03.26.07
What’d you just say?
So, something got me thinking, today, about all the random things I did/said as a kid. Well, not all of them (as that would be a lot of things…), but some of the more strange ones. Take, for instance, Army dodge ball, a game that even my ex-Army friends don’t know about (which makes sense - I imagine soldiers don’t sit around playing dodge ball all day.). I grew up in Fayetteville, NC - a military town right outside of Fort Bragg, NC, so Army dodge ball was the only kind of dodge ball I ever played as a kid. It seems so strange to me that so many people have no idea it even exists.
But, I also thought of a couple phrases I used to say that were not only random, but also very wrong. For instance, I remember being told, as a child, to sit “Indian-style”.
Now, as a student teacher, I know that phrase is no longer used, and instead teachers say “criss cross applesauce” or just “cross-legged”. (I hate cutesy phrases, so I’ll be using the latter when the time comes.) It’s not a particularly hurtful phrase, but it’s not very descriptive and relies on stereotypes of cultures for its meaning.
I also used to use the phrase “Indian giver”,
which I didn’t understand at the time I used it. I’m still not entirely sure why it’s such a widely used term… weren’t we the ones who kept taking away things (land) from the Native American tribes after we had so graciously given them? (Because, you know, the Native American totally had no land before we came along, and we were so awesome to give them ours, even if we did take most of it back. We disgust me.)
There’s one more, though, that I tried to research, today, for which I couldn’t find a source. The phrase is “Chinese skipping”, which apparently references a jump rope game. When I was little, though, it had nothing to do with jumping rope - to “Chinese skip” somebody, was to skip them in line, in a rather clever and sneaky way. Say you’re standing in the lunch line. Mary is in front you. Joe comes up and tries to skip you in line. “NO! Joe, you can’t skip me,” you say, “go back to the end of the line.” So, he whispers to Mary for a second, and they snicker. Then Mary lets Joe skip her in line. Then, Joe lets Mary skip him, putting him in front of you. Thus, you have been “Chinese skipped”. It sounds like just another made up phrase, still racist even though it has nothing to do with any stereotypes of the Chinese culture (that I know of).
In my searching for that phrase, I did run across a whole bunch of “Chinese ____” phrases, such as “Chinese fire drill”.
According to the article, “Chinese here comes from British military tradition of using the word to mean clumsy, inept, or inferior. It is likely that this was not intended as a slur on the Chinese people, but rather a play on the phrase “one wing low” which referred to a clumsy pilot and was thought to sound Chinese.” Regardless, it is yet another insensitive, and stupid term.
Luckily (or not), I had no idea I was saying anything racist at the time. Hell, even now I’m not entirely sure why anyone even created those phrases. If you aren’t racist, it makes no sense. I don’t hold the belief that the Chinese are confused or chaotic… I don’t think all native people sit cross-legged… and I don’t think Chinese men pee in Coke bottles. I never did. Yet, I remember hearing and using these phrases, because that’s just what you did. I didn’t know why it was called “Chinese skipping”, it just was. I didn’t know why we sat “Indian-style” on the magic carpet for storytime, we just did.
I’m not a very P.C. person - I hate having the sidestep issues by using euphamisms and cutesy phrases to keep from offending people (what about apples, huh? Maybe they don’t like “criss cross applesauce” so much…), but I also don’t understand why we use such mindless phrases.
So, what’s going around the playground, these days? Are we making fun of Muslims and Iraqis, now? I don’t want to be surprised when one of my fourth graders blurts out some off-the-wall, seemingly random yet racist phrase.
Elysa said,
April 5, 2007 at 12:57 am
If I remember correctly, I know from where the term Indian Giver originated.
Newly arrived to the continent, Europeans would trade with a tribe for use of an area of land. In western culture, such an exchange of goods signifies that the ownership of the land is passed from the first group to the second. This barter is meant to be final and the original group relinquishes all rights to the land. I believe most Native tribes do not believe that land can be owned by any person, so they did not understand that the trade they engaged in was intended to pass the ownership of land to the Europeans. It is my understanding that there were instances where Native Americans tried to use tracts of land they had previously “sold” to Europeans; to the Europeans it seemed that the Native Peoples gave up their control of the land and then “changed their minds” and wanted to use the land again. Thus, an Indian-giver is someone who gives something and then wishes to take it back.
Rowena Zane said,
April 5, 2007 at 6:06 am
Because I bristle at the idea that there are words that are taboo, my knee-jerk reaction is to say there’s nothing wrong with holding onto words that are a rich part of word history. We have all sorts of words that are no longer used how they were originally intended, “accolade” being the first example that pops to mind (originally meant a small insult, conferred upon a man - the last he’d ever have to bear before becoming a knight). So if a word that was originally racist is still used, why bother removing it and making a child feel uncomfortable, or give him ammunition?
These words are no longer meant in an injurious way. When I tell my nephew to sit cross-legged, I am not instilling racism or hate. He has no idea what that means. Just as you didn’t. Just as I didn’t until someone told me years past childhood.
It’s just not necessary, in my opinion. Though if people are very offended, then I guess I can shrug and stop using those words just as well. It’s not that hard of a step. Just a little pointless, if you ask me. Which you didn’t.
toyarmy said,
April 5, 2007 at 8:19 am
when andrea came home saying “criss cross applesauce” i was so confused.
and like you, i never thought of “indian style” as something offensive, or derogatory. but yet, being the intelligent individual i now see myself as, i can see where it would be considered as such.
and then the others. such as chinese skipping. oh the days of innocence.
Miss Fox said,
April 5, 2007 at 11:37 am
I guess my point is that these terms make no sense to people without pulling on stereotypes. If you’ve never seen an Indian sit, how are you supposed to know what “sitting Indian style” means? (And it is kind of silly to think that all Indians sit a particular way…)
I do agree that banning words is incredibly stupid - however, if a word or phrase makes no sense, why continue using it? If I told a child in my class, today, to sit “Indian style” they would look at me, confused. If I told them to sit cross-legged, it makes perfect sense.
And, I do think it’s funny that the term Indian Giver came about from a complete misunderstanding… the same people who think the Native Americans (why do we still call them Indians, anyway?) are so peaceful and noble for having no system of land ownership are the very same people who think “Indians” take gifts back. I suppose I just don’t like these, and other, racist phrases because they perpetuate ignorance. They’re just… wrong.