Wigger

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The fictional comic character Ali G. Created and played by the British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen.

Wigger, also wigga, whigger and whigga, is a term for a white person of European ethnic origin who emulates the perceived mannerisms, language, and fashions associated with African-American culture, particularly hip hop. [1] [ need quotation to verify ] The term is a portmanteau of white and nigger , or white nigger.[ citation needed ]

Contents

One dictionary defines the term as a slang derogatory reference to "...a white youth who adopts black youth culture by adopting its speech, wearing its clothes, and listening to its music." [2] Another dictionary defines the term as "offensive slang" referring to a "...white person, usually a teenager or young adult who adopts the fashions, the tastes, and often the mannerisms considered typical of urban black youth." [3]

The term is generally considered a derogatory term reflecting stereotypes of African-American, black British, and white culture (when used as a synonym of white trash). The wannabe connotation may be used pejoratively.[ citation needed ]

Phenomenon

The phenomenon of white people adopting stereotypical black mannerisms, speech, music taste, and apparel has appeared in several generations since slavery was abolished in the Western world. The concept has been documented in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and other countries with a significant white population. An early form of this was the white negro in the jazz and swing music scenes of the 1920s and 1930s; as examined in the 1957 Norman Mailer essay The White Negro . It was later seen in the zoot suiter of the 1930s and 1940s, the hipster of the 1940s, the beatnik of the 1950s-1960s, the fascination with Jamaican ska and rude boy culture in Britain's 1960s mod subculture, the blue-eyed soul of the 1970s (soul music sung by white singers), and the hip hop done by white rappers in the 1980s and 1990s.[ citation needed ]

Bakari Kitwana, "a culture critic who's been tracking American hip hop for years," has written Why White Kids Love Hip Hop: Wankstas, Wiggers, Wannabes, and the New Reality of Race in America. [4] In 1993, an article in the UK newspaper The Independent described the phenomenon of white, middle-class kids who were "wannabe blacks". [5]

The African-American hip hop artist Azealia Banks has criticized white rapper Iggy Azalea "...for failing to comment on 'black issues' despite capitalising on the appropriation of African American culture in her music." [6] Banks has called Azalea a "wigger", and there have been "...accusations of racism against Azalea" focused on her "...insensitivity to the complexities of race relations and cultural appropriation." [6]

Robert A. Clift's documentary titled "Blacking Up: Hip-Hop's Remix of Race and Identity" questions white enthusiasts of black hip-hop culture. The term of art wigger "...is used both proudly and derisively to describe white enthusiasts of black hip-hop culture." [7] Clift's documentary examines "...racial and cultural ownership and authenticity -- a path that begins with the stolen blackness seen in the success of Stephen Foster, Al Jolson, Benny Goodman, Elvis Presley, the Rolling Stones—all the way up to Justin Bieber, Vanilla Ice (popular music's ur-wigger) and Eminem." [7] A review of the documentary refers to the wiggers as "white poseurs." [7]

One of the earliest examples of a wigger is to be found in the fictional character of Felix in Harry Crews' book All We Need of Hell. Felix is the son of white parents, who as the narrative develops, begins to adopt the mannerisms, speech, and sensibilities of a black Southerner athlete he spends time with. Although the book was published in 1987, it was actually written in the 1970s. The character of Ed Wuncler III on the television series The Boondocks is another example of a fictional wigger.[ citation needed ]

Lawsuit

A 2011 class-action lawsuit in the United States District Court for Minnesota alleged that the administration at a predominantly white high school showed a "deliberate indifference" in allowing a group of students to hold a homecoming event called "Wigger Day" or "Wangsta Day" since at least 2008. A plaintiff named Quera Pruitt sought declaratory judgment and $75,000 in punitive damages from the defendants for creating a racially hostile environment. [8] On July 24, 2012, the parties settled out of court with Pruitt being awarded $90,000. [9]

See also

Related Research Articles

In the English language, nigger is a racial slur directed at black people. Starting in the 1990s, references to nigger have been increasingly replaced by the euphemism "the N-Word", notably in cases where nigger is mentioned but not directly used. In an instance of linguistic reappropriation, the term nigger is also used casually and fraternally among African Americans, most commonly in the form of nigga, whose spelling reflects the phonology of African-American English.

