🏃🏾♀️💨Black America is Bilingual
We created a language and it is now getting the respect it deserves. Shout out to African American Vernacular English or AAVE!
Hello Movers & Shakers! Sorry that I am a little late getting this article out, but I think the wait was worth it.
We are nearing two months of intense social change ignited by the Black Lives Matter movement. Every day there is a new statue toppled or racist outed, and let me tell you... it is absolutely BEAUTIFUL. Yet, the theme I continue to realize throughout all of this is that America failed to reconcile our history. It is why on the Third of July, Sioux Tribes picketed and protested against the use of their lands for a Fourth of July Trump Rally.
If you haven't had a chance to support a Black Business this week try ours. It is just $1/per week to support and empower some amazing Black writers. Plus you get an extra article each week. If not, feel free to share our work! Please and Thank you👍🏽👍🏾👍🏿If you didn’t watch the video, my man Chase Iron Eyes (what a name) gave all the facts and showcased how powerful it is to be fighting for your culture. It is why learning about our Black American history and culture built over the past 400 years is so important. Unfortunately, privileged America sort of neglected, belittled, and out right criminalized much of Black American culture.
For instance, we created a whole ass language called African American Vernacular English(AAVE), commonly referred to as Ebonics. AAVE is rooted in slavery and was created out of necessity and the lack of a formal English education. Our ancestors created their own grammatical rules and additional words. A few hundred years later, a group of BLACK scholars formalized this language and called it African American Vernacular English. In 1973, Ebonics was officially recognized as its own language separate from English!!!!! (map of national dialects)
Pause for a second. Ebonics is derived from American English and is promoting our first amendment right, freedom of speech. Doesn’t it seem like ALL Americans would be about this? NOPE.
Ebonics was criminalized. Yes you heard me! In the late 90s, the Oakland school district wanted to recognize AAVE as the student’s first language instead of traditional American English. This would allow reading and writing skills to be tested in AAVE. Unfortunately, the teachers and city of Oakland were met with so much push back that Congress opened a Senate hearing to confirm if it was constitutional. WHATTT?
During this same time, many states put legislation on the books against the use or teaching of ebonics as a first or second language. The state of Oklahoma declared a state of emergency because Ebonics was a threat to health and safety… too bad we didn’t take Covid-19 this seriously 😷. Just to be clear, America has never done this to any other language EVER! This same treatment was not done to Spanish, Italian, German, Russian, French, or Portuguese! Not none of them(in AAVE this is correct).
This is just another example of discrimination built into our beautiful democratic system. Even now after thousands of positive studies in classrooms, ebonics and contrast teaching are not widely accepted or used. It is why many of us are forced to code switch between our “Black voice” and our “White or proper” voice. The difference between the two ways of speaking can not be exacerbated enough. Key and Peele’s ‘Substitute Teacher’ might come close.
Seriously though, as we ask for police reform via defunding the police, let us make sure those new-found dollars can go towards our future. Black education in many places is not the best. Increased funding and testing in more cultural languages or dialects would do wonders to bridge the educational gap we see amongst Black and Brown people. If you are interested in learning more about this topic here are a few links and videos I found super helpful or interesting.
Video:
Ebonics Explained: A woman’s perspective
Don Lemon putting Terry Crews in his place
Interesting Stories:
Quest For Schools to Respect AAVE in The Classroom
Breathe Act (new police reform and community safety bill)
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