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People tend to use the speech patterns of their family, community, and the people they are around most often. There's no one way that Black people talk.
Not true in the South. The majority of blacks without a college education have a certain way they talk. There’s nothing wrong with it, nor should people try to change it.
Not true in the South. The majority of blacks without a college education have a certain way they talk. There’s nothing wrong with it, nor should people try to change it.
Are you saying that as soon as one of those black people go to college, they automatically change the way they speak around their family and friends all the time?
When I was working in Washington DC, I was close to a large number of black managers, executives and C suite folks. In meetings and in the public domain they "talked white" I guess you'd say (using standard classroom English). But as soon as they were in a casual context with each other, they would adopt an entirely different dialect and slang. I don't know why anyone would find this strange or cringeworthy or negative. It's simple sociolinguistics.
AAVE is woke speak so it's not just a racial or cultural thing, it's also an ideological thing.
Do you feel the same about Spanglish? Or Pidgin? Or Rastafarian? Or are you only concerned with how American blacks speak to each other and what it might mean politically?
Are you saying that as soon as one of those black people go to college, they automatically change the way they speak around their family and friends all the time?
When I was working in Washington DC, I was close to a large number of black managers, executives and C suite folks. In meetings and in the public domain they "talked white" I guess you'd say (using standard classroom English). But as soon as they were in a casual context with each other, they would adopt an entirely different dialect and slang. I don't know why anyone would find this strange or cringeworthy or negative. It's simple sociolinguistics.
I have no idea how many college-educated blacks talk around their families..
Hmmmm this is awkward but I'll just share my personal experience. Nowadays, when black people "talk proper" it's called code switching. When white people talk with a "blaccent" it's called blackfishing or being a culture vulture. But the original term for it is speaking in Ebonics. I'm not going to sit here and pretend that there isn't a difference in speaking between demographics and races. Nor am I going to sit here and pretend that the "not all of them do that" section is the majority in these situations. Because we acknowledge that people who are from different places like England, Russia, China, Africa, etc. have certain accents (primarily due to language, but culture plays a part as well) so this is no different to me. I lived in predominately white neighborhoods, and watched a lot of television as a child.
However, I noticed my mother speaking "professionally" on work calls, and speaking with a certain twang in her voice when speaking to family. So naturally I picked up the same habit. My accent switches up depending on my mood, the situation, and where I am. I'm actually pretty good at imitating accents in general but that's neither here nor there. In my experience, I got picked on for talking too "white" by the black kids at school, as well as my own extended family, and I was too "black" for the white kids at school. So I didn't fit in anywhere. I learned to "code switch" in order to adapt to my environment. I didn't do it to be cool or to be part of a group. I'm a black woman but I have dealt with a lot of confusion because I wasn't allowed to fit in anywhere based off something as silly as the lightness of my skin and my "mixed accent."
Hmmmm this is awkward but I'll just share my personal experience. Nowadays, when black people "talk proper" it's called code switching. When white people talk with a "blaccent" it's called blackfishing or being a culture vulture. But the original term for it is speaking in Ebonics. I'm not going to sit here and pretend that there isn't a difference in speaking between demographics and races. Nor am I going to sit here and pretend that the "not all of them do that" section is the majority in these situations. Because we acknowledge that people who are from different places like England, Russia, China, Africa, etc. have certain accents (primarily due to language, but culture plays a part as well) so this is no different to me. I lived in predominately white neighborhoods, and watched a lot of television as a child.
However, I noticed my mother speaking "professionally" on work calls, and speaking with a certain twang in her voice when speaking to family. So naturally I picked up the same habit. My accent switches up depending on my mood, the situation, and where I am. I'm actually pretty good at imitating accents in general but that's neither here nor there. In my experience, I got picked on for talking too "white" by the black kids at school, as well as my own extended family, and I was too "black" for the white kids at school. So I didn't fit in anywhere. I learned to "code switch" in order to adapt to my environment. I didn't do it to be cool or to be part of a group. I'm a black woman but I have dealt with a lot of confusion because I wasn't allowed to fit in anywhere based off something as silly as the lightness of my skin and my "mixed accent."
Interesting. I’m from the deep South and can use a deep South accent but I also can use less of it when I want to.
Hmmmm this is awkward but I'll just share my personal experience. Nowadays, when black people "talk proper" it's called code switching. When white people talk with a "blaccent" it's called blackfishing or being a culture vulture. But the original term for it is speaking in Ebonics. I'm not going to sit here and pretend that there isn't a difference in speaking between demographics and races. Nor am I going to sit here and pretend that the "not all of them do that" section is the majority in these situations. Because we acknowledge that people who are from different places like England, Russia, China, Africa, etc. have certain accents (primarily due to language, but culture plays a part as well) so this is no different to me. I lived in predominately white neighborhoods, and watched a lot of television as a child.
However, I noticed my mother speaking "professionally" on work calls, and speaking with a certain twang in her voice when speaking to family. So naturally I picked up the same habit. My accent switches up depending on my mood, the situation, and where I am. I'm actually pretty good at imitating accents in general but that's neither here nor there. In my experience, I got picked on for talking too "white" by the black kids at school, as well as my own extended family, and I was too "black" for the white kids at school. So I didn't fit in anywhere. I learned to "code switch" in order to adapt to my environment. I didn't do it to be cool or to be part of a group. I'm a black woman but I have dealt with a lot of confusion because I wasn't allowed to fit in anywhere based off something as silly as the lightness of my skin and my "mixed accent."
I have a 'telephone voice' and a normal (to me) speaking voice. Frankly, I like my telephone voice better. I speak a lower octave, and not nasally...like I catch myself doing sometimes in day to day conversation.
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