Can someone tell me how the original word Ghetto which referenced the Jewish community (The term was originally used in Venice to describe the area where Jews were compelled to live) migrated so to speak to the black community in America?
- Nathan Karnes Here is what The Man has to say: http://en.wikipedia.org/
wiki/ Ghetto#African_American_ghe ttos en.wikipedia.orgUrban areas in the U.S. can often be classified as "black" or "white", with the ...See More13 hours ago · · - Tom Ficklin Thanks for sharing yes I went to wiki first still do not understand how a historically specific situation gets transmuted so to speak
- Sheila McCreven My father-in-law's Jewish family grew up in the lower east side (1920s) and then the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood in NYC in the 1930s -- maybe these areas were known as a Jewish Ghetto first and then the idea that it was a ghetto just stuck to the neighborhood when new people moved in to it?13 hours ago via mobile ·
- Tom Ficklin Sounds plausible I am just really fascinated with how stigma is transferred and "stuck" on people...
- Sheila McCreven Yeah, it's not a very nice process at all! But it is interesting to read up on the history and about the groups it has happened to over the decades -- some people really forget how their ancestors we're treated, forget their history. There should be more understanding...
- Tom Ficklin i friend of mine from another ethnicity/ethnic identity, posted a photo and just referenced the photo as being jokingly in his words ghetto, it caught my attention , re how an innocent word joke choice could upset me in a real way and made me wonder how the horrors of the jewish ghetto confinement could have migrated into the 21st century joking vernacular12 hours ago · ·
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- Carla Weil My understanding is that the word came from the part of Venice where the Jews were confined in the 16th century. The word ghetto came from Italian for the word "slag" referring to slag from the foundries that were located in the same neighborhood. The word "ghetto" came to refer to any area where people are confined or segregated.12 hours ago · ·
- Tom, if I may, in the early 1900's during the immigration influx, the European Italians,Irish, etc, landed in the "slums" of New York... Each race/culture had their section of the City...as time went on they would move out of the city to th...See More
- Tom Ficklin Sal Caruso, Carla Weil, thanks so much for sharing, as mentioned, i just was unnerved when a friend of another nationality ( not north american) referenced a photo of himself as a ghetto photo and honestly meant it jokingly, for it some ways it could have referenced the photo as being a barrio photo which in my mind would have been more historically closer to his national origin, although he is not mexican12 hours ago · ·
- Janet Davenport Tom, your post is uncanny. I have been reflecting on this word and the way it has become negatively self appropriated by African-Americans and used to put ourselves and each other down, having
- Janet Davenport Less to do with "a place" and more to do with marginalized people.
- Paul Carty Jr. In my opinion, its moderately depressing. I never new what ghetto really meant. That's a broad spectrum word.
- Ericka Fields I have a problem with the word "ghetto" used to describe people, situations that may not reflect positively to others. I usually ask people who use the word as an adjective to explain the reason for choosing the word. Had to explain the definition of the word to a friend of another race who thought using the word to describe situations was humorous, needless to say they no longer use the word in my presence.
- Tom Ficklin @ericka, yes thanks for sharing, my friend innocently thought that the use of the word was humorous
- Masnoh Wilson I just think the word carries a negative connotation and therefore discourage its use...7 hours ago · ·
- Janet DavenportYou shop at Walmart? Oh that's so ghetto. Use duct tape to fix things? Oh that's so ghetto. Take your neighbor's UPS delivery off their steps? Oh that's so ghetto. Put fuschia highlights in your weave? Oh that's so ghetto. Burb loudly in public? Oh that's so ghetto. The ghetto used to be a section of town you were fighting to move up from. Now it's used to desvribe everything uncouth, tasteless, bad and black. It's a classist epithet with a racist subtext and misused everyday by people from comics and CEOs to children. Do I have strong opinions about this?
- Ericka Fields @ Janet, I totally agree!!! I have strong opinions about this too. It bothers me especially if when the person who is using the word has no idea of the definition of the word, would never drive to, thru the ghetto let alone move to the ghetto. Not to say I give those who may have insight on the true meaning of the word a pass on using the word in the wrong context.
- Doreen Blades Tom when I hear the term ghetto, I think in terms of poverty and not in terms of Jewish or African American. Thank you for educating me on how others view the word.3 hours ago · ·
- Kristen Dunn @Janet, the saddest use of this word I've seen yet was from a young teenage girl at a shelter who wanted to buy Hot Pockets and such from the store and when the other women enthusiastically talked to her about making pizza from scratch with flour and stuff, she said "that's so ghetto." In her mind and experience, having to make your own food instead of buying it prepared was "ghetto."2 hours ago · ·
- Joanne Sciulli As someone who works with NH teens who use the word constantly, I am in such appreciation for this discussion. Thank you.
- Tom Ficklin to everyone one thanks for sharing, this is very very helpful to me in that the person who used the phrase could easily have been retained to teach cultural sensitivity training, given their background and to see them use it in print was disarming , but it goes to show how deeply contaminated we be unconsciously with victimization constructs even if benign Nell Painter's book http://www.booktv.org/
Program/11380/ The+History+of+White+People .aspx and Melissa Harris Perry's book http://yalepress.yale.edu/ book.asp?isbn=9780300165418 are insightful to say the least in this regard www.booktv.orgNell Irvin Painter, American history professor emerita at Princeton University, ...See More
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