Is uppity a racist word?

[DeletedUser]

Alright, so I'm watching the news when it starts discussing how recently a Nascar audience booed Mrs. Obama and Mrs. Biden and how Rush Limbaugh played maverick and rushed to support the audience. None of that is truly surprising although the actions taken by the Nascar audience do not deserve applause. Well the report went on to explain how Limbaugh had made things worse and worse in a less than neutral tone and then pointed out that he used the word uppity. Now up to this point in life I always though that uppity meant to be snobbish or otherwise aloof. To my amazement it's a word on par with some of the worse racial slurs around and is meant to chide minorities who are not "in their place". Clearly Mr. Limbaugh intended to use the word as a racist slur ! If you wanted a real defense you just have to point out the pair that got booed were representing US military vets and families. Anyway in all seriousness, is the word uppity really deserving of such a firestorm? After all it seems more like vindication for the folks who say that any criticism of the Obama's is twisted into racism than a real defense. (This is not a question of what YOU think of Mr. Limbaugh or the Nascar audience. Both of whom I'm sure we have a variety of colorful opinions on. I just want to know if pointing out the racist connotations of uppity is meritable in this situation.)

Oh, here's a source to read
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politic...artly-because-nascar-fans-hate-her-uppityism/

 

[DeletedUser]

Yes, uppity is often used as a form of inferring a minority assumes too much. In the context that Rush used it, it is indeed racist. Rush has repeatedly demonstrated he is racist, so not really sure why we're revisiting the idiot, except to give him attention for his continued efforts to obtain headlines to boost his radio show's ratings.

 

[DeletedUser]

Context is everything... Given Rush, though...probably.

And I would think that "uppity" is more often used in a sexist, than racist way.

 

[DeletedUser]

These days nearly anything gets twisted into something racist. Uppity, in my view, is not a racist word. Racism used to have a true definition. I suppose next someone is going to call me a racist for not liking milk chocolate. Or for not liking caramel. Society as a whole needs to get their heads on straight and quit twisting everything into an insult when another person doesn't share their views.

 

[DeletedUser9470]

"cause i am different from you and you are insulting me then you are racist" is the line that always comes to mind.

 

[DeletedUser]

Neo gets uppity, and I tell him so. I certainly doubt he'd call me a racist over it though. Might call me a few other choice names, but not racist

 

[DeletedUser]

Hi Cheeky and Neo. As Adelei indicated, context is everything. Please read the use of that word in Rush' statements. It is clear he is referring to the Obamas as behaving outside of what is acceptable for an "inferior" and "subordinate" race. I was told of the exact same usage by a silver-spoon friend attending Yale, who contemplated quitting Yale because an "uppity" black man was allowed to also attend Yale. Uppity, in his (and Rush' use) specifically refers to a minority (african-american in both these cases) that has stepped out of their "socially accepted" ghetto role and attended an Ivy league university. Do note: Michelle and Barack both attended and graduated from Harvard, and yet people attack their acceptance to Harvard Law school, directly claiming it was due to affirmative action (despite Harvard never implementing affirmative action, nor anything remotely similar, particularly not in the 80's).

Here's a few links. One to demonstrate my arguments above and the next to demonstrate the history of racism at Harvard and in the U.S., as it was applied to Obama's father:

http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=292001

http://www.capitalnewyork.com/artic...rvard-and-america-dating-white-women?page=all

Edit: Here's another bit from Limbaugh as he makes a half-hearted effort attempting to defend his previous "uppity" statements. I'm sure you would agree, his comments here firmly demonstrate his use of "uppity" refers to race, with specific statements such as, "stepping outside of their reservation," a similarly racist reference to native-american indians --- http://newsone.com/nation/casey-gane-mccalla/limbaugh-calls-obama-uppity/

 

[DeletedUser16008]

Stupid political correctness imo. Far more appropriate words to call Obama such as murderer, thief, liar, puppet and even uncle tom. Sounds like a headline seeker and publicity stunt to me.

Get a life and grow some round objects between your legs springs to mind.

