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>We could, as my grandfather would say, talk like white folks. We loaned that privilege out to folks a lot. I think that speaking well, or being articulate, is

>We could, as my grandfather would say, talk like white folks. We loaned that privilege out to folks a lot. I think that speaking well, or being articulate, is not a privilege but an ability. It is not an ability that everyone has, but it is an ability that almost anyone can acquire with practice. This is true both in verbal and digital communication. If you are not articulate, you will be at a disadvantage throughout your life. Period. The color of your skin has nothing to do with it.

kisil_reboot 13y ago
Yes, it's important to be articulate. But the author is talking about speaking a different vernacular. I imagine one can be articulate in Black English* without being fluent in White English. "Talk[ing] like white folks" means speaking the same language at all, not merely "speaking well" on some counterfactual continuum. [*] I imagine because I don't speak it.
sanskritabelt 13y ago
It's kind of interesting that you equate 'talk[ing] like white folks' with 'speaking well' and 'being articulate.' Why do you think that is?
- itchyouch 13y ago
  cuz I been done dat, and you know, like dat idea where, you know, it's like, when I been tryin', but it ain't gud nuff 4 dem, cuz dey white foke be thinkin dat I can't do it when I can! versus Because I've done that, and you know, the idea where, I-have-been-trying-but-it-isn't-good-enough, makes them think that I can't do it when I can. versus The impression I left with them portrayed a lack of capability, when in-fact, that was not the case. I felt it unfair, that I may have been the recipient of a snap-judgement and to add insult to injury, I did not have the opportunity to re-impress upon them my talent. A lot of people equate speaking-white with [more-]proper sentence structure , but the true differentiator in articulative ability is an expansive vocabulary capable of conveying in-intricate-detail or not, the abstract ideas necessary to communicate on a team.

kisil_reboot 13y ago

Yes, it's important to be articulate. But the author is talking about speaking a different vernacular. I imagine one can be articulate in Black English* without being fluent in White English. "Talk[ing] like white folks" means speaking the same language at all, not merely "speaking well" on some counterfactual continuum. [*] I imagine because I don't speak it.

sanskritabelt 13y ago

It's kind of interesting that you equate 'talk[ing] like white folks' with 'speaking well' and 'being articulate.' Why do you think that is?

itchyouch 13y ago
cuz I been done dat, and you know, like dat idea where, you know, it's like, when I been tryin', but it ain't gud nuff 4 dem, cuz dey white foke be thinkin dat I can't do it when I can! versus Because I've done that, and you know, the idea where, I-have-been-trying-but-it-isn't-good-enough, makes them think that I can't do it when I can. versus The impression I left with them portrayed a lack of capability, when in-fact, that was not the case. I felt it unfair, that I may have been the recipient of a snap-judgement and to add insult to injury, I did not have the opportunity to re-impress upon them my talent. A lot of people equate speaking-white with [more-]proper sentence structure , but the true differentiator in articulative ability is an expansive vocabulary capable of conveying in-intricate-detail or not, the abstract ideas necessary to communicate on a team.