As a culture, we Blacks in this country always find a way to feel victimized even when things are being done for our own benefit. It's ok to speak ebonocis with your friends but it's more important to be able to differentiate that from proper grammer. It's good to know how to speak appropriately when the right time arrives.
Whether it's /æsk/ or /æks/ is irrelivent - the sounds are abitrary. What matters is when the richer socioeconomic group uses one and the poorer uses another. Anyone hoping to transcend these borders has to pronounce it the "right" way if they want to integrate into the "higher" group. Whether or not skin tone correlates to a class structure doesn't matter. Change class markers to change class. Skin isn't a definite class marker and can't be changed - language sure as hell is, and should be.
Almost every single intelligent and successful black has been disappointed at how defensive and selfish the black community is when they try to help them.
BTW a lot of hate for "ebonics" does double duty as hate for Southern dialects in general, which goes back to the poorer working white folk, the majority in antebellum South. So not sure if the ax/ask is just a black thing, even if the (always fair and balanced) reporting makes it seem that way.
I wish there were more guys like this trying to teach our youth. Sadly, I'm glad that this guy is black himself, simply because if it were a white guy trying to teach black students proper grammar, he or she would be heavily criticized and possibly deemed a racist.
It's not necessarily a race thing, It's more of a poverty problem with the lack of quality education. I'm Mexican and i grew up in the ghetto, very few Mexican, black, or white trailer kids spoke properly.
While i understand the brother point, he need to frame the issue in a broader context. The social and cultural impact of white supremacy is the reason why there is a back lashed. Since we as black people do not control the economic and political power in the nation, we are force to capitulate to the dominate white culture. However, the way black people enunciate the English language is a result of a form of cultural resistance against white racism.
This guy has good intentions, but there is nothing inherently "correct" about standard white English, it's just seen as better because it's the dialect of power.
For example, the word "ask" was originally pronounced "aks" and that's why blacks say it that way. Chaucer, the English writer, even wrote the word that way.
I get it. I know people who have moved from Greece and Spain who refuse to learn the standard American English accent. Their reasons are almost always that it reinforces their cultural identity. What a lot of people don't realize is that if you are able to assimilate into many cultures, your cultural identity is even stronger. I wanna meet the Black American guy who can enjoy a vintage wine with the great gatsby on Friday, light up a Jewish wedding on Saturday, and then Sunday sing at the church
This borderlines a SNL or Mad TV parody: "Tired of getting turned down for jobs...well now you can learn how to speak English correctly....." This is shocking and dismally pathetic. Teaching teenagers to construct a proper sentence, is an abomination and failure of our education system.
i think the appropriate strategy is to teach black children how to speak standard american english as a separate variety. this can be done by enforcing it in the classrooms but they are free to use afro american vernacular english at thier homes and neighbourhoods. in my country, we have the same problems. we have two varieties of english, singlish and standard singapore english.
I appreciate what this man is doing. You can blame this problem on environment, but more than anything, the root cause is a lack of Literacy. It is not enough for children to be able to read, no one is encouraging children to read leisurely.
This guy deserves a lot of respect. It is not politically correct and may seem insensitive, but the truth is obvious. This black man cares more about the futures and opportunities of these young black kids than the fake ass so called liberal teachers who do nothing to help them because they think it's innapropriate or culturally insensitive. Shame on anyone who has a problem with this guy. He is courageous and he is enabling children to have opportunites to work in professional environments.
I THINK IT IS FRICKIN SAD THAT ANYONE NEEDS TO TEACH BLACK STUDENTS OR BLACKS IN GENERAL HOW TO SPEAK AND PROPERLY USE THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PAY ATTENTION IN SCHOOL WHICH OBVIOUSLY IS A PROBLEM FOR BLACKS. I DONT FEEL SORRY AT ALL FOR NEGROES!
@jd2476 here we go again. put them all in box and burn it. my friend it is not every black nor every white that speaks broken.
there are whites in england that says "run the baff" instaed of "bath" i like what he's doing. and guess what he's black. i think as a human he's a pioneer at this point an time because no one else is doing it for their own race. i don't see no white intelect going down to georgia correcting no hill billy's slang. and im pretty sure they say ax as well. no one cares. lol
That's shameful! People still treat Ebonics as a slang, and think that kids can learn Standard English just like they always spoke it, which is not the case. It's really important to teach Standard English, so the black children can use it in formal occasions, such as work or whatever. But telling those child that the language they spoke all their life is a slang and is not worth anything...you're not helping them here. Those are 2 distinct languages, and SE must be taught as a second language.
Ebonics and "bad grammar' are totally different things. Ebonics has regular, consistent grammar just the same as white English, people just think white English is better because white people speak it.
Blacks didn't always have such problems. When their families were broken apart by welfare laws that drove men out of the homes, the family structure and intergenerational education fell apart.
hm...when i see some black/white american speakin ghetto/english or those redneck , that nobody get, i feel sorry for them because everybody see them as stupid.
I think if you are going to require everyone to speak standard English then school systems should begin teaching it to student at a very early grade level like maybe 2nd grade rather than trying to undo what students have spoken for years. Its like learning a second language for some students, you make learn a few words and phrases here and there but most people don't master it. For example, how many people had to learn Spanish in high school? Now how many people remember any Spanish? Hint Hint
This is an attack on blacks yet again as if speech is now a true barrier. In actuality the true problem is not blacks nor their use of Ebonics. Ebonics isn't something mastered by all black people and certainly is slang. Black slang could be exampled of 60's talk with jive turkey, superfly, get down, fool, are you tryna check me out and sucker. Slang means something more than that explained in a dictionary to blacks. It's black talk which blacks created for black people you dig.
Some of you people are just plain pathetic. Bad grammar, no matter what your race or where you live, is embarrassing for everyone. Speak proper English. It's not that difficult.
i understand it. ive had jobs where in training courses they made it clear, proper speaking etiquette was essential... after all, you were representing their company. being specific is different than being pacific...lol
No form of language is better than another. All languages and dialects are equal. They all have a system of rules, even "Ebonics". The negativity is purely social connotations placed on this dialect of English as well as "black" culture as a lower culture. Speaking in "Ebonics" also has nothing to do with a person's level of intelligence, although people in our society tend to be less educated when they speak "Ebonics" bc of social disadvantages. Such a frustrating topic for a Linguistics major.
I like this video, it addresses a lot of things I hear on a daily basis. Just to check though, how many of you out there have avoided posting about this video for fear of saying something wrong? Thumbs up if that's crossed your mind.
Yes, it's offensive and wrong when the principal says that it's "poor language skills" because they don't speak his dialect of English. But right now, that's the kind of English you have to speak to get a middle-class job. So this class has a good purpose, even if it's couched in the wrong terms.
I'm an English major but I know that Standard American English has made Americans very judgmental including myself. They say that those who speak S.A.E. are more educated but that's not true. There are many intelligent people out there who speak their home or native dialect who have been taught S.A.E. but choose not to use it because they can communicate just as well through their own home language. I can understand a Mexican English dialect and I can understand a black English Dialect.
Language change is a natural process. Typically African American "mistakes" such as /th/ pronounced as /f/, and double negation etc. IS the way the English language is moving. Teaching Black students pronunciation is degrading and a waste of time. Instead, tolerance for a variety of dialects is what should be taught.
okay here's the thing....Ebonics, or African American English is recongnized as a SEPARATE LANGUAGE!!!! It isn't a dialect or slang, and it isn't wrong because it doesn't sound like American English....because it is NOT the same. The language has it's own history, vocabulary and structure. Furthermore, the idea of Standard English, which most of you probably think is the "prodominant dialect of the culture" is actually not universal. There is no such thing as Standard English.
I'm going to weigh in here a bit (from a white view if it matters):
First, it's interesting to see how most of these speakers (also the white's) are from the south! I'm studying in Italy now and the dialects are also more predominant in the south, where there's less money.
Second, much like with the Italian language, this a dialect. Dialects are cool - they're apart of you, your people, and your home. But, modern Italians are the first to tell you that it's not the real language.
wowowowow this makes me feel better now, because I´m learning english two years ago and now I know that I say "ask" properly and they don´t. lol, I had a lot of fun right !!!
Perhaps black kids should have their own black math. You know, 2 + 2 = 4 1/2. Liberal teachers already allowed them to have their own version of history, and their own twisted version of English. How far away can black math be? That's no joke.
