In this week's episode, we go from hip-hop to a public television show about the intra- and inter-class conflicts in a British manor house. We also talk about "flupgrades," what you might call it when a software update...
Who is Boo-Boo the Fool? A listener wonders if this African-American character has any relation the Puerto Rican fool, Juan Bobo. Martha draws a connection to the Spanish term bobo, meaning “fool,” and its Latin root balbus, meaning...
There is always a person greater or lesser than yourself. Grant shares this and other African-American proverbs. This is part of a complete episode.
Among some African-Americans, the term palmer-housing means, “walking with an unusual gait.” A screenwriter connects some dots in his own family’s history when he asks about the origin. This is part of a complete episode.
What’s seditty? Many African-Americans use this term, also spelled saddidy, to mean “stuck-up.” A caller’s heard it all his life, and is curious about the word. This is part of a complete episode.
handkerchief head n.— «New York Rep. Gregory Meeks, a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, told Harold Ickes, “You don’t understand what it’s like. We get called “house Negro” and “handkerchief head” by...