People who assume I'm some bad person because of my personal/religious beliefs.

[Kheldarson]

As to the OP: When one chooses to associate with swine, is it any wonder, then, that others might mistake them for a pig?

I don't think that's quite right. Especially when we're talking about groups as broad as politics and religion which have a wide variety of nuances. Heck, I've been in situations where I mention I'm Catholic and my opinion is immediately denounced as "brainwashing". Yet, I'm a fairly liberal Catholic. So I have to agree with the sentiment of the OP; it really sucks when your opinions and thoughts are judged by your associations rather than your actual arguments.

[HYHYBT]

How is "tar baby" a racist term?

[Andara Bledin]

How is "tar baby" a racist term?

It's not. It's the Anglicized version of a "gum baby." But people think it's racist because tar is black and the original story is from Africa.

Now, there are people who have used it as a racist term, but pretty much every word you can think of has been abused in some similar manner, so that's no reason to abandon a perfectly cromulent term.

[Gravekeeper]

Now, there are people who have used it as a racist term, but pretty much every word you can think of has been abused in some similar manner, so that's no reason to abandon a perfectly cromulent term.

Well, I don't think it needs to be banished from the English language. But again, if you are a sitting Republican congressman, directing the term at a sitting black president is probably a bad idea.

Its one of those things that really shouldn't come out of your mouth in a professional setting as a public figure on national TV is all. -.-

[Andara Bledin]

Its one of those things that really shouldn't come out of your mouth in a professional setting as a public figure on national TV is all. -.-

Oh, yes, absolutely no argument there.

If you're a politician in the public eye, not only do you have to not make racist statements but you have to keep the appearance of not making racist statements. Words and phrases like "tar baby" and "niggardly" are perfectly useful terms, but will be taken out of context and mistaken because people are ignorant and quick to judge.

[Estil]

To say nothing of the "water buffalo guy" (look it up).

[BlaqueKatt]

It's not. It's the Anglicized version of a "gum baby." But people think it's racist because tar is black and the original story is from Africa.

I think it got it's racist flavor sprinkles from "uncle remus" -specifically the disney stereotype he was portrayed as in "song of the south"

"All words have life cycles," says Erin McKean, editor-in-chief of the Oxford American Dictionary "What's really important is not etymologically what it means, but the effect it has." And that is a constantly evolving standard.

source

[Andara Bledin]

I really think Disney is doing a disservice to the world by keeping Song of the South locked up and refusing to admit that it exists.

They could go a long way towards addressing racism and the way it affects society as a companion to the movie as presented. It's important to know how things were in the past to understand how they got to where they are now.

[wolfie]

Yep, definitely re-release Song of the South with a companion piece about how society has changed. There's enough space on a DVD (especially on a Blu-Ray) for that.

When I was a kid, I remember going to a restaurant called Sambo's (probably part of a chain). That name would NEVER fly now.

[Andara Bledin]

When I was a kid, I remember going to a restaurant called Sambo's (probably part of a chain). That name would NEVER fly now.

It's amazing how many people have no idea that "Little Black Sambo" was Indian, not African.

Still primarily racist, though.

[protege]

I really think Disney is doing a disservice to the world by keeping Song of the South locked up and refusing to admit that it exists.

Agreed. Disney isn't the only one that denies their past. WB never airs the 1940s Bugs Bunny cartoons that contain *many* anti-Japanese and anti-German references...for many of the same reasons. Blatantly racist sketches, as well as the evils that inspired them, should never be forgotten.

[TheHuckster]

When I was a kid, I remember going to a restaurant called Sambo's (probably part of a chain). That name would NEVER fly now.

It's still around, albeit only one location remains. It was originally just the two founders' names put together, but after people started making the connection with the derogatory word, instead of distancing themselves from the connection, they embraced it by decorating their restaurants with scenes from the book that inspired the term.

[Aragarthiel]

Wasn't there a scandal about one of North Carolina's sports teams being called the "Tar Heels?" If anyone knows where that phrase comes from, it's probably one of the least racist terms I've ever heard. If not... this is the gist of it.

[Andara Bledin]

Wasn't there a scandal about one of North Carolina's sports teams being called the "Tar Heels?" If anyone knows where that phrase comes from, it's probably one of the least racist terms I've ever heard. If not... this is the gist of it.

Not racist but classist, founded in derogatory meaning.

[Estil]

It's amazing how many people have no idea that "Little Black Sambo" was Indian, not African.

That precisely what happened with the water buffalo guy. He was accused of being a racist for shouting at some (who turned out to be black, at least some) women who were being too loud to shut up/pipe down/whatever "you water buffaloes!" The people at the university who were accusing him formally of racism tried to say that it's an obvious stereotype of African Americans...there's just one problem. Water buffaloes are Asian, not African. Oops.

But in all seriousness this "New McCarthyism" (the original McCarthyism wrongly accused people of being Communists...today it's racism) and "racist chasers" has gotten completely out of control lately.