This is an actual letter recently published in my local newspaper: Talking "white" and talking "black"
In a "Quick Hit" opinion, editorial writer James Causey criticized Ralph Nader for saying Sen. Barack Obama talks "white" to avoid losing white voters to Sen. John McCain. Has Causey heard of Ebonics? Almost invaribly, I can determine the ethnicity of the person I'm speaking with on the phone by the number of "likes," "you knows" and their accent. In fact, I'll never forget the comment by a young black man when speaking about a black woman: "She talk white." What's even more exceptional about Obama is that, as Nader claimed, Obama can tone down his "blackness." Unlike President Bush, Obama has excellent command of the English language and has appeared to assimilate well into "white" culture, most likely due to his education. People's hypersensitivity makes them try to deny differences that do exist for lots of reasons. Respectfully, Causey needs to get his head out of the sand.
