I was reading today on BET News how the students at Howard University are calling each other "coons". I assume that this is the latest try at word play for young black Americans. Black Americans turning words that are used as racial slurs into everyday words. To think that this would be taking place at a place of higher education and not to mention at a HBCU. Could "coon" be the next "nigger"?
I have taken the liberty of looking up the definitions and the ideals of "coon". Thank you to Ferris State University for providing some insight, although I will not take incerpts from the actual article I will place some of the images that they provided on their web site.
I found the definition of coon on the urban dictionary site:
A coon is a black actor or actress, who takes roles that stereotypically portrays black people. They think they've made it but they are slaves to the same images. A.k.a selloutIt comes from the term baracoons (a cage), where they used to place Africans, who were waiting to be sent to America to be slaves.
They had no idea of this, so some of them were even eager waiting in the baracoons.Examples- Roles or advertisements were black people:-play basketball-rap about a product-are obsessed with money or chicken-have a lot of video hoes-have names that show that they are black (kwame, darnel, any two capital letters (JT, TJ, AJ, TC, JJ), any female name ending in a "qua",
excessively use old terms we made up like-
woo wee-
bling bling-
yo-holla-
im da man,
you da man-
that's wack yo-
daaaamn!-
or any term that white people have begun to acknowledge, use and accept.-(I hope you get the idea- this happens everyday)
Black guy on commercial or in movie: Woo wee! Boy do I love me some chicken, where da Koolaid at?
The coon is a lazy, easily frightened, chronically idle, inarticulate, buffoon. Often working as a servant he is unhappy with his status but is too simple or lazy to improve his lowly position. He is a gaudly dressed "Dandy" who "Puts on airs". Coons do not know their place and think they are as smart as White people; however, their frequent malapropisms and distorted logic suggested that any attempt to compete intellectually with Whites is pathetic. His use of bastardized English confirms the commonly held beliefs that Blacks are inherently less intelligent than whites. The coon's goal in life is leisure, and his leisure time is spent strutting, styling, fighting, avoiding real work, eating watermelons, and making a fool of himself. If he is married, his wife dominates him. If he is single, he seeks to please the flesh without entanglements.
**Bliss says: I know a few of them**
**Bliss Says:
Unconsciously we let these stereotypes consume who we are as a people, knowing the consequence of such use. We often let it slide and we think that because we are such powerful users of artistic ability that we can ultimately control what we create. I beg to differ:
The keepers of the flame said the future was bright, I am starting to think; maybe not.
Grace and Peace
Bliss
2 comments:
Great post Bliss! And thanks for the knowledge with your research.
As someone who is guilty myself of using the coon references from time to time-I have the Coonie awards on my blog-I found your piece enlightening.
I wish I could say I will stop, but I doubt it:) One thing your article did prove; is that whether it's college students,politicians, or entertainers. Cooning and embracing anything to do with it, is not good for the advancement of our race. I guess this is why I choose to expose coons as I see them. And for students at HU-one of the better historical black colleges-to be referring to each other as coon....well, that's just sad.
WOW!!! This is deep! I have had various conversations with "enlightened" Black people over their use of the word "nigg@" as a term of endearment. I purchased, but haven't had the time to read a book on this same subject "Nigger: The strange career of a troublesome word" by Randall Kennedy. As my man FN stated in regards to the use of the term coon by HU students: "well, that's just sad"... and I would like to add: "The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed...." However, what does it say about our community when our young minds are intentionally assisting in oppressing themselves?!
Great post!
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