# Black people and stereotypes **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [September 6, 2003, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964 "2003-09-06T18:35:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/101 "2003-09-09T16:55:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by vasyachkin \* > \*\*well Sinful you obviously assume that they should be ashamed of what they are, and hide it at any cost. and this is truly racist. > > i much prefer prefer loud vulgar thug type black guys to the sniveling little shits that try to appear white so that they could get a promotion. > > of course, i am not saying that if you’re black and act “white” than you’re necessarily not genuine. > > for the record, i consider myself white, though CanvasShoes apparently thinks i belong to a “russian” race 🙂 \*\* I do??? Did I say that? (arrrggggh the memory is the first to go, don’t LAUGH young whippersnapper it’ll happen to you too!). Sorry, I think it was the screen name, it just sounds Russian to me. Oh wait!! OR is it that you like Borsht? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mdm.President](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@Mdm.President](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mdm.President)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/102 "2003-09-09T18:00:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by JuanitaTech \* > \*\*Dressing like a thug does not a thug make. \*\* Yeah, yeah, yeah and dressing like a slut doesn’t make you a slut. Fine. But this only goes so far. Also, I think it’s been established that we are not talking about little kids that don’t know any better. I’m a wildlife manager. I do what I do (keep their habitat healthy) for a love of animals. But unfortunately most of the jobs for wildlife managers are working at hunting leases. So I am making these deer fat and healthy just so someone can come shoot them. As much as I want to tame these deer so I can ‘play’ with them I don’t dare get them use to humans. If fact, when I see any I try my best to scare the shit out of them. Now _I_ would never hurt them, but I look JUST like other creatures that would. So I don’t get my feelings hurt when they don’t trust me. In fact, I don’t want them to trust me. They’ll live longer that way. I have been mugged once. Yes it was by two black boys pointing a gun at me. But ya know what, they weren’t wearing Levis and a T-shirt. They were wearing jogging pants with one of the legs scrunched up and a stupid oversized FUBU shirt. Am I scared of black folk? Nope. But I lock my car doors when I see ANYONE over a certain age dressed like that. This isn’t raciest (since it also applies to white folk dressed that that) or even judgmental, it’s healthy, it’s self-preservation. So if you dress like a thug don’t get your feelings hurt when I don’t trust you. You might shoot me and mount my head on your wall. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/103 "2003-09-09T19:29:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by pizzabrat \* > Like I pointed out earlier, talking OVER the movie is impossible (unless your voice can beat THX). They sure do tell you to be quiet, but they also tell you to stay tuned while they bring you these messages, and that electric dildos are “personal massagers”, and condoms are for “family planning”, and sex toys are only for husbands and wives as they are “marital aides”, and to keep you seatbelt fastened until the light goes off, and to cross at crosswalks only, and (back to the theater) to not bring outside food or drink. People aren’t expected to follow all of those rules. \*\* How can you justify talking in a theater during a movie with a straight face? And then you spout all this bullshit as if it were some kind of legal precedent? What are you? Twelve? If you are sitting next to someone who is talking and carrying on, you most certainly can hear them over the movie. > [@](#): > > _Originally posted by gobear_ > talking in movies by itself is not a Black Stereotype Actually, I wasn’t even thinking of it as a black or white thing. It’s an inconsiderate asshole thing. What has become a Black media stereotype is the rude, obnoxious black person with a chip on their shoulder. Apparently, it is considered “edgy” to be Black and walk around barking at people like a bull in a China shop. Here’s a clue. Acting loud and obnoxious (especially in a professional environment) is not “acting white”. It is acting like a normal human being. If I responded to my boss asking me to stay late with “NIGGA!!! YO MUST BE TRIPPIN’!!!” I’m pretty sure I would be out the door. My brotha - save the outdoor voice and ebonics for when you get home. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/104 "2003-09-09T19:37:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by msmith537 \* > Here’s a clue. Acting loud and obnoxious (especially in a professional environment) is not “acting white”. \*\* I got it backwards. NOT acting loud and obnoxious is not “acting white”. No one is expecting you to be like “yessah massah boss man” or trying to steal away your ‘blackness’. Just talk in a regular tone of voice. ---
**Author:** ![UrbanChic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9dc877/32.png) [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/105 "2003-09-09T19:42:29Z")
Wow, I don’t think I’ve ever gotten over a crush so fast. Do I _have_ to save the ebonics for when I get home? Can’t I start saying fo shizzle my nizzle when I leave the office? It takes me a whole half hour to get home. I can’t wait that long. And while we’re at it, should the people in the office who say _toally_ and substitute _so, he was like_ instead of _he said_ save it for when they get home or is that acceptable? I think I’m going to need a chart of some sort. Do you have Visio? By the way, when my boss asks me to stay late, I just say, “Fool, is you out yo’ damn mind?” ---
**Author:** ![Mdm.President](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@Mdm.President](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mdm.President)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/106 "2003-09-09T20:13:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by JuanitaTech \* > \*\*And while we’re at it, should the people in the office who say _toally_ and substitute _so, he was like_ instead of _he said_ save it for when they get home or is that acceptable? > \*\* I feel the same degree of contempt for valley girl speak as I do for Ebonics, if not more… no wait, it IS more. Of course this doesn’t pertain to ‘play talk’. Get me around my home girlz and I cant shut up with the ‘thats too much shizzle my nizzle! And tell yo mama I asked how she durin’. But at work or any other even simi professional environment… just STOP it, before I bury you alive in a box. ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/107 "2003-09-09T20:17:14Z")
> [@](#): > > By the way, when my boss asks me to stay late, I just say, “Fool, is you out yo’ damn mind?” I assume that will be accompanied by the traditional neck swivel (and I’m guessing canned laughter because that’s a UPN sitcom catch phrase waiting to be born if ever I heard one.) So if we’re doing stereotypes, do I have to start wearing ascots, drinking Cosmos, and acting bitchy (OK, bitchi_er_)? ---
**Author:** ![Angel\_Heart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5e9695/32.png) [@Angel\_Heart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Angel_Heart)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/108 "2003-09-09T20:27:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by msmith537 \* > \*\*And here’s a little somthin for da homez. > > I bet you dance very well - but only to hip hop. > \*\* Not really \*\* > [@](#): > > I bet you own 30 Jordans and giant oversized FUBU jeans and a big puffy down jacket. > \*\* Reeboks here. I’ve got one FUBU T-Shirt, I’m not running around in head to toe Marithe Francois-Gibraud like half my classmates. \*\* > [@](#): > > I bet you’ve worn the combination of the above during the hottest days of summer. > \*\* I wear sandals from late May to early September \*\* > [@](#): > > I bet you really love either rap or hip hop. > \*\* I think almost all rap done after the mid-90s is worthless (IMHO). I’m a bigger fan of rock (especially modern rock and 80s glam), techno and neo-soul. \*\* > [@](#): > > I bet you love KFC and watermellon. > \*\* I’m a vegetarian. I do love watermelon though. \*\* > [@](#): > > I bet a hockey stick, tennis racket or ski pole has never touched your hand. > \*\* I played lacrosse in high school. I was in the ice hockey club at my old college (and was NOT the only black member!). I’ve been skiing a couple times. Never played tennis outside of gym class though. \*\* > [@](#): > > I bet you look your nose down on people who wear suits, fitted cotton Dockers and Polo golf shirts. > \*\* Nope. \*\* > [@](#): > > I bet you live in some sort of assisted housing. > \*\* Yes–I live with my parents and I’m over 21 (although still in college.) Does that qualify 😉 \*\* > [@](#): > > I bet you live in a broken household with a single mom and twelve brothers and sisters. > \*\* Hey, you forgot to add “from 8 different fathers” 🙂 \*\* > [@](#): > > I bet at least one of your friends knocked up some hizzo and another is in jail. > \*\* So you just add “izzo” to a word to ghettofy it? \*\* > [@](#): > > I bet you don’t know what a 401k is or what it