 

[DeletedUser]

I see, as if your last name-calling isn't, in itself, racist...

 

[DeletedUser16008]

I see, as if your last name-calling isn't, in itself, racist...

hmm you mean Uncle Tom ? ... A black man who will do anything to stay in good standing with "the white man" including betray his own people. Id say that's pretty accurate re Obama in a lot of ways wouldn't you, you certainly don't see many brothers or anyone else benefiting from Obamas "Change" do you ? hardly racist. Or would you disagree that the US is still run predominately by classic white middle america and all that means ?

 

[DeletedUser]

racism in any form is racism. From the birth of that statement to your convenient distortion, ultimately the President of the U.S. serves the People of the U.S., not a specific race, be it white, black, or purple. Put aside your racist lenses and see things with clarity instead of convenient labels.

 

[DeletedUser16008]

Rubbish you said yourself its all in what context its made, in fact Obama is indeed serving anything but the people of the US but a minority that are some of the most racist people on the planet. Nothing racist about calling someone what they are and for sure he only got there due to his racial background and has betrayed that trust and vote ever since.

 

[DeletedUser]

There you are demonstrating your racism with, "he only got there because he was black." Obama became President of the U.S. because he impressed a helluva lot of people, not "because" and particularly not "only" because he was black. Indeed research indicates him being black was a detriment to his obtaining votes in many States.

Victor, you have indicated in the past, and continue to demonstrate, your racist views, repeatedly posing your comments through race-tinted lenses. It is exceedingly easy for me to see that the words you present are rife with distortions in favoritism and racial spite. Unfortunately being able to show you, as I have experienced many times in the past, is a rather fruitless effort.

Regardless, the issue here is that of "uppity" being indeed used as a race-based derogatory.

 

[DeletedUser16008]

There you are demonstrating your racism with, "he only got there because he was black." Obama became President of the U.S. because he impressed a helluva lot of people, not "because" and particularly not "only" because he was black. Indeed research indicates him being black was a detriment to his obtaining votes in many States.

Victor, you have indicated in the past, and continue to demonstrate, your racist views, repeatedly posing your comments through race-tinted lenses. It is exceedingly easy for me to see that the words you present are rife with distortions in favoritism and racial spite. Unfortunately being able to show you, as I have experienced many times in the past, is a rather fruitless effort.

Regardless, the issue here is that of "uppity" being indeed used as a race-based derogatory.

Total hogwash, I do not care what color or race someone is from, however if your trying to tell me that if Obama was white middle american he would have swept to victory and captivated the black or afro american imagination and support or whatever term you wish to use thats in favor atm you need your head examining. I'm not afraid of speaking truth and pulling the racist card on me wont wash old son. Stop torturing people and holding them indefinitely without charge and then talk to me about a word like uppity grabbing headlines for being racist.... pathetic

 

[DeletedUser]

Yes, uppity is often used as a form of inferring a minority assumes too much. In the context that Rush used it, it is indeed racist. Rush has repeatedly demonstrated he is racist, so not really sure why we're revisiting the idiot, except to give him attention for his continued efforts to obtain headlines to boost his radio show's ratings.

I didn't expect you to make such a sloppy statement Hellstromm. You didn't demonstrate why it's racist in this context other than stating it is. Or maybe you're just checking to make sure there are still folks that don't take your word as gospel.

“I’ll tell you something else,” he said. “We don’t like paying millions of dollars for Mrs. Obama’s vacations. The NASCAR crowd doesn’t quite understand why when the husband and the wife are going to the same place, the first lady has to take her own Boeing 757 with family and kids and hangers-on four hours earlier than her husband, who will be on his 747. NASCAR people understand that’s a little bit of a waste. They understand it’s a little bit of uppity-ism."-From the aforementioned ABC article quoting Limbaugh

Here are the Oxford dictionary definitions from the World and American editions.

uppity, adjective, informal
self-important; arrogant: behaving as if you are more important than you really are, especially when this means that you refuse to obey orders
ex. An uppity MP and his lady wife (<--I did not make that up)

