In Defense of the Hyphen
In response to Hyphenated America by Scott McNutt on Feb 26: This article gave me pause. I pondered, but not for long. It reminded me of a conversation I had over 10 years ago with a lady I worked with named Alexandra.
Alexandra was born in South Africa and fled to the states shortly before apartheid completely ravished the country and the laughter commenced almost nonstop. In a thick English accent, she remarked that she thought the word African-American more accurately described her transplant status and made her point to a man who identified himself as an African-American.
Although I could appreciate her coy humor, I never got to say what I really felt at that moment: “More precisely, my lady, you are British-African American. That hyphenated mouthful would aptly describe your ancestral roots and upbringing. In a humble manner, you would be acknowledging your ancestors’ pilfer and plunder of African country and resources, and the spirit of its peoples. Would you be so bold and progressive to assume this responsibility? Would you feel so aristocratic then?”
On the one hand—such as in the case of apartheid in South Africa or discrimination in America—when persons of an oppressive spirit (notice I did not say whites only) seek to set themselves apart from others by labeling them with some name that in the oppressor’s mind is derogatory or lesser-than themselves, it’s hurtful and mean-spirited.
When I identify myself as an African-American, Afro-American, or Black, I’m conveying an important message to you: Yes, I know I’m American but I’ll take it even further. When I say African-American, I’m telling you I’m a survivor. My tribal-African-American ancestors slaved to build this country, all the while hoping that their children’s children would have better tomorrows. I live because they died working in fields and fighting for emancipation.
Every day, I do not always think “I’m black” and I don’t see my co-workers or strangers on the streets as Black, Asian, White, Hispanic. But on some issues, I am keenly aware how I identify myself in the conveyance of prose or speech and/or I am made keenly aware of how others identify me. In the latter, I come to understand some things about them, whether by the words themselves or the manner in which they were spoken.
So don’t pooh-pooh hyphens, when you hear someone refer to their ancestry in hyphenated text, be mindful that it’s a momentary blink, wink or homage to their ancestors. There are flashes or images I’ve created in my mind of how things must have been during the Civil Rights era, during Emancipation, during the Civil war and time in between.
If you have nothing to say, say nothing, but remember we are saying something important to you: “I am—where I am from. You need not acknowledge it nor respect it nor understand the importance of it, but that does not affect my desire to reference it from time to time.” It deserves to be spoken out loud!
Tiffany Huff
Knoxville
Methinks, Melaughs
Basically, Thursday I pick up the Metro Pulse to keep up with what’s going on in the Knoxville music scene or to read Jack Neely’s Secret History. This week’s feature story about “Wrasslin’” was a sure-fire, must-read. But as of late, it’s the liberal ranting from the tolerant Left that has become the most entertaining aspect of the paper—weekly fodder for a few good laughs.
The latest guffaw came from the guest commentary by the editor of Atlanta’s Creative Loafing newspaper, Ken Edelstein [March 4] regarding Neal Boortz’s critique of Sen. John Kerry. Two full columns dedicated to enlightening readers to be on guard for conservative poisonous propaganda and defending John Kerry’s military action in Vietnam raised an eyebrow and reminded me of the old Shakespeare adage often used when one is relegated to defending a weak position: Mr. Edelstein, “methinks thou doth protest too much.”
I don’t know, is it just me, or does anyone else find it ironic, and highly amusing, that liberals everywhere seem to be tripping all over themselves rushing to defend their presidential nominee’s service record in a war that 30 years ago they decried as a mistake and a blight on our collective national conscience? From the liberal perspective, weren’t all U.S. soldiers “baby killers” or worse? Now, one such soldier would be worthy of being our president—hmmmh.
Maybe John Kerry was a war hero. Maybe not. But one thing is for sure. At this moment in time, it’s politically expedient to at least “appear” to have been a war hero, because that’s the mood of the country and that’s what the focus groups say we want in these troubled times. And liberal pundits are making darn sure that we all “get the picture”—regardless of the truth. As I say, aren’t partisan politics good for a laugh?
Mark Broussard
Knoxville
Bring Talent Back to the Ring
Kudos to Mike Gibson for his excellent piece on some of the professional wrestling world’s legends. I am a 20-plus years fan of professional wrestling, and I am glad to see that Gibson treated the business with the respect it deserves. The information on Ron Wright was also great; he’s one of those individuals I’ve never seen or had the chance to read about.
Some say that professional wrestling began to die when Vince McMahon bought ECW and WCW. Competition breeds a better product for the business of professional wrestling; one only need to look at how “the state of the game” among fans was in the late ’90s compared to the sorry state of what is now known as “World Wrestling Entertainment.” With storylines these days ranging from necrophilia to child abuse, the independent scene is the last bastion of TRUE wrestling for fans.
I encourage fans to support Ron Wright’s Tennessee Mountain Wrestling as well as the other indie feds. There’s a ton of talent performing out there that you’ll never see in WWE—and it’s waiting for you to find it.
Independent feds are gaining steam with promotions like NWA-TNA, gaining credibility and attention on an international level. Support your independent federations, fans! Tell Vinnie Mac and the rest of the suits at Titan Towers that we demand a better product than what we’re given!
Chris Seaton
Knoxville
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