I dont see a thing wrong wit anyone speakin da way they want ta speak! Let them off sure, i mean like, in ireland we speak hiberno english but we can still speak proper english if we need ta, sure what difference does it make like? They only words. And its a good point kiki made at da same time, its part of there culture and its something they should hold on too. Gan Teanga, Gan Tir! Without a language, without a country. (or in this case culture)
I think this guy deserves respect for voicing his opinion. I graduated from a mid-western college that ran an "urban diversity" orientated k12 education program, and we were explicitly taught NOT to correct "Black English" by our faculty. Since we were also supposed to be gearing our students for professional futures, one can reason that enabling whole generations to enter the competitive career market unable to effectively communicate is a total failure of policy.
AAVE is a legitimate dialect, whether people want to accept it or not. The thing is, it's not the dialect that is used in the workplace. Schools are preparing students for the workplace, so they should teach the students "standard" English, so they can get a job.
btw... This guy might want to reinforce that bookshelf... 3:25
AAVE is a legitimate dialect, whether people want to accept it or not. The thing is, it's not the dialect that is used in the workplace. Schools are preparing students for the workplace, so they should teach the students "standard" English, so they can get a job.
btw... This guy might want to reinforce that bookshelf... 3:25
In response to your comment, there is NOTHING wrong with the examples you spoke of, but what Gerrard McClendon is saying here is that there is a need for "code-switching". That makes sense. Certain slang/dialect in certain situations... Peace.
China, it has a lot different kinds of dialects. They also have different ethnic groups that speak their own language. But they all communicate in Chinese characters.
These people people may speak different, but hopefully, these guys know the English written language.
Kiki makes a great point. Making that worse is that in the Afr- American culture, speaking in such a way is often a sign of closeness with others, a positive cultural marker of endearment. So many people love and feel comfortable speaking that way, which is normal, yet there are a ton of negative associations we have with that- whether or not a black person gets a job can depend on the way they speak, even if that's how they learned it form their parents, but a bostonian probably has no worries.
Good for this teacher trying to fix this problem, epically since he is black himself. Is there anything wrong with African Americans using their own slang with each other in a non professional environment? No. The problem is most who use it don't know how to speak any other way. The teacher is right, they are falling far behind. Just watch Judge Judy whenever there are black women. Even in a professional environment like a court room they can barley communicate, its pathetic. Great Video!!
not body tells the euro-american that saying bUDDERrr instead of buTTer is bad. but when a african american says AX instead of aSK, they are looked down apon.! thats not fair.
Excellent remark kiki..you are so right. It is the classic form of racism to not accept some dialects and to accept others according to skin color and culture. Nice point.
@garrardmc Euro american? have you ever thought they say things due to the influence form their mother language, however african american learn english as their first language
@kikiCARIBBEANGirl lets be honest here ebonics just sounds unpreventable and they say ask instead of ax ebonics just sounds immature and the speakers cant even make sense of simple sentence structure
I think people dont realize how different english and ebonics are. ebonics is a hybrid of african structure with english words. it's structure is not as african as say haitian or jamaican but its african. but blacks have had so much pressure to assimilate that many similarities are camoflagues which merge africanism into english kind of like in latin american countries where the blacks merge african gods with catholic saints. blacks have had to do dis. ebonics is speaking english thinkin african
@LAKUINA22 Ebonics has nothing to do with African language structure whatsoever! It is just a lazy way of speaking....PERIOD! You can call it slang,street talk or whatever you like, but it is very far from African language structure, for if that were the case why do African immigrants speak better English than African Americans? The accent granted is different but the structure and grammar is perfect! There is no comparison whatsoever between Ebonics and African language/structure.
@LAKUINA22 Except for the fact that many American English words come from Black English and the Elitists do not want to recognize that. Just because people speak Ebonics does not mean that they are not smart.
it has nothing to do with dialects and skin color and the fact that it has its own grammar system or whatever crap you want to sprinkle on it. the point is if you cant pronounce a 3 letter word on a regular basis you need to read a god damn book. if you say "Bafroom" instead of "Bathroom" and say things like "i aint done nothing" no employer is going to hire you. you can whine all you want about it being prejudiced, i dont care. i dont want an employee who cant speak their own damn language.
@mxyzptlk2099 But it is a dialect. Let's take the history o the eng. language for example. Our verb endings came from adult vikings conquering, struggling to learn a language, and misspeaking it, teaching their generations of kids to speak that way until it took over. Very similar for blacks-- it's a newly evolved lang. But now that eng is standardized (a good thing) they're left out, interestingly. I think you place too much negativity on blacks though. There much pressure to learn that eng.
@mxyzptlk2099 And apparently you haven't mastered it either. You can't capitalize or punctuate correctly. So by your own logic you shouldn't be hired anywhere either.
And that's not even getting into the fact that you can't seem to express your actual reasoning and rely on epithets and platitudes. The manner in which you write (and most likely speak) is quite uneducated.
@mxyzptlk2099 it absolutely has to do with it. The people here are teaching them a completely separate language, and like it or not, but it takes a while for someone to learn another language, and it'll take some time for them to make the distinction between their own phonemic rules and the Standard English phonemic rules!
I totally agree with you Garrad, I am an innovative teacher. I am certainly on board with you. Absolutely no criticism. I am a country girl and I have overcome many barriers in respect to the way I speak compared to my peers. I am ordering the book now!! Love ya and thanks for da knowledge..........
I'm from America, and people from England and Australia have made hateful comments toward me just for correcting their grammar. For example, I tell people not to use an apostrophe before the S when something is plural. They hate me and say I'm a bigot.
@spinemelter2000 And they are wrong. However, correcting people when it isn't necessary, and they are not asking you to do so is rude. And many people feel that, if you are rude to them, they are allowed to be a jerk to you.
To all of you dweebs who think "Black English" is A-OK.... it's not a "language" - it's simply a dialect.. one that experts would call uneducated. Why? Because there is no standardization or "rules", no way to teach it other than listen-repeat. etc If you expect to function in American society, you have to master STANDARD American English. It's no more complicated than that. I can't run an office where there is Black English and Appalachian English... speak those derivatives at home.
How can a "dialect" expect to be regarded as "legit" if it's naught but hear & repeat, as opposed to taught specifically in schools with specific guidelines and rules?
When do we ever hear a teacher say "Sorry, Lamichael, you're speaking your Ebonics improperly"?
Those derivatives are fine, as you say, at HOME but it is no excuse for not being ABLE to speak the established language, i.e. English, reasonably well, if not properly.
I agree with the second half of your comment but the first half is completely false. It's true that it's a dialect, but it is not "uneducated," nor do experts call it that. There are rules to it, just like to standard English. Wikipedia it. Besides, people didn't come up with the rules for English, then start speaking it. Just like most languages, English was spoken first, then rules were made to try to teach the language, which is why there are so many exceptions to everything.
How can a "dialect" expect to be regarded as "legit" if it's naught but hear & repeat, as opposed to taught specifically in schools with specific guidelines and rules?
When do we ever hear a teacher say "Sorry, Lamichael, you're speaking your Ebonics improperly"?
Those derivatives are fine, as you say, at HOME but it is no excuse for not being ABLE to speak the established language, i.e. English, reasonably well, if not properly.
@moucon Actually, as an 'expert' (having a masters degree in Applied Linguistics), African American Vernacular English (AAVE) is NOT thought of as 'uneducated', it IS relatively standardized (not as codified as Standard English (SE), but that's just because white people write dictionaries), and there are rules. Maybe multi-dialectal offices don't run as smoothly, but that doesn't make SE better than AAVE. Im sure you're a good boss, but I hope you can learn to be a bit more tolerant.
@moucon The whole point is that there are rules. They are more loose because AAVE is mostly spoken, but it is quite standardized.
The biggest problem I have is that, rather than allow the language to meld in with standard English, as we have done with most other dialects, we insist on changing their dialect.
And you could very easily run an office with different dialects, as they are all mutually intelligible.
American English is just a bunch of mispronounced and chopped up words taken from other languages. People in Britain could say that most White Americans can't pronounce the language right. This is just another way for the dominant culture in this country to enforce it's "rules" on everyone else. Not saying that that's racist, just a part of being a human being - making "others" be more like "us".
Psh, yeah and let me guess: French and Spanish are just a bunch of mispronounced and chopped up words taken from Latin? What a garbage point you have.
So what are you saying? If there is some community that speaks a different language, say French, it is bad to expect them to speak the language of the country they live in? Americans who speak that bad English don't live in Britain or Germany, they live in their own country. And before you say "it's different with 'ax'", let me tell you it is not. It is an awful distortion of the language, that is beyond comprehension.
