Member- chaibella
- 3 years ago
- Wedding: June 2015
“Thug is a popular identity in rap culture.”
Why is this relevant to this situation. The young man was an athlete not a rapper. What on earth makes you think that every black person does/should identify with rap culture?
“As for black people using the word thug, it is their prerogative. Me personally, if they find it offensive I don’t think they should use it“
Black people are not a monolith. I have no control over what some rapper decides to call himself but I guarantee you that my husband nor my father would want to be called a “Thug” by anyone, just because some rapper names himself Baby Thug, or whatever have you. Sorry, but there is no ‘black prerogative’. Whatever point you were trying to make here fell astonishingly flat.
“Was the Bama player a thug? Thug was not the word that came to mind for me, because thug has criminal connotations. I thought jerk or classless. I don’t know OP’s friend’s mom’s intent, so I can’t speak to that.”
Based on the context that OP has provided, I think it’s safe to say that OP’s friend’s mom’s intent is obvious. According to OP:
1. Friend has admitted that her family is racist
2. Friend’s mom would not approve of her dating a black guy
3. Friend’s mom has made several racist comments in front of OP in the past
Given these 3 things above, and the fact that this woman called a young black athelete, who wasn’t engaging in criminal behavior a “Thug”, I think it’s pretty safe to say the comment was racist. I find it odd that you’re arguing so hard that it wasn’t, given the details that OP provided.
“I don’t think “thug” has inherently racial undertones. I’m from the Northeast and it was always understood that “thug” meant a gangster/criminal, usually from an urban area, encompassing people of all races.”
The majority of bees on this thread have informed you that it does have racial undertones for many people. If you do some further research outside of the bee, I suspect you’ll find the same. It’s no longer enough to say that ‘for you’ it doesn’t have racial undertones, when so many people have expressed how offensive it is.
