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Post by Deleted on Jun 22, 2015 15:49:10 GMT
These terms make me cringe. I've never used them and I despise even typing them. Why isn't trashy just trashy - what does white have to do with it.
Rednecks... is that to indicate someone is racist, or uneducated, ignorant I guess? Then why not use those adjectives? Rednecks were originally hard workers, laboring in the outdoors. Now the term has expanded to include derogatory, offensive meanings.
Anyway, I find it odd to use these terms to describe someone you feel is racist or ignorant. Makes you sound racist or ignorant IMO.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 22, 2015 15:56:10 GMT
These terms make me cringe. I've never used them and I despise even typing them. Why isn't trashy just trashy - what does white have to do with it. Rednecks... is that to indicate someone is racist, or uneducated, ignorant I guess? Then why not use those adjectives? Rednecks were originally hard workers, laboring in the outdoors. Now the term has expanded to include derogatory, offensive meanings. Anyway, I find it odd to use these terms to describe someone you feel is racist or ignorant. Makes you sound racist or ignorant IMO. Redneck simply means a glorious lack of sophistication. see Jeff Foxworthy. It has many facets...mostly innocent and funny. I use the term redneck because I grew up in Mississippi and I am well-acquainted with redneck. I know it when I see it. And I try to avoid it. White trash is a whole other thang. I don't use that term. I wish I didn't know what it is.
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Post by anxiousmom on Jun 22, 2015 16:03:06 GMT
Ah...the redneck thing.
I grew up in the south. Y'all know that, I've said it before. I also grew up with multiple generations of southerners. I have said that before too. I also laughingly call myself an educated redneck.
Not because I am ignorant, racist or uneducated. It is because I live in and grew up in a world of really hard workers. The kind of people who work with their hands, hunt, fish, live in the country-real salt of the earth people who would give you the shirt off their backs if they thought you needed it. They have fun, but that fun isn't always the same fun that someone from a big city might appreciate-parties that involve the much aligned solo cups, beer and sometimes the goofiest stuff (there is a reason why the joke 'hey y'all, watch this' is so funny.) Those are the people that I consider rednecks-country, not ignorant.
When some of us use the term redneck, it isn't derogatory. In fact, I wouldn't ever use it that way as I wouldn't consider it an insult. I noticed on the confederate flag thread it was thrown around a lot and that makes me a bit sad.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 22, 2015 16:08:20 GMT
I think they are both extremely offensive and people who use them are ignorant or just mean and hateful. Pot, meet kettle.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 22, 2015 16:10:04 GMT
Most of the definitions I read don't seem innocent or funny.
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Post by padresfan619 on Jun 22, 2015 16:13:17 GMT
Jeff Foxworthy made a career out of the word redneck. The intent behind the word is what matters, it isn't always used in a hateful way. I feel the opposite way about white trash, though, that phrase is pretty much always used in a hateful charged way.
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Post by anonrefugee on Jun 22, 2015 16:13:46 GMT
^^^^ what they said! Redneck isnt synonymous with racist. And it's not limited to the South. It is an insult if that's Your intent. White Trash doesn't equal redneck, and it IS an insult. At least I've used it that way. It's not limited by geography or income. Trailer Trash, is an insult that should be removed the same way as the N word! Very judgemental and unfair to those living there. Also rather an ignorant phrase if you think it means "poor". Look at the prices of those homes in parts of California! We should all be so lucky ETA I'm a slow typist. My up arrows are in agreement with anxiousmom and @sdeven
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Post by moveablefeast on Jun 22, 2015 16:34:17 GMT
We absolutely do not use the terms white trash or trailer trash in our house. I don't believe it's okay to refer to people as trash.
I don't actually find the term redneck offensive. Or the term hillbilly. I don't like when it's used to demean a person, but I grew up with rednecks and hillbillies and like all sorts of people there are individuals who are intelligent, likeable, and pleasant to be around and individuals who aren't. I think of a redneck as a person who lives in the South, has an accent, drives a pickup, likes country music, is a little rough around the edges in some ways. I think of a hillbilly as a person who lives rurally and probably works hard to make a living. I don't know that I picture either as particularly genteel but I don't really care about genteel anyway. I do think of both as types of folks who don't really subscribe to a partucular aesthetic but as folks who prefer to live how they want - I think independence and personal freedom expressed in a lifestyle is a really key component of both kinds of people.
