Why should we assume they were being jerks? Because they called him “George” or because they were getting into with the OP? Because I can join you on the first because calling someone out their name is always rude. But without more information about the argument, I don’t know if he was right, wrong, or whatever.
“Charlie” used to be the generic name for white people. As in “Mr. Charlie”. And for women, it’s “Becky” or “Miss Becky”. Never heard of “George” being used in this fashion. My guess is it’s an inside thing. George must be someone the guys all know, and for whatever reason, you remind them of him.
Simply going by the OP, in which he felt the guys were saying it to mock him. So far the OP hasn’t added anything to make me doubt his perception of the interaction.
I was also responding to a poster who was saying everyone was excusing the guys’ behavior. My impression has been that the folks responding in this thread, for right or wrong, were not white knighting the guy, but debating the possible racial overtones of calling a white guy George.
“Mister Charlie” was a derogatory term for White males that Black people used to use during the Jim Crow South. White people who had the respect of their Black subordinates were never called or referred to as “Mister Charlie” either to their faces or in private.
We were arguing about how the line should be run. Me and him are ok with each other as far as I know now. He made the argument bigger than what it was by going to his superviser pal though. The superviser came over and asked me if there was a problem and I said no and that was it. Then later when we were getting off work he made his George comment and him and his superviser buddy laughed about it along with others. I just walked away and went home. I really don’t want to start drama especially over something silly.
I’m wondering if the insult wasn’t directed so much at you but was to maintain his “cred” with the other workers. It sounds like you have a pretty good perspective on things so don’t let it get under your skin. You might find that you have been through a bit of a hazing and if you don’t let it bother you it might lead to acceptance. When everything is cool ask them what it meant.
Just to be accurate I don’t think that “everybody” in the thread is excusing the guys’ behavior. But there are a few.
Who knows if calling a White guy “George” is racist? I don’t. But calling him white boy is most definitely a racial reference and implies that they are reversing what may have happened to their ancestors.
It has a very roundabout derivation. The N. Vietnamese soldiers were the Viet Cong, or VC. The military uses an alphabet for spelling words over the radio to make them clear, and it consists of words that don’t rhyme, or sound alike, or sound much like other words-- A is Alpha, so B would not be Balfour, and M would not be Malfi (FWIW, they are Bravo and Mike). So, the VC were sometimes “Victor Charlie,” and then just “Charlie”; superstition as well as brevity probably prompted dropping the “Victor.”
When you see a movie, and someone talks about having served in “Bravo Company,” or crossed “Checkpoint Charlie” (there was an important checkpoint Charlie after WWII), that what those words mean; Bravo company was the second company in the battalion, and checkpoint Charlie was the third checkpoint geographically.
It sure sounds to me like this is a reference to George Zimmerman. You’ve been accused of having a problem with black men and racial comments have been made towards/about you so I don’t know if I’d say this is racist or not. But if your question is what is “George” about, I think Zimmerman is the most obvious answer. Seems like your coworker is using your race against you. He might dislike you for other reasons but it I think you are being called a racist by someone who is. Or maybe he is just using your difference to ostracize you or pick on you. Or maybe it’s all in good fun. You know better than I. Not my kind of fun for sure and this guy is definitely a dick.