Japanese hip hop is hip hop music from Japan. It is said to have begun when Hiroshi Fujiwara returned to Japan and started playing hip hop records in the early 1980s. Japanese hip hop tends to be most directly influenced by old school hip hop, taking from the era's catchy beats, dance culture and overall fun and carefree nature and incorporating it into their music. As a result, hip hop stands as one of the most commercially viable mainstream music genres in Japan and the line between it and pop music is frequently blurred.

Nigga is a colloquial term in African-American Vernacular English that is considered vulgar in many contexts. It began as a dialect form of the word nigger, an ethnic slur against black people. As a result of reappropriation, today the word is used mostly by African-Americans in a largely non-pejorative sense as a slang term referring to another black person or to themselves, often in a neutral or friendly way. The word is commonly associated with hip hop culture and since the 1990s, with gangs. The word is more often applied to those of the male gender, with more select terms being used for women in the culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hip hop fashion</span> Various styles of dress that originated in the United States

Hip-hop fashion refers to the various styles of dress that originated from Urban Black America and inner city youth in cities like New York City, Atlanta, and Los Angeles. Being a major part of hip hop culture, it further developed in other cities across the United States, with each contributing different elements to the overall style that is now recognized worldwide.

Hiplife is a Ghanaian musical style that fuses Ghanaian culture and hip hop. Recorded predominantly in the Ghanaian Akan language, hiplife is rapidly gaining popularity in the 2010s throughout West Africa and abroad, especially in the United Kingdom, United States, Canada and Germany.

Cultural appropriation is the inappropriate or unacknowledged adoption of an element or elements of one culture or identity by members of another culture or identity. This can be especially controversial when members of a dominant culture appropriate from minority cultures. When cultural elements are copied from a minority culture by members of a dominant culture, and these elements are used outside of their original cultural context – sometimes even against the expressly stated wishes of members of the originating culture – the practice is often received negatively. Cultural appropriation can include the exploitation of another culture's religious and cultural traditions, dance steps, fashion, symbols, language, and music.

The term hyphy is an Oakland, California slang meaning "hyperactive". More specifically, it is an adjective describing the hip hop music and the culture associated with the Oakland area. The term was first coined by Oakland rapper Keak da Sneak.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hip hop (culture)</span> Subculture including music, dance and graffiti

Hip hop or hip-hop is a culture and art movement that was created by African Americans, starting in the Bronx, New York City. Pioneered from Black American street culture, that had been around for years prior to its more mainstream discovery, it later reached other groups such as Latino Americans and Caribbean Americans. Hip-hop culture has historically been shaped and dominated by African American men, though female hip hop artists have contributed to the art form and culture as well. Hip hop culture is characterized by the key elements of rapping, DJing and turntablism, and breakdancing; other elements include graffiti, beatboxing, street entrepreneurship, hip hop language, and hip hop fashion. From hip hop culture emerged a new genre of popular music, hip hop music.

White nigger, sometimes shortened to wigger, is an ethnic slur referring to a White American whose behaviors and mannerisms are similar to Black Americans. It was primarily used to refer to a lower-class White American by upper-class White Americans. The term nigger is a racial slur that refers to a Black American, typically one of low socio-economic status.

Asian hip hop is a heterogeneous musical genre that covers all hip hop music as recorded and produced by artists of Asian origin.

Chickenhead is an American English slang term that is typically used in a derogatory manner toward women. The term mocks the motion of the head while performing oral sex on a man, but contains social characteristics and cultural relevance as well, and is frequently heard in popular hip hop music. More recent uses of the term have seen it taken back by hip hop feminists and entertainers as a symbol of sexuality and power. "Chickenhead" is also a term used in overseas sex trafficking for individuals that facilitate and monitor a person's transition into sex work.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poseur</span> Someone who poses for effect

A poseur is someone who poses for effect, or behaves affectedly, who affects a particular attitude, character or manner to impress others, or who pretends to belong to a particular group. A poseur may be a person who pretends to be what they are not or an insincere person; they may have a flair for drama or behave as if they are onstage in daily life.

LGBT representations in hip hop music have existed since the birth of the genre even while enduring blatant discrimination. Due to its adjacency to disco, the earliest days of hip hop had a close relation to LGBT subcultures, and multiple LGBT DJs have played a role in popularizing hip hop. Despite this early involvement, hip hop has long been portrayed as one of the least LGBT-friendly genres of music, with a significant body of the genre containing homophobic views and anti-gay lyrics, with mainstream artists such as Eminem and Tyler, the Creator having used homophobia in their lyrics. Attitudes towards homosexuality in hip hop culture have historically been negative, with slang that uses homosexuality as a punchline such as "sus", "no homo", and "pause" being heard in hip hop lyrics from some of the industry's biggest artists. Since the early 2000s there has been a flourishing community of LGBTQ+ hip hop artists, activists, and performers breaking barriers in the mainstream music industry.

