Luis Gutierrez
Professor Velez
FIQWS
17 November 2021

      Black and White English: Comparing the two and how they relate to Code-Switching

          What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear the phrase, “Black English.” Most of the time, you may think of slang of some sort. Black English is a type of vernacular that is typically spoken by African American people. There are many forms of Black English, however, the one that we all must know about is the more urban-based form of it. Phrases that you may identify Black English with are phrases such as “Imma dip” or “Here comes that boy.” To outsiders, it is something that looks improper or uneducated in a sense, but to those who can relate to the culture, it is something that is normal and easily understandable. It is a more unique and versatile form of English that allows freedom of expression for those in the colored community. Now, What do you think when you hear the phrase “White English”. The first thing that comes to the top of your head is the ‘proper’ way of speaking. One could say that this paper is written in a White English form of vernacular. White English is the type of English you may speak in a white-collar environment or when you are working at your job or in school. It is the type of English you use when you need to Code-Switch. These two forms of speaking are very different. From the way they are looked on by society very down to the core on who speaks it. It is interesting to understand both forms of speech and how they impact society as a whole. With the idea of code-switching coming into play, it is quite simple to understand how Black English is suppressed by the Educational System as well as social environments, such as bars, in general. This matters because it is more than slang, but it actually carries as much power as White/Standard English.

            First, Let’s explain exactly what Black English is. Black English, in a simpler term, is a form of English that is most commonly spoken by African American individuals that utilize different forms of phrases and word usage that is unique to African American Culture. Black English is popularized presently by Hip Hop and some forms of Pop. Depending on where you live and hang around, you may always hear a form of Black English. Black English includes phrases such as “Yo, What’s Happenin’?” or “Man, you trippin’.” These are just a few of the different forms of Black English that you might encounter from day-to-day life (However, if you’d like to further understand Black English, Here is a Youtube Video explaining Black English Here.) Black English dates very far back, somewhere around the late 1800s, however, the term ‘Black English’ wasn’t properly given to the form of speech until 1964. As beautifully stated by the article “Black English” published by the University of Hawaii Press, Black English is explained straightforwardly; “Black English (BE), or Black American English, is coming into popular use as a short term for what is more technically known as Negro nonstandard English (NNE), earlier called simply Negro dialect or Negro English, Beginning about 1964, BE has become the subject of a voluminous literature inspired by the desire for drastic improvement in the mastery of ‘standard’ (socially acceptable) American English (SE) by Negro students, especially those in the slums of large cities.” (Page 1, University of Hawaii). Black English is a creative tool for African American people to express themselves and it is a language that has much history behind it. However, in comparison to White English, unfortunately, this form of English is typically looked down upon by those who consider themselves sophisticated and the idea of speaking it in the workplace is something that isn’t seen as positive.

            Move onto White English; White English is the most basic form of English that dates back as far as 5 BC, way farther than Black English. White English is the type of English that you are taught to learn in school and it is the type of English that is mostly spoken by people of White descent. White English is seen as the ‘proper’ way of speaking English. However, Unlike Black English, White English isn’t necessarily a real form of English. Why is that, you may ask. It is because White English is just…English. English, as a language, was developed and founded by Germanic Settlers who settled in Britain around 5th Century BC. As explained by Simeon Potter on the Website Britannica in the article titled; “English Language”, It is stated; “English belongs to the Indo-European family of languages and is therefore related to most other languages spoken in Europe and western Asia from Iceland to India. The parent tongue, called Proto-Indo-European, was spoken about 5,000 years ago by nomads believed to have roamed the southeast European plains.” (Page 1, Potter). Since English as a language was brought up by European/German Settlers, it is inherently something that is derived from White Culture. It is understandable that White English is said to be the proper way to speak English, as it is the core form of raw English. However, English as a language has evolved to fit into pretty much any form of way you want to speak it. Hispanics tend to speak Spanglish or depending on where you live, Hispanics even speak Black English as well. English isn’t just one language, its multiple, however, because of how education has taught English Language Arts, in Most, if not all schools, you learn the ‘proper’ form of English, which is White English.

