Sis...AAVE is My Culture, Not for Clout

 "Every Black Man is Bilingual. We Speak Street Vernacular and We Speak Job Interview" 

-Dave Chapelle

                                 

Growing up as a Black woman, the way I talk has everything to do with my culture. AAVE originated from the days of slavery when Black people were taken from our native land. We were isolated from our people and our language. As slaves, Black people were not educated because we were seen as pieces of property, not human beings. Therefore, Black people had to create our own vernacular from the words and language we were exposed to involuntarily. The words that we say like "sis" or "fo sho" or "chile" are ways we communicate and relate to each other as Black people. It connects us to our Black community and culture. Whenever I or any other Black person use these words, we're called ghetto or uneducated. However, if a "White" person says it, people think its "hip". They use our slang and vernacular for clout when in reality, it's cultural appropriation. It's disrespectful in every sense. It's hard... because I'm so used to speaking in AAVE, but I have to code-switch based on the environment that I'm in and who I'm around. If I'm going in for a job interview, I have to "talk proper" and "professional". I have to use language (of our White hegemonic society) that would allow me to be seen as "professional" and "educated". I can't go in saying, "Yo wassup witchya ". Instead, I have to code-switch and say, "Hi. How are you?" Which isn't how I normally talk, AT ALL. Who or what decided that using AAVE is unprofessional or ignorant sounding? I'll tell you. The racist ideologies ingrained in our society that say Black people are less than "White" people. Society believes the way "White" people talk, the way they act, the way they dress, their religion, their "culture", is elite over everything...Instead of understanding Black culture and taking responsibility for the oppression placed upon us, we are supposed to conform to their ways of life. It's disgusting and wrong. Black culture influences my speech every day of my life. It's who I am and it connects me to my community. However, it also hinders me in a society that doesn't value my culture and my people.