My DH would call himself a hillbilly even though we live in a large city and are educated and work in professional roles. To him hillbilly is a person who loves living in the country and embraces a simple way of life.
I think some rednecks and some hillbillies are uneducated ignorant assholes but you would be astonished at how many rich ignorant assholes and how many overeducated bigoted gasbags I've known too.
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azredhead
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Post by azredhead on Jun 22, 2015 16:42:10 GMT
Yea Redneck term varies. Not racist or offensive by any means. It has differnt levels. My cousins consider themselves rednecks and love Jeff Foxworthy. It depends on where you live I think. So a regional thing. It's more a simple way of life. White trash or trailer trash might be different and more offensive depending on the intent.
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Post by darkangel090260 on Jun 22, 2015 16:45:32 GMT
if you meet about 95% of my family you would understand it. Heck most of them i refuse to be seen in public with.
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Post by eebud on Jun 22, 2015 16:47:42 GMT
I know many people who call themselves rednecks. They are not racist nor are they uneducated. Many of them own their own businesses.
I have never seen white trash used in a way that was not negative.
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Post by Woobster on Jun 22, 2015 16:53:54 GMT
The term redneck doesn't really ruffle my feathers. It's not a term I use, but I come from a small town and know a number of people who freely identify themselves as a redneck. To me, it kidna ranks right up there with hillbilly, which I admit to partially being... White trash is a whole different thing. I find it very offensive.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 22, 2015 16:56:06 GMT
I personally don't use those terms.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 22, 2015 16:56:57 GMT
I grew up in West Virginia. There redneck meant a coal miner. It hails back to the coal strikes of the 1920's as miners tried to organize and stand together. They wore red bandanas around their necks to identify themselves. It has since evolved to mean anyone who is "country" or similar to Jeff Foxworthy's definition. I would use it to describe someone like I would use the word yuppie or goth. It's not meant as an insult, but a description of mannerisms, style, and way of life.
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scorpeao
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Post by scorpeao on Jun 22, 2015 17:09:43 GMT
if you meet about 95% of my family you would understand it. Heck most of them i refuse to be seen in public with. Mine too. My paternal side of my family IS white trash. Offensive or not...that's what they are. I could give you a list of reasons why, but I'd just embarrass myself in the process as I DO share my genes with those people.
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conchita
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Post by conchita on Jun 22, 2015 17:30:11 GMT
I personally don't use those terms. Yup, I steer clear of those terms as well.
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Post by lucyg on Jun 22, 2015 17:35:24 GMT
Years ago, there was a multi-page thread about the term white trash on the old 2peas. I have always felt it's a nasty, racist term, and I was surprised to see how many people disagreed with me in that thread. I'm glad to see we're evolving and almost everyone agrees with me now. I don't have any feelings in particular about redneck, but if it offends people, I'm willing to not use it.
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Post by anonrefugee on Jun 22, 2015 17:46:24 GMT
Should we throw "cracker" into the mix? I always thought of it as racist until I started visiting Florida so often. Cracker Houses at museums, etc. I guess it can be used more like hillbilly?
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Post by Deleted on Jun 22, 2015 18:09:17 GMT
Not because I am ignorant, racist or uneducated. It is because I live in and grew up in a world of really hard workers. The kind of people who work with their hands, hunt, fish, live in the country-real salt of the earth people who would give you the shirt off their backs if they thought you needed it. They have fun, but that fun isn't always the same fun that someone from a big city might appreciate-parties that involve the much aligned solo cups, beer and sometimes the goofiest stuff (there is a reason why the joke 'hey y'all, watch this' is so funny.) Those are the people that I consider rednecks-country, not ignorant. When some of us use the term redneck, it isn't derogatory. In fact, I wouldn't ever use it that way as I wouldn't consider it an insult. I noticed on the confederate flag thread it was thrown around a lot and that makes me a bit sad. I think of redneck in the same terms, my dad was that definition! He wired his truck with a light switch. Yep, that's how it turned on; its nick name was The Grapes of Wrath. He had duct tape roses with grabber screws as the boutonniere flowers at his funeral. White trash would be some of my cousins. Except take out the word white, some are and some are not.