does. > \*\* It’s a retirement stock fund, right? \*\* > [@](#): > > I bet you talk like “fo-shizzle my nizzle!” like all black people. \*\* Only ironically. ---
**Author:** ![UrbanChic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9dc877/32.png) [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/109 "2003-09-09T20:29:41Z")
OK, gobear. I closed my office door and said it aloud. There was no neck swivel but I did kind of cock my head to the side and bob it for every syllable. There was no canned laughter but, as I said before, I did have my office door closed. I’m taking notes on this thread as I haven’t decided the best way to parody it in the Pit. Or maybe I should just take the notes and apply them to my everyday life. Lord knows I’m getting tired of only making $15K a year and driving around in my Geo Metro with the fake rims and super-dark tinted windows. Oh and, gobear, ascots are _so_ done for you gay men. It’s all about the cuff-style bracelets, hon. ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/110 "2003-09-09T20:49:14Z")
[quote] OK, gobear. I closed my office door and said it aloud. There was no neck swivel but I did kind of cock my head to the side and bob it for every syllable. There was no canned laughter but, as I said before, I did have my office door closed. [quote] So does this mean that you don’t have a wacky, man-hungry neighbor or a snoopy landlord, and your problems aren’t solved in 30 minutes with a hug and a moral lesson? > [@](#): > > Lord knows I’m getting tired of only making $15K a year and driving around in my Geo Metro with the fake rims and super-dark tinted windows. If I thought it would do any good, I’d recommend that some participants in this thread watch Spike Lee’s movie, **Bamboozled**. It will make any white person who gets his ideas about black people from the media absolutely cringe with embarrassment. > [@](#): > > Oh and, gobear, ascots are _so_ done for you gay men. It’s all about the cuff-style bracelets, hon. See, I _never_ get the memos. I’m going to have to bring this up at the next meeting of The Gay Agenda[sup]TM[/sup]. ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/111 "2003-09-09T20:52:13Z")
> [@](#): > > OK, gobear. I closed my office door and said it aloud. There was no neck swivel but I did kind of cock my head to the side and bob it for every syllable. There was no canned laughter but, as I said before, I did have my office door closed. So does this mean that you don’t have a wacky, man-hungry neighbor or a snoopy landlord, and your problems aren’t solved in 30 minutes with a hug and a moral lesson? > [@](#): > > Lord knows I’m getting tired of only making $15K a year and driving around in my Geo Metro with the fake rims and super-dark tinted windows. If I thought it would do any good, I’d recommend that some participants in this thread watch Spike Lee’s movie, Bamboozled. It will make any white person who gets his ideas about black people from the media absolutely cringe with embarrassment. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/112 "2003-09-09T20:53:03Z")
I can’t swivel my neck cobra-style. Everyone on this thread would piss themselves watching my whiter than white coworkers teaching me–the only black person in the whole damn faculty–how to go cobra on someone. 1. Raise the index finger of your right hand to chest level. 2. Jut neck forward slightly and place left hand on your hip. 3. Proclaim in the loudest voice ever, “Oh NO YOU DIDN’T!” being careful to pronounce “didn’t” like “di-ent”. 4. Swivel head and neck like a cobra as you say the above. It helps if you have giant hoop earrings to emphasize the effect. 5. Once the victim has your attention, proceed to verbally whupping their ass with the choicest of cuss words. I can’t perform the above because I can’t coordinate my neck muscles separate from my shoulder muscles. Further, once I become angry enough to cuss someone out, words seem to fail me. _sigh_. This is one stereotype I wish I could perpetuate sometimes. ---
**Author:** ![UrbanChic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9dc877/32.png) [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/113 "2003-09-09T21:01:51Z")
monsto, that sounds more like a Latina stereotype to me. ---
