Another one of those uncomfortable "interracial" posts
Meh, I'll talk about anything. You guys know that, but this post involves two potentially embarrassing situations. First, I must preface this conversation by saying that from time to time (hourly) I google myself. That's right I said it. I'm obsessed with how the blogesphere sees me. And I don't care who knows it.
That admission leads us to another issue. While googling myself this morning (Why does it feel like I just wrote "While downloading pr0n this morning...") I came across this riff on something I said a few weeks back:
Black women who oppose interacial dating have different reasons than most. I think it's closer to the manner in which some Jewish women must hate the idea of a Shiksa. But even that doesn't quite get it. The opposition comes out of a specific, and yet broad, historical experience of never being held up as anyone's flower of virtuosity, but instead as un-feminine and oversexed.
Phoebe over at the aptly named, Whatwouldphoebedo offers this response:
I'd have to disagree with Coates and say that his comparison does "get it." Jewish women can look to a "specific, and yet broad historical experience" that's unpleasant from all angles. Jewish women have been stereotyped as whores (by 19th century European Christian men) and as prudes (by 20th century American Jewish men). Historically, oppression of Jews has led to rape of Jewish women, as has oppression of blacks led to the equivalent situation. And of course, as Coates implies, things look better for exogamy-friendly black and Jewish men than for their female counterparts.
You know I pulled back on that thing about Shiksas because I frankly was out of my league. But like a lot of things about Jewish cats (Zionism/black nationalism, Kwaanza/Hanukkah, Sell-out/Self-loathing Jew etc.) the notion sounded really, really familiar. I got quite a bit of e-mail response to on the subject, some of it implying that "shiksa" wasn't the kindest of words:
The word shiksa is derived from the Hebrew term sheketz, which means "abomination," "impure," or "object of loathing", depending on the translator.[1]
Despite its etymology, the term shiksa is widely used and accepted in the United States, where it is often used in a humorous way.
The word "siksa" (pronounced "shiksa") in Polish Gentile culture is a pejorative (but often teasing or affectionate) word for an immature young girl or teenager. It literally means "pisspants" and is roughly equivalent to the Engish terms "snot-nosed brat", "young squirt" or "young goat" ("kid").
Although it has Hebrew origins, it was conflated with the Polish word "sikać" ("to urinate") and is therefore a false cognate that is actually equivalent to the Yiddish word "pisher".
Frankly folks, I'm out of my league here. I want to hear more. Is there any resonance between how black women and Jewish women see themselves? Does any of that extend to inter-ethnic dating? Which reminds. We have a spokesperson for the Whites and for the blacks. We really need one for the Jews. I think Joe Leiberman works.