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Toni Blackman is an American rapper and writer who was the first hip-hop ambassador to the U.S. State Department. Additionally, she was selected as a 2006 Rhythm Road touring artist and subsequently served as on the selection committee for American Music Abroad with American Voices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iggy Azalea</span> Australian rapper (born 1990)

Amethyst Amelia Kelly, known professionally as Iggy Azalea, is an Australian rapper, songwriter, and model. Azalea's accolades include two American Music Awards, three Billboard Music Awards, an MTV Video Music Award, a People's Choice Award, four Teen Choice Awards and four Grammy Award nominations. Azalea is popular on video sites; her Youtube channel has accumulated 3.4 billion views, and 15 of her music videos have received over 100 million views on Vevo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Azealia Banks</span> American rapper (born 1991)

Azealia Amanda Banks is an American rapper, singer and songwriter. Raised in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City, she began releasing music through Myspace in 2008 before being signed to XL Recordings at age 18. She subsequently signed with Interscope and Polydor Records before separating in 2013. Banks became an independent artist and started her own independent record label, Chaos & Glory Recordings. She later signed to Parlophone and Warner Records before quitting her label in 2023.

Joan Morgan is a Jamaican-American author and journalist. She was born in Jamaica and raised in the South Bronx. Morgan coined the term "hip hop feminist".

Feminist activism in hip hop is a feminist movement based by hip hop artists. The activism movement involves doing work in graffiti, break dancing, and hip hop music. Hip hop has a history of being a genre that sexually objectifies and disrespects women ranging from the usage of video vixens to explicit rap lyrics. Within the subcultures of graffiti and breakdancing, sexism is more evident through the lack of representation of women participants. In a genre notorious for its sexualization of women, feminist groups and individual artists who identify as feminists have sought to change the perception and commodification of women in hip hop. This is also rooted in cultural implications of misogyny in rap music.

<i>Slay-Z</i> 2016 mixtape by Azealia Banks

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">White Privilege II</span> Single by American hip hop duo Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

"White Privilege II" is a song by American hip hop duo Macklemore & Ryan Lewis from their second album This Unruly Mess I've Made (2016). The song, a sequel to Macklemore's solo song "White Privilege" from his first album The Language of My World (2005), discusses white privilege and the social movement associated with Black Lives Matter. According to the duo, "this song is the outcome of an ongoing dialogue with musicians, activists, and teachers within our community in Seattle and beyond. Their work and engagement was essential to the creative process." The song's lyrics span around nine minutes and 1,300 words. One of the project's collaborators is Chicago singer Jamila Woods, whose voice is featured on the track. "White Privilege II" was released as promotional single on January 22, 2016.

References

  1. ↑ Bernstein 2006, p. 607.
  2. ↑ "Wigger | Define Wigger at Dictionary.com". Dictionary.reference.com. Archived from the original on 2015-07-02. Retrieved 2015-07-01.
  3. ↑ "wigger - definition of wigger by The Free Dictionary". Thefreedictionary.com. Archived from the original on 2015-05-05. Retrieved 2015-07-01.
  4. ↑ Kitwana, Bakari. "'Why White Kids Love Hip Hop'". NPR.org. Archived from the original on 2015-07-30. Retrieved 2015-07-01.
  5. ↑ "Wiggers just wannabe black: White middle-class kids are adopting black street style and chilling out to rap music". Independent.co.uk. 1993-08-22. Archived from the original on 2015-09-25. Retrieved 2015-07-01.
  6. 1 2 Tan, Monica (5 December 2014). "Azealia Banks's Twitter beef with Iggy Azalea over US race issues misses point | Monica Tan". the Guardian. Archived from the original on 9 September 2015. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  7. 1 2 3 Stuever, Hank (30 January 2010). "'Blacking Up' documentary questions white enthusiasts of black hip-hop culture". The Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286. Archived from the original on 17 October 2018. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  8. ↑ "Pruitt v Anderson, Borgen, Red Wing Public Schools et al" (PDF). courthousenews.com. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 19, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2012.
  9. ↑ Sarah Gorvin "Wangster Suit Settled for $90k", Red Wing Republican Eagle, 4 August 2012

Works cited

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