**Author:** ![SnoopyFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d07c76/32.png) [@SnoopyFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnoopyFan)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/114 "2003-09-09T22:06:17Z")
“I hate stereotypes and try and avoid them as much as possible, but I just don’t understand why someone would perpetrate thier own stereotype?” My guess is that if you’re repeatedly stereotyped and you have no real hope of getting away from it, you take the stereotype you’re handed and make it YOURS. Like the stereotype of black guys dressing like rappers. Nobody bats an eye if they do so. It’s acceptable. If a white guy does it, he’s a poser. Thus black guys have made the rapper thing THEIR style. Or something. As far as the white people stereotypes: I bet you can’t dance very well. - That’s right. I sure can’t 🙂 I bet you own a pair of raggedy docksiders and khaki cutoffs. - I have no idea what docksiders are. I bet you’ve worn the combination of the above during the cold of winter. - See above. I bet you either really love heavy metal or country music. - I do like me some fiddles, yes. I bet you like mayonaisse. - Mayonnaise sandwiches. Yum! (Black people don’t like mayo? Why?) I bet a collard green has never touched your lips. - True. I bet you look your nose down on people who wear big baggy jeans and bandanas tied around their head. - No, unless their jeans are so baggy that they’re falling down and I can see quite a bit of their boxers. I think that looks stupid. I bet you live in the suburbs. - City. A small one, granted, but this is WV. I bet you live in a middle class household. - No. We’re considered “lower” class. I bet you don’t have any black friends. - I have one very close black friend here and another one in my hometown. I bet you don’t know what “Dark-n-Lovely” is or what it does or how it smells. - You’re right. I bet you’re a big nerd like all white people. - It depends on you define nerd, I guess 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/115 "2003-09-09T22:35:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MDM. President \* > \*\*I feel the same degree of contempt for valley girl speak as I do for Ebonics, if not more… no wait, it IS more. Of course this doesn’t pertain to ‘play talk’. Get me around my home girlz and I cant shut up with the ‘thats too much shizzle my nizzle! And tell yo mama I asked how she durin’. But at work or any other even simi professional environment… just STOP it, before I bury you alive in a box. \*\* EXACTLY. If you’re in a professional environment, act and speak accordingly. That’s simple business sense, it’s NOT “giving away your blackness/redneckness/valley girlness/whateverness”. DO NOT call up a client/vendor/business associate and say something to the effect, “so I was like looking for your Ummm, OrdERR? And my boss was like eeh, and I was like Oooh” etc etc Or any OTHER moronic slang speech patterns. ARGGGH. Same with the clothing. If you work at some sports center or something fine, wear your silly oversized clothing and backwards baseball cap. If you work in a corporate/business environment, dress, speak and behave accordingly. It’s not rocket science. ---
**Author:** ![pizzabrat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e9c0ed/32.png) [@pizzabrat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pizzabrat)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2003, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/116 "2003-09-09T22:54:10Z")
> [@](#): > > _msmith537_ > Actually, I wasn’t even thinking of it as a black or white thing. It’s an inconsiderate asshole thing. Yeah, me neither (sans the last part). > [@](#): > > What has become a Black media stereotype is the rude, obnoxious black person with a chip on their shoulder. Apparently, it is considered “edgy” to be Black and walk around barking at people like a bull in a China shop. Huh? You got the first sentence right. That is how they like to portray blacks in the movies these days. But nobody views that as edgy; we’re all supposed to laugh at them. > [@](#): > > Here’s a clue. Acting loud and obnoxious (especially in a professional environment) is not “acting white”. It is acting like a normal human being. If I responded to my boss asking me to stay late with “NIGGA!!! YO MUST BE TRIPPIN’!!!” I’m pretty sure I would be out the door. My brotha - save the outdoor voice and ebonics for when you get home. Woah, how did we get all the way here? > [@](#): > > _JuanitaTech_ > Oh and, gobear, ascots are _so_ done for you gay men. It’s all about the cuff-style bracelets, hon. _Thank_ you! ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2003, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/117 "2003-09-10T01:35:46Z")
'Way back in the OP: > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Sinful \* > **If you know me, then you would know I’m a nerd, but I am not the stereotypical nerd. I am not pale, nor scrawny, I do not wet my pants when a girl talks to me, and I don’t come out of the Dungeons and Dragons movie screeching about how a Level 1 mage can cast a Level 4 Fireball spell.** Well, duh! That’s because _fireball_ is only a level **3** spell! (Unless you’re talking about the experience level at which a mage is first able to cast a _fireball_ spell, which would be level 5.) ---