Now there are three possible definitions the third (technically the one I lifted from the American Edition) of which is the closest to the racism you say the quote indicates. The first and especially the second definitions seem more applicable. I base this on the fact that Mr. Limbaugh is discussing the Obamas which do merit importance as the first family, which I think he understands. From Mr. Limbaugh's perspective arrogance seem to be the best definition as the man sees the first family as acting in a "superior manner" to others. I would like to see someone give conclusive signs pointing to the use of definition 3.

hmm you mean Uncle Tom ? ... A black man who will do anything to stay in good standing with "the white man" including betray his own people. Id say that's pretty accurate re Obama in a lot of ways wouldn't you, you certainly don't see many brothers or anyone else benefiting from Obamas "Change" do you ? hardly racist. Or would you disagree that the US is still run predominately by classic white middle america and all that means ?

I find your opinion of America interesting Victor. I mean everyday I'm stumbling past riots and shootouts fueled by the racial tensions between whites, native Americans, and other minorities in my area. Moving on I just want to know why it's important to put the interests of your ethnic/tribal group ahead of everyone else's. Mr. Obama is quite good at not playing the race card and I applaud it. According to your perspective everyone should be clustering into enclaves of people of the same skin color and working to benefit only their group. Is that really how you build a better environment for all? (You did invoke black "brotherhood" and how Mr. Obama should be caring for his "brothers".)

 

[DeletedUser]

I'm not sure where the idea that uppity is primarily sexist came from, because I've always heard it used of blacks, and it's etymology is African-American English:

uppity 1880, from up + -ity; originally used by blacks of other blacks felt to be too self-assertive (first recorded use is in "Uncle Remus"). The parallel British variant uppish (1670s) originally meant "lavish;" the sense of "conceited, arrogant" being first recorded 1734.

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=uppity

The word's origin is part of the reason for it's racist connotation. The American Heritage Dictionary definition is also a little bit more germane to it's usage in this case.

up·pi·ty (

p

-t

)adj. Informal Taking liberties or assuming airs beyond one's station; presumptuous

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/uppity

It has been used to describe blacks who assume airs beyond one's station and act white, and that's how it was used in the Jim Crow era:

Some whites also feared a new generation of so-called "uppity" blacks, men and women born after slavery who wanted their full rights as American citizens.

http://www.jimcrowhistory.org/history/creating.htm

Rush Limbaugh's use of the word was either racist or ignorant, but it wasn't innocent, even if you can find an innocent definition of the word, lafitte.

 

[DeletedUser]

Well it's obvious that we can't get past our vision of Limbaugh as an unrepentant racist.

So here's another incidence of uppity use. Republican Representative Lynn Westmoreland (yes he's a Republican) way back in 2008 said, "Just from what little I’ve seen of her and Mr. Obama, Senator Obama, they're a member of an elitist-class individual that thinks that they're uppity..." I should mention he is a Georgian who lived in the miserable times of the Jim Crow era. When asked to clarify he said, “Uppity, yeah.” Later on he issued this statement, "I’ve never heard that term used in a racially derogatory sense. It is important to note that the dictionary definition of ‘uppity’ is ‘affecting an air of inflated self-esteem — snobbish.’ That’s what we meant by uppity when we used it in the mill village where I grew up."(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynn_Westmoreland)

Now that may seem ridiculous to some but consider this little gem I recall from my childhood library. It was called the Mr. Men series written by the Briton Roger Hargreaves. The books as I understand were written in the '70s. Among the characters was a fellow named Mr. Uppity. Now Mr. Uppity was a rich, snobbish, plump, brown bean (yes boys and girls search for hidden racism in that last part). He thinks he's better than everyone and shows little care for the other Mr. Men, a problem rectified by a goblin king. Now this is a children's story that was written in the '70s but I can't imagine Mr. Hargreaves being charged with racism. And since all the Mr. Men are the embodiment of their names Mr. Uppity is what uppity is as I've understood it and as many others have understood it and it has nothing to do with race. Or at least in the case of the "hillbillies" as people in my neck of the woods are called when I've spent life in my own "mill village".(http://mrmen.wikia.com/wiki/Mr._Uppity)

So is it conceivable that one could call the Obamas "uppity" on the basis that they are perceived as elitists (Limbaugh's and Westmoreland's perspective) without being charged of adding a hidden racist meaning?

