Re: Historically innocent words/names that have a far less innocent meaning today
How about a nice old northern phrase .... 'nowt as queer as folk' .... someone is bound to take offence at this and accuse it of appropriation of culture.
Re: Historically innocent words/names that have a far less innocent meaning today
Quote:
Originally Posted by
MyNameIsTerry
I remember Black jacks. You can get them now as those retro sweet companies do them online.
It used to be PC brigade but they've been usurped by later millenials and more recently 'the woke'. :biggrin: Didn't we used to call them busy bodies? Mary Whitehouse was more risqué.
They get all indignant about guns yet there is a place in Scotland called Tw@tt :roflmao:
It's the problem with this whitewashing we are seeing where the more batshit crazy want to make everything neutral or to their leanings. The Black Country is fine even if some marchers in London don't like it. Can I buy a box of Black Magic or am I appropriating someone's culture? :doh:
One old name was for the colour brown or black often seen in shoe polish.
I can sort of understand the term 'Black Country' having evolved into a kind of pejorative term due to much of the area having above average BAME populations, which is purely coincidental, but the name/term historically refers to the area's heavy industrial heritage, and like I already stated upthread, BAME populations have resided in the area for decades now and never previously seemed to bat an eyelid.
For the record, there is also an area in Greater London called 'White City', the name virtually being the complete polar opposite to the 'Black Country', and I haven't as yet heard of any mass outrage from their local BAME populace.
Just cop this next one, in Austria there is a town called 'F**king', which as you all know full well is a well-known swear word in the English language (and very likely to be highly problematic for prudish tourists from countries where English is the primary language), but totally different for the locals, especially in a historical context.
And I'm serious, I'm not making it up about the latter place.
Re: Historically innocent words/names that have a far less innocent meaning today
The Black Country is a predominately racist area. I live in it. Folk don't speak about black or Indian ethnicities too kindly around here and there isn't many black or Indian people in the area I live. There's small pockets of Indian areas around the black country, but they're tiny compared to other areas. That's my experience of the area at least. I don't know 1 person that isn't racist in some form around here. It's depressing.
Re: Historically innocent words/names that have a far less innocent meaning today
Quote:
Originally Posted by
WiredIncorrectly
The Black Country is a predominately racist area. I live in it. Folk don't speak about black or Indian ethnicities too kindly around here and there isn't many black or Indian people in the area I live. There's small pockets of Indian areas around the black country, but they're tiny compared to other areas. That's my experience of the area at least. I don't know 1 person that isn't racist in some form around here. It's depressing.
It is. You need to come to Cov more often. It has its faults, but I've never lived in any city as accepting and celebrating of other cultures, nor as generally friendly. I love the place.
Re: Historically innocent words/names that have a far less innocent meaning today
I used to live not far from Coventry (Coleshill). I haven't been to Cov in almost 10 years, but it was a nice area back then. You a cov. football supporter btw?
Re: Historically innocent words/names that have a far less innocent meaning today
Not especially, but I know loads who are.
Re: Historically innocent words/names that have a far less innocent meaning today
The one that worried me was uncle Joe's mint balls 🤣 the reason it worried me l had an uncle Joe xx
Re: Historically innocent words/names that have a far less innocent meaning today
Quote:
Originally Posted by
MRS STRESS ED
The one that worried me was uncle Joe's mint balls 🤣 the reason it worried me l had an uncle Joe xx
LOL!
Re: Historically innocent words/names that have a far less innocent meaning today
Quote:
Originally Posted by
WiredIncorrectly
The Black Country is a predominately racist area. I live in it. Folk don't speak about black or Indian ethnicities too kindly around here and there isn't many black or Indian people in the area I live. There's small pockets of Indian areas around the black country, but they're tiny compared to other areas. That's my experience of the area at least. I don't know 1 person that isn't racist in some form around here. It's depressing.
I grew up in the Black Country - before the passing of the Race Relations Act - and can only say that racism you refer to is mainly passive words rather than aggressive. The other thing I would say is the racism runs both ways - between indigenous white, black Asian, Afro-Carribbean and the various Eastern European communities that have arrived in the last twenty years. Just what happens when you have large mixed and often culturally incompatible communities living side by side. But when we were children, both sides called each other everything in the playground and we just laughed it off ... not taken so lightly these days. My own parents in their 80s have been verbally abused and on one occasion physically threatened just for being elderly, white and minding their own business on the street by asian and afro-caribbean youths. Damn right it's depressing....
Re: Historically innocent words/names that have a far less innocent meaning today
You're right it is mostly verbal and I've noticed if an Indian or black person was around (like my brother) the people change their tune. I have racist neighbors, they don't say anything bad to him and are polite towards him but when he's gone they're back to saying racist remarks. You're right about racism being on both sides too. It does exist and is less spoken about even though it happens a lot more than we like to imagine. I have family members who are racist. My own Nan has opinionated views but everybody laughs it off and she's mostly always joking. Many of her grandkids and great grandkids are mixed raced. She loves them all the same.