Linguistically, neither Standard English nor Black English is better than the other. It is political/social/racist attitudes that inform our opinions and place values and judgments on languages. If BE were ungrammatical gibberish, speakers would not be able to understand one another and it would be impossible for people to hold a conversation. If BE and other non-standard varieties were not real and true languages, you wouldn't be able to speak them.
@TheLuluanator You're saying that Standard English and Black English is EQUAL! You gotta be kiddin'?! Is Spanglish equal too? English, if you didn't realize, is an actual language, whereas Black English is a dialect.
"i done been gone" or "i done got my hair did" is equal to 'i have been gone" "I have gotton my hair done"?
African American English is NOT inferior to Standard English. It is not "improper grammar". It has a regular grammar system just like any language and is capable of expressing the complex thoughts of educated people. To view it as inferior is a form of cultural prejudice. To judge a person by his accent or the grammar system of his language is as bad as judging him by the color of his skin.
Its not wrong to spaek a variation of the lanuage when your speaking to friends and family. But the problem is that some people dont know that they are speaking improper grammar. Many other lanuages in the world have a formal and informal way of speaking to others. Neither is wrong, but its important to know both. The problem is when someone only know the informal way of speaking. When someone goes to a job interview they need to speak differently then they do with their friends.
@Jpolo1031 How are going to say its alright ot switch back and forth from ebonics to proper English.
Thats's like saying to drive a car with your feet. but drive your car with your hands when in a proffessional setting. WHY are you pracitcing bad habits in your down time? You should be practicing all the time to do things right. Im sorry and the people who tell you otherwise whether your family and friends are cancerous to your success
@Jpolo1031 nonono it's not a formal/informal distinction here. Ebonics is a separate language that has its own grammatical rules (phonemic rules, syntactic rules, morphological rules). It's not improper language. It's really important to know that distinction because the whole view that most of the americans have on ebonics can be changed: it's possible to teach ebonics speakers how to speak Standard English as a second language, and they can become proficient biliguals like everybody else.
A language or dialect can neither be inherently good nor bad. The problem lies within the preconceived notions people have of others based upon stereotypes. Unfortunately the stereotypes surrounding language exist, and I know first hand that most of the times they are JUST stereotypes. People just gotta be more open minded and accepting of differences.
People don't have to do anything and also don't have to hire you if you can't speak professionally. Black or white, slang and lazy mispronunciation will get you nowhere in life.
Peoples and cultures develop their own vernacular when they are isolated. African Americans were--and to a degree still are-- isolated because of slavery and racism, and as a result produced their own adaptation of the English language. A language in its self is neither inherently good nor bad, therefore the problem lies within preconceived notions individuals have others. In short, people need to be more open minded.
WHOA WHOA. STOP RIGHT THERE! Because of slavery and racism? lol Again with that card. look, slavery was abolished a loooong time ago. i dont know anyone today that was a slave.
now as for racism, yes in the turn of last centery there was racism. ill grant u that but heres the problem, its not there anymore. and if you think its here now, in this century? you r dead wrong. its only racism if you acknowalge. now unless the kkk shows up at your door, then you might be on to something
i feel like 1st black english should b recognized & respected. people act like blacks and whites aint been talking dfferent since blacks first got here. i wish people would learn to differeniate from slang and black english. slang is a part of any language. but if you take slang out of black english its still different and its mainly due to grammar esp. tense. vocab is almost the same excpet slang which generally cross into english. respect it warranted
I certainly agree with the the opinion that it's not selling out but gaining clout. There is always an inevitable judgment call (conscious or subconscious) that happens upon hearing someone speak. There is a time and place for everything. Whereas it may be acceptable to speak in our vernacular at home, just as McClendon stated, the professional world is looking for something else. Why not learn to speak professionally? Both ways of communicating definitely have their advantages.
I'm glad that someone is doing this. The fact is that we are judged by how well we communicate. Knowing the difference between "ask" and "ax", "good" and "well", "your" and "you're", and knowing when to put "ly" at the end of adverbs has been more important than my suit choice or my skin color on job interviews. Police officers are also much nicer to those who look them in the eyes and speak properly.
I have a problem with this. Here is why. Studying linguistics and how languages change over time. Generationally what we say and how we speak changes over time. Black dialects are and have been just as valid as white dialectual changes. No one tell the southern gentlmen that he speaks incorrectly. Now I do beleive that blacks should use midwestern dialects when speaking with others but to be judged ignorant by using these dialects is simply wrong.
I agree with you Mister, when children do not get taught how important it is to speak properly their motherlanguage they'l face problems in society. There is slang in all languages, everywhere in the world, but it should be spoken just at home not outside, children need to read books, it's the greatest thing to make them like languages, it keeps them busy and reading books is way better and cheaper than Videogames :o)
I agree with you Mister, big up to this young man who's got the talent to fascinate these kids to learn speaking a proper english.Children need to read books, it's the best way to put the language into their brains, and it's way cheaper than videogames :o)
FINALLY someone realizes how big of an issue this actually is. And it's not only blacks, though it is mostly blacks. So many people don't know the difference between two too and to. If someone doesn't know basic grammar, he/she is an idiot.
BTW, RonQE... It's not that we lack the ability. It's not something inherent in nature. It's just that some haven't been taught the importance... unless there truly is a speech impediment gene affecting roughly 98.5% of American blacks ; )
I believe this is for two reasons. I look people in their eyes, and I speak clearly and properly. Whether it's fair or not, people are judged when they confuse "ax" with "ask", "good" with "well", "your" with "you're", or don't know when to put "ly" on the end of most adverbs. I do not view myself as different than members of other races, so I'm not viewed differently.
I am amazed at the amount of people who don't see how important it is to know proper English. Some people believe that they are being discriminated against on the basis of race, when the way they speak is the real issue. I am a black male who has never had trouble getting a job in the financial arena. For the most part, police officers treat me with respect and have let me go with a warning, more often than not, when I've committed some minor traffic violation.
Thank you, and that there is the truth! I think it's despicable how some people accuse employers or police officers for example of being racist and discriminating against their race, when really it's the way they speak and present themselves. If I'm an employer, you can't expect to come into my office for an interview wanting to AKS me questions and dressing like a thug and for me to take you seriously.
@ManofManyPasswords As an employer, I'd suggest you to strongly encourage your Ebonics speaking future employees to learn standard english, because they would have much more chances to work normally in your company. But really, like, don't take what Fox News says for granted. It's the least accurate TV channel out there, and I'd suggest you to inform yourself about Ebonics before you make any jugdment on your employees based on their language.
Languages evolve. Parisian became Cajun and Quebecois over here. There's no problem with speaking in this way so long as people can understand you.
It's even worse with this because this variation was started by slaves who were forcibly taught English. And now you have to speak the language of your oppressor perfectly so that he'll give you a nice job. Please.
Any comments you see under "TheAnimalEnthusiast" are actually from me. Sorry, my lil bro never tells me when he's logged on and I always forget which profile I'm typing under.
I am not of caucasian or african american descent.
That being said, I feel embarrassed when I hear a black person say things like "I axed him" or "I want a sammich" and other things like that.
Don't these people realize that they look incompetent ? the way you look and act represents who you are in society, acting like an uneducated tard probably won't help someone get far.
Any human being who doesn't have a speech problem they were born with can say the word ASK. If you can't say a simple 3 letter word correctly you are just plain lazy!
The "aks" form for "ask" dates back to Old English, where the form was either "acsian" or "ascian". The only difference is that the upper classes in London said "ask" instead of "aks" and now one is considered the standard.
Sure, teaching kids to speak Standard English is a good thing, in that it will reduce discrimination that they suffer because of the way they speak. That doesn't mean that it's not irrational discrimination that they're trying to avoid.
Yeah poor black kids have it hard. they are raised so that the teachers are scared to offend them by correcting their culture but they are at the same time being judged by their horrible language abilities or lack of.
This man is a hero, and a human rights activist. That anyone would consider him controversial reveals the traitors within the black race, intent on destroying their own people.
blacks and white talk different. im tired of folk saying black englis is bad english its not. if kids get taught the diff at school it make it easier. i dont mean slang from non-slang. i mean grammar, grammar is whats most different between black and standard english. the pronuncations are different but not as much as the grammar. being black english has more tenses than standard english. its not bad english just an american born version of it with subtle african and irish influences.
Is this really Mr. McClendon? I'd like to know what he thinks of this Fox News segment. I remember when I first saw this, I investigated whether there really was a "backlash" and it doesn't appear so. But obviously Fox News wants to make it seem like the "ignorant" people are fighting against bettering themselves. Indeed, if I didn't know better, I'd think Bill Cosby was a hated figure in the black community.