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Post by freecharlie on Jun 22, 2015 18:27:07 GMT
Both terms are used freely in my area.
Redneck can be an insult, but usually we use it in connection with culture. I'm a redneck because I don't understand paying out the nose for French Cuisine when it isn't that tasty and the portion I get leaves me hungry enough to have to stop at a fast food restaurant on the way home. Or that I would rather be fishing than at the ballet. Duct tape fixes anything. That type of thing.
White trash is always an insult and it brings forth a specific visual. Most of my dad's side of the family (except my grandparents) is what I would, and have, called white trash. They are 2nd and 3rd generation welfare families, most dropped out of high school, have menial (if any) job, leech off of my grandmother who lives on a pension, have questionable hygiene. I could call them just trash, but then people visualize garbage. I say white trash and you probably thought of everything I just wrote. I don't find the white part to be racist, I find it to be a descriptor.
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Post by librarylady on Jun 22, 2015 18:35:09 GMT
IMO, "white trash" is a very racist term. The implication is that all trashy people are black, and one has to put "white" in the label so that you will know their race. I have never heard it used except for a derogatory term. I also think it is not used in polite society....sorta like the N word.
Redneck: that term can be OK (think Jeff Foxworthy) or a slur...depending upon the context.
When Foxworthy's first book came out, I gave a copy to both my brothers. Both were very, very insulted --until I explained the contents of the book and explained that I was NOT calling them a name. --I had heard Foxworthy's comedy bit and they had not.
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Post by CarolinaGirl71 on Jun 22, 2015 18:36:59 GMT
We absolutely do not use the terms white trash or trailer trash in our house. I don't believe it's okay to refer to people as trash. I don't actually find the term redneck offensive. Or the term hillbilly. I don't like when it's used to demean a person, but I grew up with rednecks and hillbillies and like all sorts of people there are individuals who are intelligent, likeable, and pleasant to be around and individuals who aren't. I think of a redneck as a person who lives in the South, has an accent, drives a pickup, likes country music, is a little rough around the edges in some ways. I think of a hillbilly as a person who lives rurally and probably works hard to make a living. I don't know that I picture either as particularly genteel but I don't really care about genteel anyway. I do think of both as types of folks who don't really subscribe to a partucular aesthetic but as folks who prefer to live how they want - I think independence and personal freedom expressed in a lifestyle is a really key component of both kinds of people. I agree with moveable feast's definition of redneck, and have known many hardworking, wonderful people who fit this definition. I think when they use the term "redneck" it's a term of endearment, kind of a way of being able to laugh at yourself. I think when people (generally outside the south) who use the term "redneck" it's meant in a derogatory manner that I don't particularly agree with. White trash, on the other hand, is always offensive. I also agree with azredhead.
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Anita
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Post by Anita on Jun 22, 2015 18:43:29 GMT
if you meet about 95% of my family you would understand it. Heck most of them i refuse to be seen in public with. Mine too. My paternal side of my family IS white trash. Offensive or not...that's what they are. I could give you a list of reasons why, but I'd just embarrass myself in the process as I DO share my genes with those people. Are we related? Seriously, come visit my family for a weekend. You'll understand both terms, and it won't take you long to categorize people into each. I find it funny that white trash is offensive since some of my family members refer to themselves that way. At least they are honest, I suppose. Maybe its level of offensiveness is regional.
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Post by anonrefugee on Jun 22, 2015 18:43:38 GMT
IMO, "white trash" is a very racist term. The implication is that all trashy people are black, and one has to put "white" in the label so that you will know their race. I have never heard it used except for a derogatory term. I also think it is not used in polite society....sorta like the N word. Redneck: that term can be OK (think Jeff Foxworthy) or a slur...depending upon the context. When Foxworthy's first book came out, I gave a copy to both my brothers. Both were very, very insulted --until I explained the contents of the book and explained that I was NOT calling them a name. --I had heard Foxworthy's comedy bit and they had not. Well,,, I guess white trash is racist at least in my use because I only apply it to white people. But I'm not sure how anyone could expand that into believing it means all other race or ethnic groups are trash? That fails a logic test IMHO.
