Paula Deen's use of the "N"-Word

[indygphib]

Originally Posted by Benzgirl

I'm stealing that.

Seconded! "Conductor of the Hot Mess Express" = AWESOMESAUCE

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

As for Ms. Deen, when asked if she used the N-word, she replied "of course".

When that "of course" is read in context in the deposition, I don't really see impunity. I do see either an amazing naïveté or willful ignorance.

Originally Posted by ThetaPrincess24

She may be from a different generation, but this is not the 50's or 60's. It is 2013. Unless she has lived her life in a bubble, I'm not sure how she can not know that word would not be offensive, regardless in my opinion, of where you are from in the U.S.

That bubble would be called Savannah. There's an odd kind of time warp going on there.

And to be clear, I'm not suggesting that every white person in Savannah is racist by any means. But it does seem to be one of those pockets of the South where there are more pronounced and odd mixes of old and new attitudes.

And while I can agree to a point about people being products of earlier times, I feel the need to make it clear for the record that some of us were reared in the South in the 1960s by depression- and WWII-era parents who made it very clear that use of the N-word (or, for that matter, "colored") was not acceptable under any circumstances and would not be tolerated. At all.

[Sadfly]

Yet people think that it is okay to ridicule her way of talking and it's not racist?

Those that didn't like Paula before feel that they are justified (whether true or not) and those that supported her in the past will continue to do so.

Either way, tomorrow is another day.

[lovespink88]

Originally Posted by agzg

To quote one of the collegians I met last weekend, "She's the conductor of the Hot Mess Express."

This is one of those rare moments that I literally LOL'd.

[PiKA2001]

I'm sort of in awe of the Paula Deen witch hunt going on... Seriously..because Paula Deen is the only public figure to have ever said that word..like ever. At least she has tje balls to admit saying it and the error of it.

I'm sure the people throwing the stones have never uttered that word either.

For clarifications sake I'm not saying what she said 30 years ago was ok or should be glossed over but this public crucifiction is a little ridic.

[maconmagnolia]

My opinion, which is probably an unpopular one: Past doesn't equal present. She admitted her mistake and apologized for it. I really don't see any issue anymore.. Honestly, at the time she used the word, she probably didn't know any better. She was born during a different time period.. That's how people spoke back then, as bad as that is. If she said it thirty years ago and hasn't said it since (which is what I've gathered, someone can tell me if I'm wrong), then props to her for apologizing. Unfortunately for her, she would have been better off never admitting it. If she's still saying it today.. well, that's a different issue.

[PiKA2001]

Originally Posted by maconmagnolia

My opinion, which is probably an unpopular one: Past doesn't equal present. She admitted her mistake and apologized for it. I really don't see any issue anymore.. Honestly, at the time she used the word, she probably didn't know any better. She was born during a different time period.. That's how people spoke back then, as bad as that is. If she said it thirty years ago and hasn't said it since (which is what I've gathered, someone can tell me if I'm wrong), then props to her for apologizing. Unfortunately for her, she would have been better off never admitting it. If she's still saying it today.. well, that's a different issue.

I agree and I think a lesser person (especially one in the public view) probably would have denied using that word even in a court disposition.

[knight_shadow]

How is ridiculing her speech racism?

[cheerfulgreek]

Originally Posted by knight_shadow

How is ridiculing her speech racism?

lol

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by AZTheta

Re: "Southern accent" or "Southern speech". There are multiple videos/articles/programs etc. available on this topic. I'd start with reading this one. There's a segment of our profession (speech-language pathology) that treats "dialect" or "accent reduction".

So, bias against "Southern speech" = racist? Perhaps not. But discriminatory? Evidence says yes.

Absolutely there are biases againt Southern accents and presuppositions about the people who have them. That doesn't mean it's racism. It's more like regional prejudices and classism.

To say it's not racism doesn't mean it doesn't exist. It just means that this particular prejudice doesn't fall within the definition of racism, and calling it racism when it isn't can be a dialogue-stopper.

[AOII Angel]

Paula Deen-isms of a more current vintage.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/0...n_3480720.html

[AZTheta]

Re: "Southern accent" or "Southern speech". There are multiple videos/articles/programs etc. available on this topic. I'd start with reading this one. There's a segment of our profession (speech-language pathology) that treats "dialect" or "accent reduction".

So, bias against "Southern speech" = racist? Perhaps not. But discriminatory? Evidence says yes.

GWTW seems an interesting choice in the context of this thread, IMO. Would strongly recommend that Ms. Deen read and study To Kill a Mockingbird for starters. She will now have plenty of free time, apparently.

“I think there's just one kind of folks. Folks.” Harper Lee.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by lovespink88

Notification from my CNN app: "The Food Network says it "will not renew Paula Deen's contract when it expires at the end of this month."

Originally Posted by AZTheta

Re: "Southern accent" or "Southern speech". There are multiple videos/articles/programs etc. available on this topic. I'd start with reading this one. There's a segment of our profession (speech-language pathology) that treats "dialect" or "accent reduction".

So, bias against "Southern speech" = racist? Perhaps not. But discriminatory? Evidence says yes.

GWTW seems an interesting choice in the context of this thread, IMO. Would strongly recommend that Ms. Deen read and study To Kill a Mockingbird for starters. She will now have plenty of free time, apparently.

“I think there's just one kind of folks. Folks.” Harper Lee.

I agree that there is discrimination based on accents, not just Southern. Accents can, however, improve your persona, especially in women. I for one find that my Southern accent works to my advantage in Arizona in my line of work. Patients find it warm and comforting. Paula Deen, I have always felt, plays up her accent to stress her Southerness. If it occasionally backfires on her, it has more frequently convinced non-Southerners that she must be really Southern. I occasionally get comments about my accent, which is fairly mild comparatively, but I get away with murder because I say things dripping with honey so I have no incentive to change.

[shirley1929]

Originally Posted by AZTheta

Re: "Southern accent" or "Southern speech". There are multiple videos/articles/programs etc. available on this topic. I'd start with reading this one. There's a segment of our profession (speech-language pathology) that treats "dialect" or "accent reduction".

So, bias against "Southern speech" = racist? Perhaps not. But discriminatory? Evidence says yes.

This thread is reminding me of this:

JEFF FOXWORTHY:
You know I mean some of the, the most intelligent people I've ever known talk like I do. In fact I used to do a joke about that, about you know the Southern accent, I said nobody wants to hear their brain surgeon say, 'Al’ight now what we're gonna do is, saw the top of your head off, root around in there with a stick and see if we can't find that dad burn clot.’

#onlythingiamcontributingtothisthreadbecauseithink pauladeenisamoron

[LXA SE285]

Screencap from the NBC affiliate here in Birmingham: