The Black Language Podcast Anansa Benbow
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- Education
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Linguistics holds up a magnifying glass to society to allow us to see the beauty, rawness, and complicatedness in what it means to be human by studying everything involved in what we communicate and how we communicate it. This is a podcast dedicated to talking about Black people and our language and the beauty, rawness, and complicatedness of our various realities. From discussing our favorite slang terms, to complex grammar, to the implications of linguistic discrimination, this podcast reaffirms, uplifts, and gives respect to Black people of the past, present, and future.
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Deadass is Forever
Deadass is a crowd favorite! In this episode I talk about the origins and transformations of "deadass".
Twitter: @blacklangpod
Instagram: @blacklangpod
Email: theblacklanguagepodcast@gmail.com -
Grammar Skool
I’m taking y’all to school with this episode - not literally, but rather, for a discussion about how Black language and our kids are treated in schools. This episode is based loosely on a Tedx Talk that I gave in 2019, but I promise this episode is way better. Though this episode touches on just a glimpse of what Black kids go through in school with regard to our language, I highlight some historical moments involving Black language in schools and discuss approaches generally taken when working with our kids in schools. The end of this episode is the best part because I read off the demands from Black Linguistic Justice Week, an initiative led by a team of Black linguists who are also working on THE Black Linguistic Justice Syllabus.
Below, I have included links related to this episode:
Louisville Black Lives Matter Facebook Page
Troy for Black Lives Facebook Page
Photo of Classroom Language Regulations
Black Linguistic Justice Website
Book: Linguistic Justice: Black Language, Literacy, Identity, and Pedagogy by April Baker-Bell
Anansa Benbow Tedx Talk at Columbia University
Twitter: @blacklangpod
Instagram: @blacklangpod
Email: theblacklanguagepodcast@gmail.com -
Often Imitated, but Never Duplicated
On the episode of The Black Language Podcast, the host Anansa dives into language appropriation through the comparison of Rachel Jeantel and Bhad Bhabie and speaks about the false claim that African American Language is stan/twitter/internet language.
Rachel Jeantel was the 19 year old Black, Haitian star witness in the trial of George Zimmerman in 2013. She was under much scrutiny for her use of African American Language. Danielle Bregoli, also known as Bhad Bhabie, went viral after her catch phrase "cash me ousside, how bout dat" went viral during her appearance on Dr. Phil as a 13 year old white girl who exhibited violent behavior towards her mother, Dr. Phil, and the audience. Bhad Bhabie's use of African American Language landed her a record deal with Atlantic records and placements on the Billboard Hot 100. This is a very different outcome from Rachel Jeantel's. Again, we are shown that mainstream American culture loves Black culture, but not Black people.
Language appropriation of Black people is not simply language borrowing, unfortunately, it comes with the erasure of Black people. Again, the push to promote stan/twitter/internet language, instead of recognizing that the language used on social media comes from Black people is an example of that erasure.
Twitter: @blacklangpod
Instagram: @blacklangpod
Email: theblacklanguagepodcast@gmail.com
Language and Linguistics on Trial: Hearing Rachel Jeantel (and other vernacular speakers) in the Courtroom and Beyond by John Rickford and Sharese King
CNN Video: Does Rachel Jeantel's body language speak volumes?
Dr. Phil Segment featuring Danielle Bregoli
Linguistic Profiling -
Aight So Boom
How do you know if someone is about to tell a fire story? Probably because they began with "aight so boom”.
On this episode of The Black Language Podcast, the host Anansa, talks about the usage of "aight so boom" in story telling among Black people. Not only did Soulja Boy give us a reason to be on YouTube, but he also gave us great data to examine how we use "aight so boom" while telling stories.
Watch the full Soulja Boy interview on the Breakfast Club here
Instagram: @blacklangpod
Twitter: @blacklangpod
Email: theblacklanguagepodcast@gmail.com -
Defund the Grammar Police, The Revolution Will be Multilingual
In this episode of The Black Language Podcast, your host, Anansa provides the vision for this podcast.
Twitter: @blacklangpod
Instagram: @blacklangpod
Email: theblacklanguagepodcast@gmail.com -
Trailer
Welcome to The Black Language Podcast where we talk about our people and our language and where talkin' Black is anything said by a Black person. From discussing our favorite slang terms, to grammar structures, to linguistic discrimination, this podcast reaffirms, uplifts, and gives respect to Black people of the past, present, and future.
Customer Reviews
Brilliant and informative!
I originally started to listen to this to get an introduction to the structure of Black vernacular, and, while I haven’t heard much technical analysis, I’m getting so much more: context, social and political analysis, and insight.
Thank you Ms. Benbow!
This podcast is Deadass necessary
I really digs this! I just stumbled upon this podcast spiraling down an instagram rabbit hole and I’m so glad to know this exist!
Aight, so, boom... I love this podcast
I absolutely enjoy this podcast, I love how it makes me think about things that I somehow subconsciously understand but have never thought about it. I love preservation of culture and this is a facet that I have always been curious about so I really enjoy learning and experiencing that