Michelle Obama once teased for talking ‘like a white girl’

[mucifer]

Gathers Sheryl Crow, Dominique Dawes, Alicia Keys, Debbie Allen, Penny Pritzker and Maggie Daley at White House

March 20, 2009
BY LYNN SWEET Sun-Times Columnist

WASHINGTON -- For her own Women's History Month assignment, first lady Michelle Obama visited Anacostia High School, on the poor side of town, where on Thursday she surprised a group of students. One of her goals is to demystify the White House and make it more accessible to the people who live here.

Mrs. Obama told the youngsters she felt isolated from an institution in her own community when she was growing up and that she suspected they may view the White House and the Capitol the way she saw the University of Chicago as a young girl -- a place for other people. She shared her story of how she was taunted for talking "like a white girl."

On Thursday, Mrs. Obama gathered what she called "an amazing group of women together" at the White House, dispatching a slew of role models -- including some stars -- to talk to youngsters at area schools.

Other high-profile women were Sheryl Crow, Dominique Dawes, Alicia Keys and Debbie Allen, and from Chicago, Penny Pritzker and Maggie Daley, wife of Mayor Daley. Thursday night, the first lady hosted a dinner for 110 local girls at the White House.

Raised on Chicago's South Side, Mrs. Obama told the students that while she lived near the university, as a kid, she never even took a "walk on campus." snip...

more at http://www.suntimes.com/news/sweet/1486879,CST-NWS-sweet20.article

[rosesaylavee]

1. She is just so incredibly cool and awesome.

I have no words for how this affects me.

[daninthemoon]

2. President Obama may or may not go down as the greatest ever.

It depends on a bunch of stuff. Michelle will undoubtedly be the greatest first lady hands down.

[natrat]

6. yea, right up there with shrub

[Captain Hilts]

29. Uh, them's fightin' words!

ER: Michelle is such a dear...

[MzShellG]

3. I can relate to Michelle on so many levels.

I cant remember how many times Ive heard this from people.

[Kdillard]

4. I am so happy with the way the First lady is starting off on the job.

It is wonderful that she is doing so much in the Washington DC community. From doing volunteer work to inviting students over to the White House and visitng the schools to read to kids. I know she said she was going to take it easy during the first year but if this is what she calls taking it easy I can't imagine what she will do when she gets fully geared up. I have never understood the You're taling like a white person jab there is nothing wrong with speaking proper English.

[cyndensco]

10. The problem with the comparison

is that it suggests that proper English is spoken exclusively by white people.

Both black and white people have told me I "talk white." When blacks say it, it is an insult ("you're a sellout") and when whites say it is a compliment ("you have arrived.") Either way, I find it insulting. I do not aspire to do anything "white" and choose to speak the way I have been taught.

[Captain Hilts]

15. Exactly!!! The "King's English" can be "Dr. King."

By the standards referred to in the original reference, he 'spoke white'. But that's one of the reasons he was such a great communicator. It's not a 'white thing' and it's an insult to think so.

[lynnertic]

39. You may find it insulting because in your eyes, whites aren't a ruling class.

However, in Michelle's childhood, to her, they were. And to these kids they are.

Michelle really was teased for speaking like a white person. For her, there was no insinuation that 'Proper English' was defined by whites (we know being white doesn't mean speaking English well, but that's not the point). For Michelle to describe it in any other manner is to condescend and to hide the truth.

Yes, times are changing and we're changing with them. What the First Lady did was dismiss the notion that speaking like a white person was any different than speaking the way she, a black woman, the First Lady did. So from now on, in these kids' minds, Proper English is not tied to race. By the time these kids are grown, they'll regard someone who says 'you speak like a white person' with the same scorn you do.

Kids can spot bullshit a mile away. Michelle Obama was relating to those kids, but not on condescending terms. I'm happy for that.

Want condescention? Look up Laura Bush's photo ops. The Bag News Notes site is a good place to start. http://bagnewsnotes.com

[EffieBlack]

5. I can identify with her - the same thing happened to me

One day, I came home crying about it and my father said, "What do you mean they say you talk like a white girl? The next time they tell you that, you tell them, 'I talk like I talk and I'm black so I talk like I'm black . . . maybe the white girls are talking like ME!'"

That pretty much took care of it. Actually, I don't think the logic won them over, but they looked so confused, they never taunted me again. :-)

[CatWoman]

20. me too

by my very own family.....

[Aristus]

27. Well, I don't care how you talk!

You're my CatWoman and I love you! B-) :hug: :hi:

[Captain Hilts]

28. Catwoman types just fiiiiiiiine! nt

[CatWoman]

38. *smooches*

:hi:

:loveya:

looks like I'm the one laughing now, huh? :)

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

7. Boy can I relate. Yes, our First Lady is a solid, amazing representation, not just for

black women like me, but for ALL women! ;)

[Bluenorthwest]

8. This story made me happy

for so many reasons. Michelle is a great First Lady. She seems to be a great individual as well. Love the garden too.