It is a shame that people want people to correct something that should not be. How you speak is a part of your identity. Why on earth would anyone want to assimilate in order to be accepted...waht kind of message does that sent to the public? I would have to say that this guy needs to think about what is to be considered correct and why?
I give this man credit because he realizes the truth and he is trying to take this out of the equation as a reason for Blacks not getting hired for a job. But the truth remains, the ones who aren't looking for a skilled line of work would rather be cool and talk like their "homies".
I know I for one wouldn't hire someone to any kind of skilled position if they "axed" me a question.
Kudos to this gentleman. By teaching proper English he is empowering his students. In the business world basic literacy and the ability to speak proper English is essential. While African American dialects have their place the reality is that the dialects are not accepted by and large in the business world.
I believe he is performing a good deed. The pervasiveness and virulence of such talk, is very powerful. Mr. McClendon himself sometimes falls victim to such slang. Note his final words, "I gotta do this." A more proper statement would be "I have got to do this." "Gotta" is a relaxed form of "got to." Nonetheless, a noble endeavor on Mr. McClendon's part.
I think its about teaching African American students how do be bilingual. "Ebonics" is not BAD englsih, its just a different English, with its roots in slavery, and mixing African Dialects and British English. So its not that the english Black people speak is bad, its just different.
I personally think everybody should stop arguing. Because we all know talking slang isn't a big deal and that white kids hardly even talk proper anymore.
i understand what this guy is promoting but if they have want to go that far you might as well target EVERY OTHER American with an ethnic background that pronounce shit wrong. It just seems like he and Faux News are singling out a specific group. I can go on for days about what other groups in the us that have this problem, and this includes white folk too.
LostConscious, I can only presume you're writing that post to be sarcastic? For example:
"I'm black person who speak"
"I just a person who like to learn how as possible!!!"
"Mofo are judging somebody on the way speak,act,and react!!"
Obviously, you can't call this "speaking properly"... LOL!
And YES, people DO judge based on how one speaks and acts! Such things are how you represent yourself to the world. More so that the kind of clothes one wears or the can one drives.
who refuses what are you talking about why should a group of people who have no problem communicating amongst themselves and have been doing that for hundreds of years why would you expect it just to disapper, thats the problem "to dispel the image of being intellectually challenged" its idiotic to think that becasue of the language you speak you should be considered intellectually challenged dispel an image you act as though we created this image its the same thing said about the south
when does a four year old make a choice in language millions of black speak more standardized forms of american english however quite a few do not and you proved my point pretty much despite the vocab (english) structurally it can be argued that its another language read the book "Black English" you learn grammer at home and at school the difference is at times certain standards are reinforced at home thats where the whole talkig white thing comes from but dude you seem smart open up
"when does a four year old make a choice in language"
I'm referring to the overall cultural attitude and education of the younger generations.
Also, adults can make a choice if they wish to be able to speak properly when required. Look at Will Smith, e.g. He can speak slang and jive yet also properly; this was his CHOICE to educate himself thus.
I'm plenty open - I'm simply saying that blacks and whites should have the SAME SOCIAL STANDARDS of professionalism and expectations.
It was not education it was conforming it doesn't take a genius to do it as a matter of fact most blacks from back grounds like WIll Smith actually do that all the time you are not open sir how can you be whenyou say that "blacks and whites should have the SAME SOCIAL STANDARD" basically what you are saying is if blacks acted like you everything would be okay thats bs dude and you would see that if you were as open as you claim who ask Willie Nelson to talk differently no one thats him tht fine
As a culture, we Blacks in this country always find a way to feel victimized even when things are being done for our own benefit. It's ok to speak ebonocis with your friends but it's more important to be able to differentiate that from proper grammer. It's good to know how to speak appropriately when the right time arrives.
biggestfoot2011 7 months ago 20
Higher Learning. Think. Adapt. Focus. Code-Switch.
garrardmc 9 months ago 9
Great comments... keep them coming.
garrardmc 9 months ago
Whether it's /æsk/ or /æks/ is irrelivent - the sounds are abitrary. What matters is when the richer socioeconomic group uses one and the poorer uses another. Anyone hoping to transcend these borders has to pronounce it the "right" way if they want to integrate into the "higher" group. Whether or not skin tone correlates to a class structure doesn't matter. Change class markers to change class. Skin isn't a definite class marker and can't be changed - language sure as hell is, and should be.
Arpeggiato 9 months ago 3
Almost every single intelligent and successful black has been disappointed at how defensive and selfish the black community is when they try to help them.
dinnerandashow 9 months ago 3
BTW a lot of hate for "ebonics" does double duty as hate for Southern dialects in general, which goes back to the poorer working white folk, the majority in antebellum South. So not sure if the ax/ask is just a black thing, even if the (always fair and balanced) reporting makes it seem that way.
AlexNewton1981 9 months ago
I wish there were more guys like this trying to teach our youth. Sadly, I'm glad that this guy is black himself, simply because if it were a white guy trying to teach black students proper grammar, he or she would be heavily criticized and possibly deemed a racist.
It's not necessarily a race thing, It's more of a poverty problem with the lack of quality education. I'm Mexican and i grew up in the ghetto, very few Mexican, black, or white trailer kids spoke properly.
I commend this man.
LaenPvP 9 months ago
While i understand the brother point, he need to frame the issue in a broader context. The social and cultural impact of white supremacy is the reason why there is a back lashed. Since we as black people do not control the economic and political power in the nation, we are force to capitulate to the dominate white culture. However, the way black people enunciate the English language is a result of a form of cultural resistance against white racism.
ederrick987 9 months ago 4
Exactly. I would never hire someone who came to a job interview and spoke like Eminem.
zither74 9 months ago
This guy has good intentions, but there is nothing inherently "correct" about standard white English, it's just seen as better because it's the dialect of power.
For example, the word "ask" was originally pronounced "aks" and that's why blacks say it that way. Chaucer, the English writer, even wrote the word that way.
sssporkkk 10 months ago
I get it. I know people who have moved from Greece and Spain who refuse to learn the standard American English accent. Their reasons are almost always that it reinforces their cultural identity. What a lot of people don't realize is that if you are able to assimilate into many cultures, your cultural identity is even stronger. I wanna meet the Black American guy who can enjoy a vintage wine with the great gatsby on Friday, light up a Jewish wedding on Saturday, and then Sunday sing at the church
jazzpsalti 10 months ago
This borderlines a SNL or Mad TV parody: "Tired of getting turned down for jobs...well now you can learn how to speak English correctly....." This is shocking and dismally pathetic. Teaching teenagers to construct a proper sentence, is an abomination and failure of our education system.
crusader68 10 months ago
i think the appropriate strategy is to teach black children how to speak standard american english as a separate variety. this can be done by enforcing it in the classrooms but they are free to use afro american vernacular english at thier homes and neighbourhoods. in my country, we have the same problems. we have two varieties of english, singlish and standard singapore english.
fragilez 10 months ago
This has to be the best recording ever...
yubertuber987 10 months ago
I appreciate what this man is doing. You can blame this problem on environment, but more than anything, the root cause is a lack of Literacy. It is not enough for children to be able to read, no one is encouraging children to read leisurely.
firenyce 10 months ago
this nigga right here
rudebwoydc 10 months ago
This man is amazing. If I could donate money to his cause, I would.
somebody118 10 months ago
I can't believe how many people are defending ebonics. It's not a seperate language. It's a bastardization of an existing language.
TomatoeAssassin 11 months ago
Over 600 comments and counting...thanks everyone.
garrardmc 11 months ago
Great comments everyone...
garrardmc 11 months ago
@garrardmc
lol.
leslieip1993112 3 months ago
This guy deserves a lot of respect. It is not politically correct and may seem insensitive, but the truth is obvious. This black man cares more about the futures and opportunities of these young black kids than the fake ass so called liberal teachers who do nothing to help them because they think it's innapropriate or culturally insensitive. Shame on anyone who has a problem with this guy. He is courageous and he is enabling children to have opportunites to work in professional environments.
slickone2222 11 months ago
@slickone2222 THANK YOU i am a very liberal guy but i am sick of liberals making excuses for black people as if they are incapable.
blueiguy1 9 months ago
I THINK IT IS FRICKIN SAD THAT ANYONE NEEDS TO TEACH BLACK STUDENTS OR BLACKS IN GENERAL HOW TO SPEAK AND PROPERLY USE THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PAY ATTENTION IN SCHOOL WHICH OBVIOUSLY IS A PROBLEM FOR BLACKS. I DONT FEEL SORRY AT ALL FOR NEGROES!
jd2476 11 months ago
@jd2476 here we go again. put them all in box and burn it. my friend it is not every black nor every white that speaks broken.
there are whites in england that says "run the baff" instaed of "bath" i like what he's doing. and guess what he's black. i think as a human he's a pioneer at this point an time because no one else is doing it for their own race. i don't see no white intelect going down to georgia correcting no hill billy's slang. and im pretty sure they say ax as well. no one cares. lol
MrRoachiee3 11 months ago
That's shameful! People still treat Ebonics as a slang, and think that kids can learn Standard English just like they always spoke it, which is not the case. It's really important to teach Standard English, so the black children can use it in formal occasions, such as work or whatever. But telling those child that the language they spoke all their life is a slang and is not worth anything...you're not helping them here. Those are 2 distinct languages, and SE must be taught as a second language.