 

[DeletedUser]

For one, Westmoreland didn't come from a "mill village," he was raised in the metro region of Atlanta. Two, Georgians know full well the connotations of "uppity." Three, the term uppity was presented repeatedly for scrutiny, in a multitude of articles, months before Westmoreland utilized that label. Four, Westmoreland had just succeeded in redistricting, thus virtually assuring his district would reelect him (through redistricting, he increased the Republican pop in his district from 75% to almost 90%), so he was one of the Representatives that could get away with racist comments and be reelected. Five, we're talking Georgia here, with more blacks per capita than any other U.S. state, and still only white representatives, senators, and governors. Six, Georgia, the cotton-picken capital of slavery pre-civil war. Seven, Westmoreland ran (still runs?) a family-owned construction company where blacks held no lead or foreman positions.

As to Rush, he definitely knew "uppity" was racially charged. Racism is far more subtle nowadays, and so racial "code-words" have become the norm, particularly within the Republican/Tea party. By definition and/or historical significance, these types of statements (uppity, lynching, back of the bus, left the reservation, etc) are all racially infused "code-words" that give just enough wiggle room for these racists to avoid political backlash.

But, in the case of Rush, who was born and raised in a wealthy Missouri household, political backlash increases his ratings and entertains his fanbase. Let's be blunt here, Rush has imposed a litany of racist remarks on the American airwaves for decades. There's no question he's a racist, why should there be a question he said "uppity" in a racist context, particularly considering that word's scandalous headlines during Obama's campaign and ensuing Presidential term.

No, Rush is no baby to politics and the bonfires of racial tension surrounding the Obamas. He meant it to be construed as racially-tinged, to satisfy his audience, expand his audience base via attempting to cater to the deep pockets of the predominantly white NASCAR fanbase, and to leave the rest of us questioning whether he meant it in a racist context. But, seriously, his defense uses a native-american racist comparative and preceded that with another racially charged statement. C'mon, it would take a supreme act of sheer ignorance to think he meant it as anything "other" than as a racial derogatory.

 

[DeletedUser]

I've read several books that contain the word 'uppity.' Of course, the word was used to describe women, 'uppity wenches.' So, I agree that there needs to be a context. Since many of those references were in jest about the person's wife who gave out insults back to their husbands. Yes, uppity means, to me, the personality to assume you are worth more, higher rank in society, than you actually are. After reading some more, not in books, I can see how it can be used as a racist comment, it certainly has been used in a sexist one. Bigots, no matter what they are prejudiced against are the same.

Victor... how is he betraying people? Proof please! In fact it was George W. Bush who permitted the CIA and the National Guard to torture captives... and I don't see you going after him.... Ever heard of Condalizza Rice's effort to 'damage control' allegations, that were the truth, that the CIA was flying captives over European air space to countries where torture is legal to be able to torture them? In fact Canada has had three Islamists suing the Canadian Government because the Canadian Government, specifically the RCMP and CSIS, sent wrong, unsubstantiated, and falsified information over to the US Governemnt, when those three entered the US, they were taken to Iran I think... and tortured for months. In the end... through access to information laws, they were able to find evidence that while their names were sent to the US as possible terror suspects there was documentation show that actual INVESTIGATORS have filed reports that say in no ambiguous language that there was no evidence anywhere saying they were tied to alqueda/taliban let alone any other terrorist organization. In fact in one report... there were certain racist comments made 'an Arabian wandering around.' Sorry.. I seem to have gotten off topic....

 

[DeletedUser]

Basically it's a bunch of racist white folk saying, "ho ho, the black man thinks he's President. Well, we'll just filibuster everything an' blackade everything so we show just how black men can't get nuthin' done without us white folk."



Oh and Chac, how about taking that tangent to a new thread?