          Inherently, White and Black English are separate forms of English that primarily target a select group of people. Both are considered Languages and you’d expect both to be respected somewhat equally as they are, at heart, English. Unfortunately, that isn’t necessarily the case as, throughout history and even today, White English is prioritized heavily over Black English because of how White English stapled itself as the only form of English that should be acceptable. Because of this, a form of assimilation for those who need to speak White English was born, Code-Switching. Code-Switching is the practice of switching up how you speak whether it be your tone of voice or switching up the whole language. People Code-Switch for many things, whether it be to fit in because they are pressured to or as a survival mechanism. Code-Switching has proven to be something that negatively impacts someone’s psyche, especially on African American People. As explained by Ida Harris, Author of the article titled; “Code-Switching is Not Trying to Fit into White Culture, It’s Surviving It.” Ida explains a time in her life in which she had to Code-Switch since she was the only African American person in a room full of White People. “The voice that sprung from my throat was unfamiliar as I introduced myself to a classroom full of white students. Its tone was high-pitched and enthusiastic– a far cry from my naturally soft raspiness. It wasn’t the first time I was unsettled by being the sole Black person in a room, but these moments had a profound effect on me. Without thought, I’d shifted my demeanor and speech…It was the first time I noticed I had code-switched. Admittedly, I was later ashamed for abandoning my native tongue– African American Vernacular English.” (Page 1, Harris). It is clearly shown that an African American person dislikes the idea of having to Code-Switching in a professional environment, however, it’s not just in a professional environment colored people tend to code-switch. As explained by Author Natalie Morris in the Article Titled “People of color have to ‘code-switch’ to fit in with white norms.”, She states; “If you walk into a pub and you are the only person of color in there, you might feel the need to make subtle adjustments to your behavior and manner of speaking in order to be less conspicuous. Code-switching is a survival technique, a tool to help someone seamlessly blend into different social and professional situations – particularly where you are a minority. It can be used consciously, or it can happen without even noticing that you’re doing it. But, frequently code-switching can be mentally taxing. It can be exhausting and demoralizing to feel as though you have to hide or adjust parts of who you are.” (Page 1, Morris). Both of these articles explain the problems with Code-Switching and the effects on colored people. When growing up, you have learned that slang speaking or ebonics is not the proper way to speak English. You have to speak properly in order to make it throughout life. White English displays your intellect level to those around you. It is something that is programmed into our minds as children from school. As explained by Lester S. Golub in the Article “Reading, Writing, and Black English.” The first page of the article cleverly explains the ideologies of Linguists and Educators through conversation between the two on the idea of Black English vs White English and how it correlates with African American Children who struggle with learning White English. Linguists tend to side with the idea of teaching African American students in Black English first to then slowly introduce them to White English as it is fundamental to learn both, whereas, Educators tend to be closed-minded to the idea, a big example of how a hypothetical educator may respond to the idea of teaching in Black English to better help African American students learn a subject is; “Educator B: Teaching black children black English and white English is a disguised form of racism, not much different from the racism of those who believe that we should eradicate black dialect. Teaching black children black English and white English perpetuates social inequalities that force blacks to become abnormal whites in order to get ahead. Social mobility is not the proper motivation for a black child to learn white English. Blacks who do learn white English will not find that their “improved” speech patterns make it any easier for them to win jobs, better salaries, or social acceptance.” (Page 1, Golub). It is simply outrageous how the idea of trying to comfort Black Students and ease them into White English is compared to a form of racism. Golub’s example of a discussion between Educators and Linguists and their completely opposite ideals shows how Black English is typically shunned and looked down upon by Educators simply because they believe it encourages the idea of speaking a mix of both which is simply untrue. Because of how Black English is portrayed by the very people that teach children, it puts into an African American child’s mind that it is wrong to speak any other way other than White English. This causes problems when growing up as they’ll be exposed to speaking in both ways as socially, it’s acceptable to speak in Black English depending on the environment they are in, however, from an educational and business standpoint, Black English is unacceptable.

              Black and White English are two different forms of English. They are their own respective forms of English and they both represent different types of cultures. However, they are similar in the way that they are used to express peoples views whether it be negatively or positively. Black English has its own respective history behind it similarly with White English. The two are two sides of a coin however, just like a coin, its not completely equal. Today, It was explained that Black and White English impact the world in different ways and how Code-Switching relates to the two.

SOURCES:

“Black English.” Oceanic Linguistics Special Publications, no. 14, University of Hawai’i Press, 1975, pp. 481–529, http://www.jstor.org/stable/20006642.

Potter, Simeon. “English Language.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., https://www.britannica.com/topic/English-language.

Harris, Ida. “Opinion: Code-Switching Is Not Trying to Fit in to White Culture, It’s Surviving It.” YES! Magazine, 17 Dec. 2019, https://www.yesmagazine.org/opinion/2019/12/17/culture-code-switching. 

BETNetworks. “’Black English’: How Aave Developed from Slave Resistance & African Dialects | the Breakdown.” YouTube, YouTube, 5 Mar. 2021, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7FIky7wplI. 

Morris, Natalie. “People of Colour Have to ‘Code-Switch’ to Fit in with White Norms.” Metro, Metro.co.uk, 3 Mar. 2020, https://metro.co.uk/2020/03/03/what-is-code-switching-12221478/. 

Golub, Lester S. “Reading, Writing, and Black English.” The Elementary School Journal, vol. 72, no. 4, University of Chicago Press, 1972, pp. 195–202, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1000478.

This entry is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International license.