Clairevoyante 11 months ago
Ebonics and "bad grammar' are totally different things. Ebonics has regular, consistent grammar just the same as white English, people just think white English is better because white people speak it.
elphish12 11 months ago
Bill Cosby is the only black person Fox News likes because he's always trashing black people.
Bienville25 11 months ago
Blacks didn't always have such problems. When their families were broken apart by welfare laws that drove men out of the homes, the family structure and intergenerational education fell apart.
bill0756 11 months ago
hm...when i see some black/white american speakin ghetto/english or those redneck , that nobody get, i feel sorry for them because everybody see them as stupid.
MrLilort 11 months ago
Welcome to Earff or Welcome to Earth?
nitrate88 11 months ago
I'm a 15 year old black guy and I think this man has a point.
SinShinron 1 year ago
I think if you are going to require everyone to speak standard English then school systems should begin teaching it to student at a very early grade level like maybe 2nd grade rather than trying to undo what students have spoken for years. Its like learning a second language for some students, you make learn a few words and phrases here and there but most people don't master it. For example, how many people had to learn Spanish in high school? Now how many people remember any Spanish? Hint Hint
frediab 1 year ago
This is an attack on blacks yet again as if speech is now a true barrier. In actuality the true problem is not blacks nor their use of Ebonics. Ebonics isn't something mastered by all black people and certainly is slang. Black slang could be exampled of 60's talk with jive turkey, superfly, get down, fool, are you tryna check me out and sucker. Slang means something more than that explained in a dictionary to blacks. It's black talk which blacks created for black people you dig.
zjones1222 1 year ago
Some of you people are just plain pathetic. Bad grammar, no matter what your race or where you live, is embarrassing for everyone. Speak proper English. It's not that difficult.
candyanne521 1 year ago
i understand it. ive had jobs where in training courses they made it clear, proper speaking etiquette was essential... after all, you were representing their company. being specific is different than being pacific...lol
jollyrogers011 1 year ago
No form of language is better than another. All languages and dialects are equal. They all have a system of rules, even "Ebonics". The negativity is purely social connotations placed on this dialect of English as well as "black" culture as a lower culture. Speaking in "Ebonics" also has nothing to do with a person's level of intelligence, although people in our society tend to be less educated when they speak "Ebonics" bc of social disadvantages. Such a frustrating topic for a Linguistics major.
rezapormi88 1 year ago
Interesting stuff.
When I hear aks instead of ask it reminds me of a dyslectic friend I had who would always pronounce animation as amination.. Weird I know... :P
Also, growing up we'd always call it a sangwhich.. but it was a joke and we wouldn't say it in front of someone who didn't know that we joking.
videogameobsession 1 year ago
I like this video, it addresses a lot of things I hear on a daily basis. Just to check though, how many of you out there have avoided posting about this video for fear of saying something wrong? Thumbs up if that's crossed your mind.
photog645 1 year ago
sammiches
juliensaccount1 1 year ago
Yes, it's offensive and wrong when the principal says that it's "poor language skills" because they don't speak his dialect of English. But right now, that's the kind of English you have to speak to get a middle-class job. So this class has a good purpose, even if it's couched in the wrong terms.
applejelly87 1 year ago
I'm an English major but I know that Standard American English has made Americans very judgmental including myself. They say that those who speak S.A.E. are more educated but that's not true. There are many intelligent people out there who speak their home or native dialect who have been taught S.A.E. but choose not to use it because they can communicate just as well through their own home language. I can understand a Mexican English dialect and I can understand a black English Dialect.
rootieboy 1 year ago
Language change is a natural process. Typically African American "mistakes" such as /th/ pronounced as /f/, and double negation etc. IS the way the English language is moving. Teaching Black students pronunciation is degrading and a waste of time. Instead, tolerance for a variety of dialects is what should be taught.
TheRealDarthCosby 1 year ago
okay here's the thing....Ebonics, or African American English is recongnized as a SEPARATE LANGUAGE!!!! It isn't a dialect or slang, and it isn't wrong because it doesn't sound like American English....because it is NOT the same. The language has it's own history, vocabulary and structure. Furthermore, the idea of Standard English, which most of you probably think is the "prodominant dialect of the culture" is actually not universal. There is no such thing as Standard English.
stavlokr 1 year ago
I'm going to weigh in here a bit (from a white view if it matters):
First, it's interesting to see how most of these speakers (also the white's) are from the south! I'm studying in Italy now and the dialects are also more predominant in the south, where there's less money.
Second, much like with the Italian language, this a dialect. Dialects are cool - they're apart of you, your people, and your home. But, modern Italians are the first to tell you that it's not the real language.
LEARN IT!
Lucaa4229 1 year ago
i hate Fox News
Puffin10101 1 year ago
wowowowow this makes me feel better now, because I´m learning english two years ago and now I know that I say "ask" properly and they don´t. lol, I had a lot of fun right !!!
cerdoendogamico 1 year ago
How do you say asked ????
LookFierce 1 year ago
Perhaps black kids should have their own black math. You know, 2 + 2 = 4 1/2. Liberal teachers already allowed them to have their own version of history, and their own twisted version of English. How far away can black math be? That's no joke.
It's a black thing.
theknightlynews 1 year ago
Kudos to this teacher! He defies that Uncle Tom pressure and does what it takes to get urban youths the chance they want at being respected!
snoobeagle 1 year ago
I dont see a thing wrong wit anyone speakin da way they want ta speak! Let them off sure, i mean like, in ireland we speak hiberno english but we can still speak proper english if we need ta, sure what difference does it make like? They only words. And its a good point kiki made at da same time, its part of there culture and its something they should hold on too. Gan Teanga, Gan Tir! Without a language, without a country. (or in this case culture)
michealomainin 1 year ago
hahahahaha...i remember when i watched this on fox
cradleofjohannes 1 year ago
I think this guy deserves respect for voicing his opinion. I graduated from a mid-western college that ran an "urban diversity" orientated k12 education program, and we were explicitly taught NOT to correct "Black English" by our faculty. Since we were also supposed to be gearing our students for professional futures, one can reason that enabling whole generations to enter the competitive career market unable to effectively communicate is a total failure of policy.
TheWilson419 1 year ago
as a current resident of kentucky, i wonder if anybody ever does that anywhere around here. i hear "i aint got" and "its ova'er" all the damn time.
AgentCarter 1 year ago
AAVE is a legitimate dialect, whether people want to accept it or not. The thing is, it's not the dialect that is used in the workplace. Schools are preparing students for the workplace, so they should teach the students "standard" English, so they can get a job.
btw... This guy might want to reinforce that bookshelf... 3:25
eyueltessema 1 year ago
AAVE is a legitimate dialect, whether people want to accept it or not. The thing is, it's not the dialect that is used in the workplace. Schools are preparing students for the workplace, so they should teach the students "standard" English, so they can get a job.
btw... This guy might want to reinforce that bookshelf... 3:25
eyueltessema 1 year ago
2:05 its amberlamps
jli1877 1 year ago
kiki-
In response to your comment, there is NOTHING wrong with the examples you spoke of, but what Gerrard McClendon is saying here is that there is a need for "code-switching". That makes sense. Certain slang/dialect in certain situations... Peace.
spindle226 1 year ago
... I will say this...
China, it has a lot different kinds of dialects. They also have different ethnic groups that speak their own language. But they all communicate in Chinese characters.
These people people may speak different, but hopefully, these guys know the English written language.
johnther 1 year ago
Kiki makes a great point. Making that worse is that in the Afr- American culture, speaking in such a way is often a sign of closeness with others, a positive cultural marker of endearment. So many people love and feel comfortable speaking that way, which is normal, yet there are a ton of negative associations we have with that- whether or not a black person gets a job can depend on the way they speak, even if that's how they learned it form their parents, but a bostonian probably has no worries.
FOOLYCOOLY 1 year ago
Good for this teacher trying to fix this problem, epically since he is black himself. Is there anything wrong with African Americans using their own slang with each other in a non professional environment? No. The problem is most who use it don't know how to speak any other way. The teacher is right, they are falling far behind. Just watch Judge Judy whenever there are black women. Even in a professional environment like a court room they can barley communicate, its pathetic. Great Video!!
JJ388JAr 1 year ago
I like this guy. : )
oongi 1 year ago
not body tells the euro-american that saying bUDDERrr instead of buTTer is bad. but when a african american says AX instead of aSK, they are looked down apon.! thats not fair.
kikiCARIBBEANGirl 1 year ago
Excellent remark kiki..you are so right. It is the classic form of racism to not accept some dialects and to accept others according to skin color and culture. Nice point.
garrardmc 1 year ago
@garrardmc Euro american? have you ever thought they say things due to the influence form their mother language, however african american learn english as their first language
s4204950 1 year ago
@kikiCARIBBEANGirl Nobody says "buTTer", just like nobody says "coTTon."
Besides, "budder" and "coddon", aren't really words, but "ask" and "ax" are not interchangeable and are two completely difference words.
Drahthaar422 1 year ago
@kikiCARIBBEANGirl lets be honest here ebonics just sounds unpreventable and they say ask instead of ax ebonics just sounds immature and the speakers cant even make sense of simple sentence structure
kurozaki45 1 year ago
@kikiCARIBBEANGirl true however, it is far more common in the african american community than white.
TheYoungTurds1 1 year ago
@kikiCARIBBEANGirl
That is because of the fact that the American accent is a standardized speech of it's own and it is more vocalized than British English.
Think of it this way, The American way of speaking English is an accent, while the Black way of saying "ask" is just stupidity or ignorance.
alexross8 1 year ago
I think people dont realize how different english and ebonics are. ebonics is a hybrid of african structure with english words. it's structure is not as african as say haitian or jamaican but its african. but blacks have had so much pressure to assimilate that many similarities are camoflagues which merge africanism into english kind of like in latin american countries where the blacks merge african gods with catholic saints. blacks have had to do dis. ebonics is speaking english thinkin african
LAKUINA22 1 year ago
@LAKUINA22 Ebonics has nothing to do with African language structure whatsoever! It is just a lazy way of speaking....PERIOD! You can call it slang,street talk or whatever you like, but it is very far from African language structure, for if that were the case why do African immigrants speak better English than African Americans? The accent granted is different but the structure and grammar is perfect! There is no comparison whatsoever between Ebonics and African language/structure.
vixxy02 1 year ago
you better axe somebody
ukstevey 1 year ago
@LAKUINA22 Except for the fact that many American English words come from Black English and the Elitists do not want to recognize that. Just because people speak Ebonics does not mean that they are not smart.
rootieboy 1 year ago
it has nothing to do with dialects and skin color and the fact that it has its own grammar system or whatever crap you want to sprinkle on it. the point is if you cant pronounce a 3 letter word on a regular basis you need to read a god damn book. if you say "Bafroom" instead of "Bathroom" and say things like "i aint done nothing" no employer is going to hire you. you can whine all you want about it being prejudiced, i dont care. i dont want an employee who cant speak their own damn language.
mxyzptlk2099 1 year ago 23
@mxyzptlk2099 But it is a dialect. Let's take the history o the eng. language for example. Our verb endings came from adult vikings conquering, struggling to learn a language, and misspeaking it, teaching their generations of kids to speak that way until it took over. Very similar for blacks-- it's a newly evolved lang. But now that eng is standardized (a good thing) they're left out, interestingly. I think you place too much negativity on blacks though. There much pressure to learn that eng.
FOOLYCOOLY 1 year ago
@mxyzptlk2099 And apparently you haven't mastered it either. You can't capitalize or punctuate correctly. So by your own logic you shouldn't be hired anywhere either.
And that's not even getting into the fact that you can't seem to express your actual reasoning and rely on epithets and platitudes. The manner in which you write (and most likely speak) is quite uneducated.
trlkly 1 year ago
@mxyzptlk2099 it absolutely has to do with it. The people here are teaching them a completely separate language, and like it or not, but it takes a while for someone to learn another language, and it'll take some time for them to make the distinction between their own phonemic rules and the Standard English phonemic rules!
Clairevoyante 11 months ago
I totally agree with you Garrad, I am an innovative teacher. I am certainly on board with you. Absolutely no criticism. I am a country girl and I have overcome many barriers in respect to the way I speak compared to my peers. I am ordering the book now!! Love ya and thanks for da knowledge..........
SuperNiecy14 2 years ago 4
I'm from America, and people from England and Australia have made hateful comments toward me just for correcting their grammar. For example, I tell people not to use an apostrophe before the S when something is plural. They hate me and say I'm a bigot.
spinemelter2000 2 years ago 2
@spinemelter2000 And they are wrong. However, correcting people when it isn't necessary, and they are not asking you to do so is rude. And many people feel that, if you are rude to them, they are allowed to be a jerk to you.
trlkly 1 year ago
To all of you dweebs who think "Black English" is A-OK.... it's not a "language" - it's simply a dialect.. one that experts would call uneducated. Why? Because there is no standardization or "rules", no way to teach it other than listen-repeat. etc If you expect to function in American society, you have to master STANDARD American English. It's no more complicated than that. I can't run an office where there is Black English and Appalachian English... speak those derivatives at home.
moucon 2 years ago 5
@moucon
Apt point; one I've made, before.
How can a "dialect" expect to be regarded as "legit" if it's naught but hear & repeat, as opposed to taught specifically in schools with specific guidelines and rules?
When do we ever hear a teacher say "Sorry, Lamichael, you're speaking your Ebonics improperly"?
Those derivatives are fine, as you say, at HOME but it is no excuse for not being ABLE to speak the established language, i.e. English, reasonably well, if not properly.
RonQE 1 year ago
@moucon
I agree with the second half of your comment but the first half is completely false. It's true that it's a dialect, but it is not "uneducated," nor do experts call it that. There are rules to it, just like to standard English. Wikipedia it. Besides, people didn't come up with the rules for English, then start speaking it. Just like most languages, English was spoken first, then rules were made to try to teach the language, which is why there are so many exceptions to everything.
eyueltessema 1 year ago
@moucon
Apt point; one I've made, before.
How can a "dialect" expect to be regarded as "legit" if it's naught but hear & repeat, as opposed to taught specifically in schools with specific guidelines and rules?
When do we ever hear a teacher say "Sorry, Lamichael, you're speaking your Ebonics improperly"?
Those derivatives are fine, as you say, at HOME but it is no excuse for not being ABLE to speak the established language, i.e. English, reasonably well, if not properly.
RonQE 1 year ago
@moucon Actually, as an 'expert' (having a masters degree in Applied Linguistics), African American Vernacular English (AAVE) is NOT thought of as 'uneducated', it IS relatively standardized (not as codified as Standard English (SE), but that's just because white people write dictionaries), and there are rules. Maybe multi-dialectal offices don't run as smoothly, but that doesn't make SE better than AAVE. Im sure you're a good boss, but I hope you can learn to be a bit more tolerant.
TheRealDarthCosby 1 year ago
@moucon The whole point is that there are rules. They are more loose because AAVE is mostly spoken, but it is quite standardized.
The biggest problem I have is that, rather than allow the language to meld in with standard English, as we have done with most other dialects, we insist on changing their dialect.
And you could very easily run an office with different dialects, as they are all mutually intelligible.
trlkly 1 year ago
@moucon didn't you learn how to talk by listening to and repeating your parents?
Irisbroe 1 year ago
sammich!
BlackNoodles123 2 years ago
lol he said
i gots to do this.
its
i have to do this.
Adulation187 2 years ago
"I gotta do this."
moonpower17 2 years ago
ASK
CrazyNative4 2 years ago 2
American English is just a bunch of mispronounced and chopped up words taken from other languages. People in Britain could say that most White Americans can't pronounce the language right. This is just another way for the dominant culture in this country to enforce it's "rules" on everyone else. Not saying that that's racist, just a part of being a human being - making "others" be more like "us".
BigChampDaddy 2 years ago
Psh, yeah and let me guess: French and Spanish are just a bunch of mispronounced and chopped up words taken from Latin? What a garbage point you have.
skittleboy15 2 years ago 3
@BigChampDaddy
So what are you saying? If there is some community that speaks a different language, say French, it is bad to expect them to speak the language of the country they live in? Americans who speak that bad English don't live in Britain or Germany, they live in their own country. And before you say "it's different with 'ax'", let me tell you it is not. It is an awful distortion of the language, that is beyond comprehension.
LeoNatan25 2 years ago 2
agreed
kikiCARIBBEANGirl 1 year ago
Linguistically, neither Standard English nor Black English is better than the other. It is political/social/racist attitudes that inform our opinions and place values and judgments on languages. If BE were ungrammatical gibberish, speakers would not be able to understand one another and it would be impossible for people to hold a conversation. If BE and other non-standard varieties were not real and true languages, you wouldn't be able to speak them.
TheLuluanator 2 years ago
Well put
ElProfGringo 2 years ago
@TheLuluanator You're saying that Standard English and Black English is EQUAL! You gotta be kiddin'?! Is Spanglish equal too? English, if you didn't realize, is an actual language, whereas Black English is a dialect.
"i done been gone" or "i done got my hair did" is equal to 'i have been gone" "I have gotton my hair done"?
areyouquitemad 1 year ago
im an african and aint nothin wrong with how i talk
bluestarkad17 2 years ago
and he said enn and end
daddybuck 2 years ago
This video makes me very sad.
African American English is NOT inferior to Standard English. It is not "improper grammar". It has a regular grammar system just like any language and is capable of expressing the complex thoughts of educated people. To view it as inferior is a form of cultural prejudice. To judge a person by his accent or the grammar system of his language is as bad as judging him by the color of his skin.
bigratlover 2 years ago
Its not wrong to spaek a variation of the lanuage when your speaking to friends and family. But the problem is that some people dont know that they are speaking improper grammar. Many other lanuages in the world have a formal and informal way of speaking to others. Neither is wrong, but its important to know both. The problem is when someone only know the informal way of speaking. When someone goes to a job interview they need to speak differently then they do with their friends.
Jpolo1031 2 years ago 12
100% Correct...
Larryo85 1 year ago
@Jpolo1031 How are going to say its alright ot switch back and forth from ebonics to proper English.
Thats's like saying to drive a car with your feet. but drive your car with your hands when in a proffessional setting. WHY are you pracitcing bad habits in your down time? You should be practicing all the time to do things right. Im sorry and the people who tell you otherwise whether your family and friends are cancerous to your success
STeroidsnicca 1 year ago
@Jpolo1031 And I don't have a problem with that view. But that isn't the view being presented here. These children are speaking "incorrectly."
trlkly 1 year ago
@Jpolo1031 nonono it's not a formal/informal distinction here. Ebonics is a separate language that has its own grammatical rules (phonemic rules, syntactic rules, morphological rules). It's not improper language. It's really important to know that distinction because the whole view that most of the americans have on ebonics can be changed: it's possible to teach ebonics speakers how to speak Standard English as a second language, and they can become proficient biliguals like everybody else.
Clairevoyante 11 months ago
totally agree with u
kikiCARIBBEANGirl 1 year ago
A language or dialect can neither be inherently good nor bad. The problem lies within the preconceived notions people have of others based upon stereotypes. Unfortunately the stereotypes surrounding language exist, and I know first hand that most of the times they are JUST stereotypes. People just gotta be more open minded and accepting of differences.
solpower34 2 years ago
People don't have to do anything and also don't have to hire you if you can't speak professionally. Black or white, slang and lazy mispronunciation will get you nowhere in life.
skittleboy15 2 years ago
Peoples and cultures develop their own vernacular when they are isolated. African Americans were--and to a degree still are-- isolated because of slavery and racism, and as a result produced their own adaptation of the English language. A language in its self is neither inherently good nor bad, therefore the problem lies within preconceived notions individuals have others. In short, people need to be more open minded.
solpower34 2 years ago
WHOA WHOA. STOP RIGHT THERE! Because of slavery and racism? lol Again with that card. look, slavery was abolished a loooong time ago. i dont know anyone today that was a slave.
now as for racism, yes in the turn of last centery there was racism. ill grant u that but heres the problem, its not there anymore. and if you think its here now, in this century? you r dead wrong. its only racism if you acknowalge. now unless the kkk shows up at your door, then you might be on to something
Adulation187 2 years ago
i feel like 1st black english should b recognized & respected. people act like blacks and whites aint been talking dfferent since blacks first got here. i wish people would learn to differeniate from slang and black english. slang is a part of any language. but if you take slang out of black english its still different and its mainly due to grammar esp. tense. vocab is almost the same excpet slang which generally cross into english. respect it warranted
mykole84 2 years ago
so you would hire someone that says
" I aint gots yo money"
if you were the big boss.
or
"ya knaw what i mean"
or
"whatado"
Adulation187 2 years ago
I certainly agree with the the opinion that it's not selling out but gaining clout. There is always an inevitable judgment call (conscious or subconscious) that happens upon hearing someone speak. There is a time and place for everything. Whereas it may be acceptable to speak in our vernacular at home, just as McClendon stated, the professional world is looking for something else. Why not learn to speak professionally? Both ways of communicating definitely have their advantages.
dance3espinoza 2 years ago 2
its all bout shoin the "man" disrespect the same as wearing your pants so low that your draws are the only thing covering your ass.
slowplaythis 2 years ago
you know who i is, its what i does
islandwarrior16 2 years ago
I'm glad that someone is doing this. The fact is that we are judged by how well we communicate. Knowing the difference between "ask" and "ax", "good" and "well", "your" and "you're", and knowing when to put "ly" at the end of adverbs has been more important than my suit choice or my skin color on job interviews. Police officers are also much nicer to those who look them in the eyes and speak properly.
JMWilkes 2 years ago 5
I have a problem with this. Here is why. Studying linguistics and how languages change over time. Generationally what we say and how we speak changes over time. Black dialects are and have been just as valid as white dialectual changes. No one tell the southern gentlmen that he speaks incorrectly. Now I do beleive that blacks should use midwestern dialects when speaking with others but to be judged ignorant by using these dialects is simply wrong.
Ryooken 2 years ago
@JMWilkes,
I agree with you Mister, when children do not get taught how important it is to speak properly their motherlanguage they'l face problems in society. There is slang in all languages, everywhere in the world, but it should be spoken just at home not outside, children need to read books, it's the greatest thing to make them like languages, it keeps them busy and reading books is way better and cheaper than Videogames :o)
Piatequila 2 years ago 2
I agree with you Mister, big up to this young man who's got the talent to fascinate these kids to learn speaking a proper english.Children need to read books, it's the best way to put the language into their brains, and it's way cheaper than videogames :o)
Piatequila 2 years ago
FINALLY someone realizes how big of an issue this actually is. And it's not only blacks, though it is mostly blacks. So many people don't know the difference between two too and to. If someone doesn't know basic grammar, he/she is an idiot.
ManofManyPasswords 2 years ago
This guy is my freaking hero!
Frizbeen 2 years ago 3
BTW, RonQE... It's not that we lack the ability. It's not something inherent in nature. It's just that some haven't been taught the importance... unless there truly is a speech impediment gene affecting roughly 98.5% of American blacks ; )
JMWilkes 2 years ago
I believe this is for two reasons. I look people in their eyes, and I speak clearly and properly. Whether it's fair or not, people are judged when they confuse "ax" with "ask", "good" with "well", "your" with "you're", or don't know when to put "ly" on the end of most adverbs. I do not view myself as different than members of other races, so I'm not viewed differently.
JMWilkes 2 years ago
I am amazed at the amount of people who don't see how important it is to know proper English. Some people believe that they are being discriminated against on the basis of race, when the way they speak is the real issue. I am a black male who has never had trouble getting a job in the financial arena. For the most part, police officers treat me with respect and have let me go with a warning, more often than not, when I've committed some minor traffic violation.
JMWilkes 2 years ago 3
Thank you, and that there is the truth! I think it's despicable how some people accuse employers or police officers for example of being racist and discriminating against their race, when really it's the way they speak and present themselves. If I'm an employer, you can't expect to come into my office for an interview wanting to AKS me questions and dressing like a thug and for me to take you seriously.
ManofManyPasswords 2 years ago 8
@ManofManyPasswords As an employer, I'd suggest you to strongly encourage your Ebonics speaking future employees to learn standard english, because they would have much more chances to work normally in your company. But really, like, don't take what Fox News says for granted. It's the least accurate TV channel out there, and I'd suggest you to inform yourself about Ebonics before you make any jugdment on your employees based on their language.
Clairevoyante 11 months ago
"I gotta do this" or I have got to do this.... 3:40
jord99 2 years ago
It's so arbitrary and patronizing.
Languages evolve. Parisian became Cajun and Quebecois over here. There's no problem with speaking in this way so long as people can understand you.
It's even worse with this because this variation was started by slaves who were forcibly taught English. And now you have to speak the language of your oppressor perfectly so that he'll give you a nice job. Please.
ejohnwright 2 years ago
Any comments you see under "TheAnimalEnthusiast" are actually from me. Sorry, my lil bro never tells me when he's logged on and I always forget which profile I'm typing under.
asianwannabeamerican 2 years ago
it is understandable that people don't correct ebonics more when there is a big chance of backlash for it. regardless of what colour you are.
ebonics origins are from slavery where masters encouraged slaves to sound out of the norm. why on earth would modern people want to continue this?
baire702 2 years ago
I am not of caucasian or african american descent.
That being said, I feel embarrassed when I hear a black person say things like "I axed him" or "I want a sammich" and other things like that.
Don't these people realize that they look incompetent ? the way you look and act represents who you are in society, acting like an uneducated tard probably won't help someone get far.
Archedgar 2 years ago
This is an important issue. But this guy has an uphill battle. Do a youtube search for: Corrine Brown go gata And she is a Congresswoman
poguson 2 years ago
Any human being who doesn't have a speech problem they were born with can say the word ASK. If you can't say a simple 3 letter word correctly you are just plain lazy!
JeremyRemixes 2 years ago
I felt bad for the young boy who said " i don't know how to say ah ah ahhhhhhhhh..." (ask not ax)
crispyd 2 years ago
People ain't talkin' goooood. Hyphenated-Americans... I mean African-Americans hardest hit. One skoo' be tryin' to fix it. Story at 11.
luno44 2 years ago
GOD BLESS THIS MAN!!
I wish I was rich and I could send that book to everyone I think needs one.
Rustyshackleford08 2 years ago
I commend this man on what he is doing. I wish him all the best with his work.
Belle0010 2 years ago
Hell yea. I have a friend that says brokeden and likeded
YoungSteve17 2 years ago
Different grammar is not bad grammar.
The "aks" form for "ask" dates back to Old English, where the form was either "acsian" or "ascian". The only difference is that the upper classes in London said "ask" instead of "aks" and now one is considered the standard.
Sure, teaching kids to speak Standard English is a good thing, in that it will reduce discrimination that they suffer because of the way they speak. That doesn't mean that it's not irrational discrimination that they're trying to avoid.
himonfukwe 2 years ago
@himonfukwe
If only more people had as much background info as you, this world would not feel nearly as oppressive, discriminatory, or hopeless.
R4wF15h 1 year ago
What a good person.
pbrennan10 2 years ago
I WANNA SAMMICH
dadful 2 years ago
Yeah poor black kids have it hard. they are raised so that the teachers are scared to offend them by correcting their culture but they are at the same time being judged by their horrible language abilities or lack of.
mamushi72sai5575 2 years ago
This man is a hero, and a human rights activist. That anyone would consider him controversial reveals the traitors within the black race, intent on destroying their own people.
mowriter 2 years ago
This is Hilarious I can't believe this is real!
Crablec10 2 years ago
blacks and white talk different. im tired of folk saying black englis is bad english its not. if kids get taught the diff at school it make it easier. i dont mean slang from non-slang. i mean grammar, grammar is whats most different between black and standard english. the pronuncations are different but not as much as the grammar. being black english has more tenses than standard english. its not bad english just an american born version of it with subtle african and irish influences.
mykole84 2 years ago
80% of the people at my school talk like this. I'm somewhat of a Grammar Nazi, so it bothers the crap out of me.
kittenkraze13 2 years ago
i say "ax" and im white...but i guess its cause i live in the south! Most whites in the south talk a lot like AAVE and vice versa
GAboy21589 2 years ago
Is this really Mr. McClendon? I'd like to know what he thinks of this Fox News segment. I remember when I first saw this, I investigated whether there really was a "backlash" and it doesn't appear so. But obviously Fox News wants to make it seem like the "ignorant" people are fighting against bettering themselves. Indeed, if I didn't know better, I'd think Bill Cosby was a hated figure in the black community.
internetzpotato 2 years ago
It is a shame that people want people to correct something that should not be. How you speak is a part of your identity. Why on earth would anyone want to assimilate in order to be accepted...waht kind of message does that sent to the public? I would have to say that this guy needs to think about what is to be considered correct and why?
Tarvunish 2 years ago
Practice what you preach.
cocainenosejob9 2 years ago
chicago blacks talk almost like southern blacks lol
frankwhite432 2 years ago
I give this man credit because he realizes the truth and he is trying to take this out of the equation as a reason for Blacks not getting hired for a job. But the truth remains, the ones who aren't looking for a skilled line of work would rather be cool and talk like their "homies".
I know I for one wouldn't hire someone to any kind of skilled position if they "axed" me a question.
swgeorge 2 years ago
Kudos to this gentleman. By teaching proper English he is empowering his students. In the business world basic literacy and the ability to speak proper English is essential. While African American dialects have their place the reality is that the dialects are not accepted by and large in the business world.
beatnikjd 2 years ago
I believe he is performing a good deed. The pervasiveness and virulence of such talk, is very powerful. Mr. McClendon himself sometimes falls victim to such slang. Note his final words, "I gotta do this." A more proper statement would be "I have got to do this." "Gotta" is a relaxed form of "got to." Nonetheless, a noble endeavor on Mr. McClendon's part.
nelsonmars 2 years ago
I think its about teaching African American students how do be bilingual. "Ebonics" is not BAD englsih, its just a different English, with its roots in slavery, and mixing African Dialects and British English. So its not that the english Black people speak is bad, its just different.
k21im 2 years ago
African American Vernacular English
T1000HD 2 years ago
There is English, then there is illiteracy.
Whether you're white or black, there is only one way to speak it properly.
Sparisi1122 2 years ago
Of course, but some people can't help it. Like me for example. When I say "ask" It comes out "Axsk".
DeoxysDNA 2 years ago
Because you don't know how to talk
YoungSteve17 2 years ago
You can help it. You just need to learn pronunciation!
TheMaven99 2 years ago
I personally think everybody should stop arguing. Because we all know talking slang isn't a big deal and that white kids hardly even talk proper anymore.
DeoxysDNA 2 years ago
properly*
;)
theguymjp 2 years ago
i understand what this guy is promoting but if they have want to go that far you might as well target EVERY OTHER American with an ethnic background that pronounce shit wrong. It just seems like he and Faux News are singling out a specific group. I can go on for days about what other groups in the us that have this problem, and this includes white folk too.
moomoochacoo 2 years ago
Comment removed
LostConscious 2 years ago
LostConscious, I can only presume you're writing that post to be sarcastic? For example:
"I'm black person who speak"
"I just a person who like to learn how as possible!!!"
"Mofo are judging somebody on the way speak,act,and react!!"
Obviously, you can't call this "speaking properly"... LOL!
And YES, people DO judge based on how one speaks and acts! Such things are how you represent yourself to the world. More so that the kind of clothes one wears or the can one drives.
RonQE 2 years ago 16
yep!!!!!!
LostConscious 2 years ago
who refuses what are you talking about why should a group of people who have no problem communicating amongst themselves and have been doing that for hundreds of years why would you expect it just to disapper, thats the problem "to dispel the image of being intellectually challenged" its idiotic to think that becasue of the language you speak you should be considered intellectually challenged dispel an image you act as though we created this image its the same thing said about the south
richbullva 2 years ago
when does a four year old make a choice in language millions of black speak more standardized forms of american english however quite a few do not and you proved my point pretty much despite the vocab (english) structurally it can be argued that its another language read the book "Black English" you learn grammer at home and at school the difference is at times certain standards are reinforced at home thats where the whole talkig white thing comes from but dude you seem smart open up
richbullva 2 years ago
"when does a four year old make a choice in language"
I'm referring to the overall cultural attitude and education of the younger generations.
Also, adults can make a choice if they wish to be able to speak properly when required. Look at Will Smith, e.g. He can speak slang and jive yet also properly; this was his CHOICE to educate himself thus.
I'm plenty open - I'm simply saying that blacks and whites should have the SAME SOCIAL STANDARDS of professionalism and expectations.
RonQE 2 years ago 9
It was not education it was conforming it doesn't take a genius to do it as a matter of fact most blacks from back grounds like WIll Smith actually do that all the time you are not open sir how can you be whenyou say that "blacks and whites should have the SAME SOCIAL STANDARD" basically what you are saying is if blacks acted like you everything would be okay thats bs dude and you would see that if you were as open as you claim who ask Willie Nelson to talk differently no one thats him tht fine
richbullva 2 years ago