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Post by freecharlie on Jun 22, 2015 18:46:52 GMT
I personally disagree with this. I don't think all trashy people are black. I think many trashy people are uneducated and uncultured white people.
Here's what I don't get, I know this is going to get me into trouble on this board but whatever, we, as a society are not supposed to be color blind because races exist and pretending they don't isn't the way to make the world better. We need to try to understand and be sensitive around race. But at the same time, we aren't supposed to use race as a descriptor because then we are being racist. So I should pretend that race doesn't exist when we are looking at the bad parts of people, but we need to be sensitive about it when dealing with others.
We are only asked to turn a blind eye to race when it comes the the dredges of society. In our government we have the Black Caucus, the Women's Caucus, the Hispanic Caucus, because those groups recognize that there are issues that impact or are important to the groups they represent. There are certain issues that pertain to one group over the other and pretending that there aren't seems wasteful to me.
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River
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Post by River on Jun 22, 2015 19:02:20 GMT
anxiousmom is spot on to how we refer to rednecks. We live in the country, love our little farms and tractors! We generally do have red necks as we spend as much time in the sun as possible. Somehow we forget to put sunscreen on the back of our necks. I consider us more country than anything, but we often hear the term redneck instead. Our version does not fit with Jeff Foxworthy's jokes. We decided we wanted "better" than our county schools provide and put our boys in the "city" schools. You know, where all the doctors and lawyers kids go. :halfkidding: My oldest son (senior this year) has skirted by without the redneck label. He's smart and a gamer. My middle son, nope...he's as redneck as my grandfather and my dad. Bring on the cowboy boots, mud, 4-wheelers, hunting anything that can (and will) be eat, fish and frog gig all summer. He drives the tractor, works hard in the garden and any construction project he can get his hands on. He's 14 btw. With all that said, he's an incredible athlete. Mainly baseball and football. He's really made a name for himself at school with his natural talent. His redneck side rides right along with his jock side. So his nickname at school is "redneck jock". Apparently he's the only one of his kind at the "city" school. It's all said in fun and jest, not at all demeaning. Now White Trash is never anything but demeaning! The term is sadly still used often here for the poorest of poor who sit on their butts, drinks and smokes all day while asking for a hand out. No desire to do better. This is not my view of White Trash, but is how I always hear it being referred to in the deep south. And yes, it's only reserved for the stereotypical white version only. This version fits with Jeff Foxworthy's jokes.
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Post by anonrefugee on Jun 22, 2015 19:10:23 GMT
There was toilet planter thread last week. I would call that white trash- but as I posted I know someone who used one. And that woman is definitely not, she has an odd sense of humor.
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oldcrow
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Post by oldcrow on Jun 22, 2015 19:10:44 GMT
Both terms are used freely in my area. Redneck can be an insult, but usually we use it in connection with culture. I'm a redneck because I don't understand paying out the nose for French Cuisine when it isn't that tasty and the portion I get leaves me hungry enough to have to stop at a fast food restaurant on the way home. Or that I would rather be fishing than at the ballet. Duct tape fixes anything. That type of thing. White trash is always an insult and it brings forth a specific visual. Most of my dad's side of the family (except my grandparents) is what I would, and have, called white trash. They are 2nd and 3rd generation welfare families, most dropped out of high school, have menial (if any) job, leech off of my grandmother who lives on a pension, have questionable hygiene. I could call them just trash, but then people visualize garbage. I say white trash and you probably thought of everything I just wrote. I don't find the white part to be racist, I find it to be a descriptor. No, duct tape does not fix stupid.
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paget
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Post by paget on Jun 22, 2015 19:14:15 GMT
I disagree about redneck- it doesn't mean racist or ignorant to me. White trash is pretty rude no matter how you slice it.
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Post by Zee on Jun 22, 2015 19:17:11 GMT
I don't use the term "white trash", I'd just say "trashy". Redneck can be embraced, it's not the same. Generally I think of a redneck as a rural gun enthusiast who ain't too big on larnin', but it can also just be good old country folk.
I don't think anyone needs to be offended by redneck, necessarily. Depends on the intent of the user.
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