[Captain Hilts]

9. This is an important issue and I'm glad she brought it up. Well done!

Speaking clearly isn't 'white'. When folks talk about speaking "The King's English," that can mean Dr. King too!

[acmavm]

11. This woman surpasses herself every day. She does something wonderful

and beneficial to someone.

[Enrique]

12. that comment no doubt made an impression on those kids

some of those girls are probably thinking about what she said right now. :thumbsup:

[1776Forever]

13. My granddaughter met prejudice against "smart" people and her grades started to fall.

I think this prejudice goes against a lot of children, regardless of their race, who are trying to excel in some way. In my granddaughters case it stopped when she went to a charter school - not a private one - and she received a full scholarship to an outstanding school. I think the President and the First Lady will be a wonderful example for all children to be encouraged to be all they can be! This helps them and our country! India, Japan, and China don't seem to have this problem and the U.S. should be proud of our young people who are reaching their highest levels!

[Captain Hilts]

14. Yes! It seems as though high school rewards so many of the wrong behaviors...

and this is one of them.

[Lord Helmet]

16. there's a mile between ebonics and good grammar

[pink-o]

17. Most of the white people I know get a lot of their vocab from African Americans

Like the most universally understood English word in the whole entire world:

Okay.


The point I'm making is that vocabulary is fluid, and has a way of infiltrating all cultures across the board. I can give you all kinds of examples of English words from other cultures and languages, but I understand that's not the issue. It's about anti-intellectualism, the system trying to keep people in their place, and complicit members of the community who've bought into the propaganda.

Most African Americans I know are bilingual: 2 sets of English. One is for their friends and the "street". The other is called "Cash English" which is what they use when speaking to white people or anyone else who has the power to control an outcome of their lives. My friends find no conflict in this; especially since most whites are still intimidated by too much ethnicity. I see it as working within the system to get ahead, and once in a better position, things can change.

Barack and Michelle have so much knowledge to impart, so much of their life stories that need to be told, and the message has to get across. I've been blown away by the wisdom of African Americans I've known who're barely high-school educated and speak in a Patois that makes whites uncomfortable. It's not fair, it's not right, but their words go unheard by too many who make immediate judgments. If the idea is to be heard, then it's gotta be in a way that reaches as many people as possible.

[Captain Hilts]

21. Yes, if it weren't for Black English and Yiddish, our language would be whole lot duller. nt

[Captain Hilts]

22. I speak military English, English 'English', Southern English, Northern English and some Black Engli

Love 'em all. But I speak clearly and correctly where appropriate. I make an effort not to use, say, military lingo with folks that won't understand it.

Explaining Black English to my friends in Canada was a lot of fun.

There's something I like about all the versions of English.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

37. Just don't go there, OK?

I've seen discussions about the origins of the phrase "OK" go on for pages and pages, before arriving at the conclusion "we don't know".

You may be right, but there are lots and lots of theories, no one more authoritative than the rest.

[BlooInBloo]

18. Educated is NOT the opposite of black.

It's good for some to be reminded of that.

[Number23]

19. Any First Lady that drives past the private schools to go to the "rough" side of town

and try to inspire and give hope to children who may not have much is all right in my book.

I love this woman more and more every day. And I so long for the day when "speaking white" is no longer a criticism hurled at black children because a) it gives white people WAY too much credit and b) it reinforces the belief that being "black" is defined by such a narrow perspective and set of experiences and nothing could be further from the truth.

Black folk come from all walks of life; from all the corners of the world. And the sooner people realize that, the sooner EVERYONE realizes that and not just black folks, the better we'll all be.

[Drunken Irishman]

23. .

[annabanana]

24. She is a remarkable lady.

I am hugely impressed.

[pursuit_of_progress]

25. I love her

She cares about the downthrodden, is down to earth, and beautiful to boot.

[Bread and Circus]

26. I love Michelle Obama. I think she is just amazing through and through.

She is real, wonderful, smart, and caring.

And she keeps our President well grounded in what's real and what matters.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

30. Well, if she sounded like, say, Sarah Palin, then I can understand why she was teased.

[elleng]

31. "I heard that growing up my whole life."

Not ONCE teased for talking like a white girl.

U of Chicago is NOT on a charming, leafy campus, so not taking a walk there is not a big deal, imo.

[BlooInBloo]

32. I dunno about "leafy" (been too long), but I think it's a nice campus....

Of course, one block away is another story. :rofl:

[elleng]

34. I lived 'one block away,' no, more, actually,

but having visited a bunch of colleges with my daughters, I'd say, Don't Bother, for the view!

Obama's current house is pretty close.

[marshall]

33. Do kids still taunt with that kind of racist stuff?

I have friends who were made fun of for having white girls' hair, studying like white girls, dressing like white girls, being friends with white girls, etc. But I'm from Michelle's generation. I hope that our children don't have to contend with that.

[elleng]

35. Yes, I believe they do.

MAYBE things are changing/will change now, with these great role models.

[BlooInBloo]

36. Are kids still assholes?

:rofl: