White People! Are you offended being called a "Cracka"?

[RJ Dalton]

In all honesty, if anyone called me by any racial slur, I'd probably laugh, because they're all so childish.
And, given that most racial slurs are aimed at non-whites, my insulter would probably be blind, which is another thing I can laugh at. Because I'm an asshole.

 

[Lonewolfm16]

Of course not. White people have never been oppressed or a minority*, so it's much easier to just laugh off petty insults. However, for someone who has been oppressed, or is a minority, well.. I can't speak for them, but I could imagine it hitting much closer to home and having an actual impact.

* In Europe or European settled America. Then again the slur is in English so I guess only English speaking countries are relevant.

 

[Pharsalus]

It really would defend on context. If it was a black acquaintance jokingly breaking my balls I'd have no problem with it. But some aggressive stranger... I wouldn't be offended by the word, but i would certainly feel threatened.

 

[Leefank137]

Some people find it offensive, I'd say most do not (I'm in the latter category). That still doesn't change what the word is and why people use it. When someone calls a white person a "cracka" they're essentially labeling a person based on their race, I'd say that constitutes a racial slur. Still I find it hard to take seriously anyone who would be offended by it's use. White people aren't historically known for being racially oppressed.

 

[DrunkOnEstus]

Ive only been called "cracker" once, and the situation was with a black friend of mine who i would greet with "my nigga" in jest without any problem, only laughs. It depends on the context, if someone was saying it to imply that i was racist and would crack a whip on somebody, i would be pretty upset just like i get upset about the word nazi being thrown around when it comes up that my heritage is mostly german. Or for any reason, really. So yeah context, it helps decine and analyze a lot of situations.

 

[William Ossiss]

Personally, you can't just differentiate between the races. So call everyone twoleggers.

 

[The Lugz]

I'm sorry, but there is not a world where Cracka or Cracker could offend any white person. Right? I mean I'm pretty sure any of hear the word our minds do not jump to our skin colour but to delicious Saltine crackers. It's like calling someone Spaghetti.

I think the ultimate response to this one is, 'Why, don't mind if I do! chop chop now.'

but seriously, no one cares.. and i can't imagine anyone using it..

 

[ninjaRiv]

...snip

I'd put it to you that "Russia" encompasses enough different ethnic groups that while you think you can identify all Russians on sight, you in actuality can only identify a very small number of a very specific ethnicity. Hell, maybe I'm wrong and you are intimately familiar with the some 160 different ethnicities of Russia, in which case, good on you for being so social.

...snip

Last I checked, I'm European and I'd never make so wild a claim that I could identify a Russian on sight. 160 different ethnicities (not counting immigration) and you know them all well enough to identify them on sight? And not mistake them for Kazaks, Afgans, Ainu, Polynesians? I am extremely sceptical of your claim.
I'd never be so arrogant as to say I'd be able to identify on-sight someone from my own country, let alone the country with the largest landmass on the planet.

...snip

What has America got to do with anything?

Russia, 160 ethnic groups.
France, harder to judge since it's illegal to ask on census' there, but at least 24 different ethnicities.
Poland, same as France, difficult to judge but at least 21 ethnic groups.
Germany, at least 14 different ethnic groups.
Greece, at least 10 different ethnic groups.

So you're saying you know on sight, even where ethnic groups overlap, what nationality someone is?
So you'd know a Russian Turk from a Greek Turk?
You'd know a German Czech from a Polish Czech?

Frankly, I just don't believe you and your statement that you can is a broad generalisation based on ignorance.

It's not a wild claim at all. I've spotted Russians plenty of times and been right about it. So have many people. Perhaps you just... Don't know how to do it? It's not some sort of skill. I get that you don't see these facial features but many people do. And I did say it's not a 100% thing. It's just that plenty of Russians have some facial features in common. They have features that are exclusive to their nationality. It's not wild, it's certainly not ignorant (the very notion of thinking "you can recognise people! Grrrrr you're terrible!" is ridiculous. It's like saying "you're racist because you don't think all Asians look the same). Nothing to do with racism. It just is. And I have to repeat: nobody said they could identify ALL Russians or ALL of any nationality. I don't know why you're making such a big deal out of the fact that some people have certain facial features. That has nothing to do with racism or ignorance. Stop looking for a fight.

 

[Siege_TF]

Being a Canadian in Canada no, I am too far removed from the area where that is considered a slur to be offended by it, and would most likely get a chuckle out of it.

 

[SaetonChapelle]

I'm sorry, but there is not a world where Cracka or Cracker could offend any white person. Right? I mean I'm pretty sure any of hear the word our minds do not jump to our skin colour but to delicious Saltine crackers.

Wrong.
It is very much a racial slur.

Even honky... If I get called a honky the only thing my mind jumps is the old Jefferson's TV show.

Yeah... The TV show where the main character used it as a racial slur.

True, but apparently the worst slur for a white guy black people can come up with never made it past 3rd grade standards.

The term "cracker" is actually derived from the slave owners who would abuse their slaves with the crack of a whip. To call someone a "cracker" means they are such a terrible person they would be willing to inflict horrendous abuse on another human being for self serving reasons.

And no. While a very small subset of the word was used in such a matter, the vast majority of usage referred to poor white folks. The meaning of cracker as whip cracker when used as the pejorative is a post 1980s development as an attempt to justify the black populations' usage of the word.

