The story you quote is from GQ, not Esquire.

Seriously?? A lot of people who have no idea who Missy Elliott is use that word on a regular basis.

Had Debra of used another word as an example I would have been able to sympathize, but only slightly. Those white kids that blatantly use/overuse Ebonics can get annoying at times. That being said, I'm not going to be the one to tell them that they have no right to explore whatever identity or culture they are inclined to explore. (Try telling an intellectual black person (or other minority) that they shouldn't be using words over 10 letters long (as I have heard stories of) - least they sound "too white" or a devoutly religious African American they don't belong in a Christian Church -because Christianity, historically, has its roots in European America and see how far you get with those arguments.)

Back to the word at issue; as a Midwesterner with strong Southern roots, I have grown up with folks (or is "folks" another word too "black" for me to use? If so I apologize.) proclaiming on a daily basis, "Holler at me when you get back from the store.", "Gimme a Holler when you get into town.", and a classic in my childhood home- "Don't make me Holler at you one more time to get your ass back in this house and clean your room up!" Grammatically correct or particularly eloquent? Perhaps not, but I wasn't about to correct the language of my parents or elder relatives. (Thanks to that wise decision I sit here responding to this inane discussion with all 32 of my natural teeth still remaining in my head.)

I take more offense with those trying to make a racial issue of something without having tangible evidence there was a racially motivated intent behind it to back them up than I do people using "anther's" language. (Assumption is the mother of all fuck-ups they say.) No one likes to be profiled- black or white. Those of us who have grown up with that expression in our lexicon have every right to take offense at Debra's insinuation that we are trying to emulate or "white-down" black language. If Debra is justified in her irritation that white people™ seem to have assimilated black language do white Southerners (a/k/a "rednecks") have the right to be indignant that black people™ seem to also have assimilated or "blackened-down" white language?

Language and its meanings are merely social constructs. None of us really have any right to claim that our mental representations of each others actions, words or the roles we cast for each other are more correct than another. There is a danger in pervasive institutionalization of language and socially acceptable roles. And one wonders why this country seems so damned divided at times...

Here, here Melissa. That fantastic soliloquy was tight.

I've always liked "Dude". And since I loved "The Big Lebowski", I'm sticking with it.

If that's how we're going to play, then I have a request for black people: please stop exploiting my culture by talking white. Hey, wait a second, that sounds pretty stupid...

HOW ABOUT 'ACE'?

During a trip to the US south earlier this year I noticed a preponderance of "bro" used in a very specific situation: when white guys wanted a favor from a stranger. I saw a lot of this in New Orleans for example, mostly coming from frat boy local tourists from nearby southern colleges. "Hey bro can I bum a cig?" "Can I get a light bro?" "Bro can you tell me which way [any] Street is?"

Duckets:

For you information slang is not a part of black culture. Idiotcy (sp??) once again revealed.

You know? I'm just not willing to police my own language to that extent. I'm sympathetic to the subtleties of language. But this is hair-splitting of the highest magnitude.

To quote you: "Wow, that's complicated."

So who is the authority on what words are acceptable for those outside the black/white demographic? BTW are the words "black" and "white" still "cool"? I'm sure we're all on the edges of our seats . .

The reason Deb gets so much guff (can I use that word still?) for her columns is because she seeks out racism where none exists and then exploits her inventions to rile people up. She wants so badly to be persecuted as a black individual, she's willing to invent situations to support her self-appointed role as savior of all things black - never mind that she's so far removed from real black issues, she is completely ignorant of them. If she wants to help black folk (can I use that word) find equality in this world, perhaps she should consider doing something more worthwhile than coming down on some white dude for saying holler, bro. But hey, white, liberal wanna-be’s seem to love her (they’ll rally to any cause of color iniquity, real or imagined), and she has your staff duped, so more power to her.

Word.

As a white male, living in SC for 39 years, and having grown up in Dairy Farming country in Western New York,
all I can say is that I agree with Melissa.

Something that occurs to me is that an older generation of African-Americans--most notoriously Bill Cosby, but also my aunt--object to anyone using BEV, because they think it puts the black youth at a disadvantage in society, which it of course does in a practical sense, even if that is a form of discrimination. Why doesn't someone (Debra, Party Ben?) write a column on that? Then there would be a substantive discussion that relates to a number of important political issues: affirmative action, the Obama "transcendence" of race stuff, the Jesse Jackson comments, the post-p.c. phase that everybody is whispering about, etc. I feel that at this point, we're all just getting into a game of "I'm not racist," when the whole point is that we all are in some way or another...

Dude:
This whole subject is like so last week.

"but I have to say I'm 100 percent behind her."

You suffer from too much white guilt. She's a racist, pure and simple.

Right on, Melissa. (May I say that?) Holler is southern, and especially Appalachian, from hundreds of years back. I use it still. There's another use of holler, meaning a little valley between mountains. You don't hear it as much, but it's still valid. And it most certainly is not Ebonics!

maybe someone should make a separate set of rules for each race, then we can officially move on to [deleted] that matters. how is THIS not denigrating everyone's right to use language?

d
"Down under'" I refuse to use the expression"Guy". Why?

It is one of these insidious words that have crept into our language via Film and Television replacing our own Australian idioms.

I try never to use slang, disregarding that English being a "Living" language,is subject to continuous change.

What is wrong with using correct language? Why must
you converse with another using manufactured words and phrases? Apart from class, and lack of education identity, the use of "Slang" only lowers the standard of debate and literature.

Yes. Language is subject to change, but if the item is neither sub standard nor broken, then there is no reason why modification will improve the article. Slang, generally, is used to replace lack of language skills. A better education standard would eliminate the need to express meanings by using manufactured terminology. After all America's education levels are actually well down the international scale at present.

tomedgar@halenet.com.au

Tom,

"the use of "Slang" only lowers the standard of debate and literature"

Tell that to Mark Twain, Steinbeck, Harper Lee, Hemingway, Salinger, Dickens and so many more authors that, if they were able, would likely disagree with you. Twain would rip you to shreds for it.

If you really believe what you wrote, you're blind and are missing out, you pompous, pontificating, officious pedant!

All of these comments on the use of the word "bro", shows that there are a lot of bored, lonely people out there; who do not seem to have the ability to simply talk to each other, in plain English (sorry America, that means you have to learn a second language.). And while I'm banging away on this keyboard, I'd also urge you to try spelling correctly, and get your punctuation right. What I have seen so far on this site, makes me shudder.

dedsetmad,

Yes, it is obvious that people who use the word "bro" are bored and lonely. You must be a very smart individual.

I love it when people like you tell others to use proper spelling and punctuation while screwing up your own. Shudder away, fool, but look to your own shoddy writing examples first.

I apologize, dedsetmad, but I misread your inital observation. It must be your excellent writing skills that threw me off. That's okay - after reading your comment again, I realize that you have simply afforded me a different response.

Do you not think it odd that you are calling people lonely and bored for posting here while you are doing the same thing? This must be reflective of your personal condition which you are attempting to project on others.