"Uppity" is a VERY bad word
There are decades of psychological research showing that blacks tend to have very high levels of self-esteem. But say the same thing using the word "uppity" and you are in deep doo-doo.
"Congressman Lynn Westmoreland (R-GA) created a stir on Thursday when he repeatedly used a racially tinged word when describing Barack Obama. In an interview with Congressional Quarterly, Westmoreland was asked about the comparative speaking styles of Sarah Palin and Michelle Obama. "Honestly, I've never paid that much attention to Michelle Obama. Just what little I've seen of her and Senator Obama is that they're a member of an elitist class ... that thinks that they're uppity," said the Congressman. "'Uppity', you said," inquired the reporter, giving Westmoreland a chance to un-do the comment. "Yeah, uppity," confirmed Westmoreland. CQ posted the audio of the interview here
Source
Note that he did not say that they WERE uppity, just that they thought they were. So he was using the word in a rather different way to the old Southern usage.
3 comments:
Something tells me that had he used the word "luggage, or door knob, or foutainpen," instead of uppity, the reaction would've been the same. I can't understand why any Republican, or any non-Leftist bothers talking to the media at all, knowing full-well what the result will be. AMBUSH!
I always equated the word 'uppity' with college frat brats. Not once have I ever linked it with a black connotation and I live in the deep south.
I think "uppity" gained such connotations when if I remember right, Lyndon Johnson in the early 1960's referred to "uppity negroes". They tended to be those in the civil rights movement at the time.
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