March 2, 2013
"

Not saying Quvenzhané’s name is an attempt, consciously or unconsciously, to step around and contain her blackness. Yes, sometimes black people have names that are difficult to pronounce. There aren’t many people of European descent named Shaniqua or Jamal. Names are as big a cultural marker as brown skin and kinky hair, and there’s long been backlash against both of those things (see: perms, skin bleaching creams, etc.). The insistence on not using Quvenzhané’s name is an extension of that “why aren’t you white?” backlash.

It is easier to be colorblind, to simply turn a blind eye to the differences that have torn this nation apart for centuries than it is to wade through those choppy waters. And Quvenzhané’s very existence is enough to make the societal majority uncomfortable. She is talented, successful, beautiful, happy, loved, and adored–all things that many people don’t figure that little black girls with “black” names could, or should, be. Their answer? Let’s make her more palatable. If she insists on not fitting the mold of the ghetto hoodrat associated with women with “urban” names, let’s take her own urban name away from her.

Refusing to learn how to pronounce Quvenzhané’s name says, pointedly, you are not worth the effort. The problem is not that she has an unpronounceable name, because she doesn’t. The problem is that white Hollywood, from Ryan Seacrest and his homies to the AP reporter who decided to call her “Annie” rather than her real name, doesn’t deem her as important as, say, Renee Zellwegger, or Zach Galifinakis, or Arnold Schwarzenegger, all of whom have names that are difficult to pronounce–but they manage. The message sent is this: you, young, black, female child, are not worth the time and energy it will take me to learn to spell and pronounce your name. You will be who and what I want you to be; you be be who and what makes me more comfortable. I will allow you to exist and acknowledge that existence, but only on my terms.

"

—

Brokey McPoverty, “What’s In A Name? Kind Of A Lot,” PostBourgie 2/26/13 (via racialicious)

Even if all this weren’t true, it would stil be a mark of complete disrespect to refuse to learn how to pronounce someone’s name.

TL;DR: This is bad, and all of the people involved in doing it should feel bad.

(via nightsinwonderland)

9:07am  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZnopayfKb_zh
(Notes: 6,533)
  
Filed under: this is why i am SO offended by the reporter wanting to call her 'annie' also because there is an inherent importance in separating out the artist from the art the actor from the character you can hate and judge a character but you need to be much more careful hating and judging a person and trying to make her just a character takes away that protection it's despicable the whole thing is yeah sure she has a 'ghetto' name only it's your fault that such a thing exists and you don't get to just pretend that you haven't created a divide in cultures and you certainly don't get to try to pull a fast one on a young child to do so and i'm so fucking proud of her for not letting them get away with that bullshit ageist racist and sexist bullshit thrown at her goddamn she is stronger than i would be now all the awards to Quevenzhane all the awards tags preserved for important commentary 
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