I apologize. There is actually multiple meanings to the term "cracker". I only used one example pulled from the 18th century letter given to the Earl of Dartmoor. Other ways the word could be seen are:
loud braggarts
cowboys who frequently used cow whips and dog to herd cattle
the diet of poor white men

However, the term being used for a slave owner was in fact utilized way back in the 1850's as shown by Frederick Law Olmsted, who at the time was a journalist writing pieces on slave ownership. His words including:
"I should explain to your Lordship what is meant by Crackers; a name they have got from being great boasters; they are a lawless set of rascals on the frontiers of Virginia, Maryland, the Carolinas, and Georgia, who often change their places of abode."

Again, regardless, it is how you take it.

 

[ninjaRiv]

So you'd know a Russian Turk from a Greek Turk?

That's a Turk.

You'd know a German Czech from a Polish Czech?

That's a Czech.

Frankly, I just don't believe you and your statement that you can is a broad generalisation based on ignorance.

I'm sorry, but it's hard to take your claim of me being ignorant seriously, when I have observed people from various nations being able to identify nationality with a very large degree of success on sight.

Ok then, lets do this.

You'd know the difference between a Turkish Kurd and an Iraqi Kurd?

I haven't had the pleasure of interacting with kurds.

Doesn't change the fact, you claimed you can tell nationality then promptly identified ethnicity.

Ethnicity transcends borders, isn't tied to one country and gives only the very broadest generalisation of where geographically someone's ancestors may be from. Claiming you can tell nationality from ethnicity with 100% certainty is frankly, laughable.

If you read his whole post you'd know his "skill" is based on knowing and meeting people. he has not met any Kurds. I know I already quoted you here but I thought I should help clear up the confusion here.

 

[somonels]

No, as I often try to crack wise so I take it as an encouragement. Using the topical word is like a nigga whipping himself.

Kinda related - is using the word ****** prohibited on this forum and that's why people use nigga? Which is still essentially the same.

This informative sketch will show you!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NY1y1aggUA
God I love Boondocks.
OT: not really, get called it ALL the time by my friend. To be fair we take the piss outa each other a lot. Which can get awkward when her incredibly far left black power sister comes round.

I'm very familiar with the The Boondocks but that episode never clarified anything other than white people always being wrong, like with the PC name for coloured people - oops, I'm racist/insensitive again. Also, I don't acknowledge nigga as a different word but rather a bastardization caused by lacking education/pronounciation or regional accents. I just don't see how the africanized version is any less racist than the original. It would be like homos preferring themselves to be called fags.

Holy passive aggressiveness batman!
And like many things it depends on context and usage. One was used to oppress and be a dick, the other one is a reclamation of that word, and has come to be a synonym of brother.
But you already knew that. And there's a difference between being called homo and fag, but here is neither the time nor place for such a discussion.

Also, if that's what you took from the Boondocks, then most of it's humour went over your head.

Well, I'm white, so apparently it did.
I guess I should shop a KKK hood on my avvy and start spouting for the PURITY OF LANGUAGE, PURITY OF LANGUAGE! Maybe I can form a loose coalition with the grammar nazis... that actually sounds like fun.

 

[Nieroshai]

I don't get offended in the slightest, because I don't want or need the attention from raising hell over an insult. Even so, there IS no "that's OUR word" to fall back on and there's no reason for me to find the word offensive. I'm white. So? Whatever the insult originally meant is nearly lost in interpretation, and if it has anything to do with slavery as some sources suggest, my family hadn't even made it across the pond before the 15th Amendment (Black voting rights) was ratified. I've always gotten a laugh out of how every white American is responsible for slavery. America is a country of immigrants, remember?
Here I am, rambling. Didn't this start as a post about how "cracka" doesn't offend me? Man, I need to go outside.

 

[King Kazma]

It depends. Are they saying it in a broad definition encompassing all whites. Or are they directing it at me personally as a derogatory remark on my self. For that I would be offended due to it being personally directed.

 

[Busard]

Not really. Sounds kinda funny in fact.

It all depends if there's hatred in the voice of the guy saying it. But at this stage, he could say anything with hatred and I would feel threatened/offended.

 

[Gregory McMillan]

The thing is, the current use of the term "cracker" came from the sound of a whip used by white slavemasters and their workers. It's not even meant as derogatory. Yes, I know words can gain new meaning over time, but I highly doubt we'll see the day anytime soon when "cracker" and "******" carry equal weight.

 

[Lightknight]

Been watching a lot of the George Zimmerman case. Last night I was flaberghasted when Erin Burnette of CNN referred to the word as a racial slur.

I'm sorry, but there is not a world where Cracka or Cracker could offend any white person. Right? I mean I'm pretty sure any of hear the word our minds do not jump to our skin colour but to delicious Saltine crackers. It's like calling someone Spaghetti.

Even honky... If I get called a honky the only thing my mind jumps is the old Jefferson's TV show.

Is there any white slur that has any bite at all? I mean I suppose "You impearalist swine whos anncestors kidnapped and enslaved my ancestors for years and then tried to pull that segration bullshit" but that'd be to hard to say in conversation.

Slurs generally only carry weight when applied by a majority against a minority. Or really, applied by any person or group in general power over the other group where a majority in numbers may also be equated to a power disparity. The N-word, for example, is still used in other countries but because it was used in America by a group that actually had size power over black culture it became a slur in this country. This is an interesting part of linguistics to study.

But yeah, none of the white slurs have really stuck. I've also been pretty interested in hearing jokes about whites that are biting or funny but haven't been very fortunate in my findings. It's been indicated that due to the size of the white demogrpahic it isn't very easy to make vague cultural references. We may easily make pejorative terms regarding certain sub-cultures (such as white trash) but the whole thing is fairly difficult to pin down.