**Author:** ![Ptahlis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a8b319/32.png) [@Ptahlis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ptahlis)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2003, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/118 "2003-09-10T04:27:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by pizzabrat \* > \*\*Like I pointed out earlier, talking OVER the movie is impossible (unless your voice can beat THX). \*\* Gee, you’re right. There’s apparently no problem with people talking during a movie, since they can’t possibly talk louder than the explosions. All the people bitching must have, like, hyper-hearing or something! > [@](#): > > \*\* > They sure do tell you to be quiet, but they also tell you to stay tuned while they bring you these messages, and that electric dildos are “personal massagers”, and condoms are for “family planning”, and sex toys are only for husbands and wives as they are “marital aides”, > \*\* Those are all polite euphemisms, like “be quiet” is a polite euphemism for “Shut the fuck up you rude asshole.” > [@](#): > > \*\* > and to keep you seatbelt fastened until the light goes off, and to cross at crosswalks only, and (back to the theater) to not bring outside food or drink. People aren’t expected to follow all of those rules. \*\* You’re confusing the ability to enforce the rules with the desire to have people actually follow them. People may understand that no rule is ever %100 followed, but that doesn’t mean they think it’s okay when you don’t. :wally ---
**Author:** ![SimonMoon5](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@SimonMoon5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SimonMoon5)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2003, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/119 "2003-09-10T16:38:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by CanvasShoes \* > \*\* If you work in a corporate/business environment, dress, speak and behave accordingly. > \*\* I have to agree. One time when I was on jury duty, the defendant and her lawyer were both black (or African-American or people of color, or whatever I’m supposed to call them). The defendant’s lawyer spoke fluent Ebonics instead of English. This seemed totally out of place, so much so that I had trouble taking him seriously. Too many uses of the phrase “He be…” gave me the “He be” jeebies. Fortunately, I didn’t have to serve on that jury (the black lawyer “struck” all the white potential jurors… a fact that the other lawyer caught him on and complained to the judge about, to no avail). * * * In regard to the OP’s idea about stereotypes, here’s another take. Can African-Americans expect that the stereotype of black people as criminals will ever go away, when a sizable number of black people choose of their own volition to “present” themselves _as_ criminals (thugs, pimps, etc.)? If the shoe fits… (gloves are apparently a different matter). ## Yeah, yeah, these guys are just playing pretend for the most part (which seems really juvenile), but it’s that first impression that’s so important. Oh, and not to highjack this thread (anymore than it already has been), but… Someone mentioned something about having black people as friends not being a valid way to ensure that one is not being prejudiced. This relates to something I heard a few times growing up… A person making a speech might say something like, “Some of my best friends are black,” which would instantly cause a reaction from the viewers of “My god, this guy is really really prejudiced!” Okay, I can accept on faith that saying, “Some of my best friends are black,” is a totally evil, despicable act. But I’m not sure why that is exactly. ---
**Author:** ![UrbanChic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9dc877/32.png) [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2003, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964/120 "2003-09-10T16:54:32Z")
> [@](#): > > In regard to the OP’s idea about stereotypes, here’s another take. Can African-Americans expect that the stereotype of black people as criminals will ever go away, when a sizable number of black people choose of their own volition to “present” themselves _as_ criminals (thugs, pimps, etc.)? If the shoe fits… (gloves are apparently a different matter). Such an expectation is unreasonalbe and, if I may be frank, downright laughable. Sure, the majority of black people eschew dressing like pimps and thugs but they don’t count. The should have never been freed, if you ask me. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-and-stereotypes/199964.md?page=7)