song as coming from the morning show on WDVE. They do a lot of comedy. The accent is an audio "charicature", if you will, of the way some Pittsburghers talk--the stereotypical yinzers to be exact. The thing about sterotypes is that while some people may fit them, not everyone does. It's a mistake, a big mistake, to believe that any sterotype represents any given individual of any given group. I shouldn't have to point that out to you.

The song also demonstrates that we're able to not take ourselves too seriously, or at least that we're not so stuffy that our entertainers can get away with not taking us too seriously.

And also, the foreigners as jackoffs comment doesn't specify that they be non-white. There are plenty of white foreigners who are jackoffs. The French fer instance...

On edit: BTW, it's not "jackoff" he sings, it's "jagoff". Same thing, but in Pittsburghese.

[highway29south]

Originally Posted by creepsinc

Where is this segregated Pittsburgh everybody talks about? 30 years ago?

My neighborhood is mixed. Most of them are, except for maybe the Hill. And Troy Hill.

Sorry, but I beg to differ. We live west of the city and my kids go to school with maybe a handful of African-American kids. There are no other races represented in any neighborhood near me except white and some indian. My husband grew up in Brentwood where there were only whites and very much discrimination. Maybe some neighborhoods are mixed in the city but most, especially the suburbs, are segregated. Contrast that to Southern Virginia, where I grew up and went to school with 50% white, 50% black in a middle class neighborhood.

[Mugatu]

Originally Posted by PeterRabbit

If something is supposed to be typical of Pittsburgh you don't have a hick accent portraying the part. Also, I don't know anyone who speaks using words like yinz, etc., that are attributed to us. Maybe that's common in the South Hills or wherever lower educated people live. In general I don't think Pittsburghers have accents and we sound like the common people you see and hear on national news. But when I moved to Kansas City some people picked up I was from here from how I talked. I may have asked for too many gumbands.

So the South Hills are where "lower educated people" live?

In my 2 1/2 years up here, I've met all kinds of people that say "yinz" and have the thick Pittsburgh accent. Of course, I've met people that were raised here that have little or no accent as well. But for the most part, I notice the Pittsburgh accent all the time, from tv personalities, to radio, to the average person on the street. It's very noticeable. The odd thing is that most Pittsburghers don't even realize they have much of an accent. There is a woman at my job from NY, and she gets made fun of when she slips into the NY accent. Ironically, the people teasing her both have VERY thick Pittsburgh accents. I turned the tables and ribbed them about their Pittsburgh accent by saying something like "get aht of da hahs!" They looked at me dumbfounded and said "we don't sahnd like dat!"

So you probably have the Pittsburgh accent and don't even realize it, thus the reason people noticed it in KC.

[highway29south]

Originally Posted by Mugatu

So the South Hills are where "lower educated people" live?

In my 2 1/2 years up here, I've met all kinds of people that say "yinz" and have the thick Pittsburgh accent. Of course, I've met people that were raised here that have little or no accent as well. But for the most part, I notice the Pittsburgh accent all the time, from tv personalities, to radio, to the average person on the street. It's very noticeable. The odd thing is that most Pittsburghers don't even realize they have much of an accent. There is a woman at my job from NY, and she gets made fun of when she slips into the NY accent. Ironically, the people teasing her both have VERY thick Pittsburgh accents. I turned the tables and ribbed them about their Pittsburgh accent by saying something like "get aht of da hahs!" They looked at me dumbfounded and said "we don't sahnd like dat!"

So you probably have the Pittsburgh accent and don't even realize it, thus the reason people noticed it in KC.

Lol, I do the same thing to my husband. He had a very thick Pittsburgh accent when I met him and he didn't even notice it, so I made fun of him. I'm from the south so I noticed it right away. He's been working on it but still slips at times. Now, when I try to repeat something my husband says in his Pittsburghese, yinz guys, he laughs at me. He says you have to grow up here to get it right.

You do hear people here without much of an accent but some people have it really bad. Just depends, I guess. But I do agree that Pittsburghers cannot hear their own accent. I can't hear my southern accent when it comes out so I guess it's the same everywhere.

[Kate88]

Originally Posted by ditchdigger

Well, if you're not from here, you probably don't recognize that song as coming from the morning show on WDVE. They do a lot of comedy. The accent is an audio "charicature", if you will, of the way some Pittsburghers talk--the stereotypical yinzers to be exact.

I was going to say that sounded a lot like a voice I recognized from the "n'at man" skits from WDVE.

[ainulinale]

Originally Posted by highway29south

Sorry, but I beg to differ. We live west of the city and my kids go to school with maybe a handful of African-American kids. There are no other races represented in any neighborhood near me except white and some indian. My husband grew up in Brentwood where there were only whites and very much discrimination. Maybe some neighborhoods are mixed in the city but most, especially the suburbs, are segregated. Contrast that to Southern Virginia, where I grew up and went to school with 50% white, 50% black in a middle class neighborhood.

Um...that's because the Pittsburgh metro doesn't have a high black population, not because it is segregated.

[creepsinc]

Originally Posted by ainulinale

Um...that's because the Pittsburgh metro doesn't have a high black population, not because it is segregated.

Majority white population= racist. You'll get it one day.

[ditchdigger]

Originally Posted by Kate88

I was going to say that sounded a lot like a voice I recognized from the "n'at man" skits from WDVE.

That's it. Another example of an audio charicature of the stereotypical yinzer.

I should have also pointed out in my earlier post, that a charicature isn't a portrait. Charicatures overemphasize easily recognizable features. So, a charicature of a stereotype might well be recognizable for what it's trying to make light of, but it sure doesn't paint a portrait quality picture of any individuals that are represented by it.

[ainulinale]

Originally Posted by creepsinc

Majority white population= racist. You'll get it one day.

That's what they keep telling me on the t.v. box...I can't imagine they could say it if it wasn't true.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by fleetiebelle

Yeah, it's definitely more of a "they don't know better" situation than outright hateful racism. Luckily it means that most people are willing to learn and get to know people of other cultures or who are different from them.

So, basically what you just said describes prejudice, not racism. There is a difference, but some think they are one and the same.