Opinion: Know Your Audience, Never Assume That A White Person Is Familiar With Black Governance Language

Written by Rann Miller

Mar 10, 2023

When I was in grad school, made the mistake of calling a white professor I was reaching out to for advisement “Doc.” He was less than happy.

He said that my “tone” was unprofessional and not the way a student should refer to a professor… and I was wrong… wrong for assuming this white man was familiar with Black governance speak, where referencing one as “Doc” was a compliment—particularly for those without a doctoral degree of some sort.

… Because Black folks understand, historically speaking, that PWIs traditionally don’t reverence the intelligence of Black folk the way Black folk do. But this professor only heard Bugs Bunny calling him Elmer Fudd.

The takeaway was to never assume that a white person or any non-Black person was familiar with the use and meaning of Black governance language and phrases, as well as the vernacular, in conversation. Nothing against that professor, but his ignorance wasn’t my fault. He certainly took himself too seriously. Nevertheless, my assuming that he had an adequate level of cultural fluency for me to address him as a I did was my fault.

I should have known my audience.

This month, Meghan Mangrum, a white news reporter from the Dallas Morning News, was fired for calling the Black mayor of Dallas, Eric Johnson, “Bruh” in a tweet. Mangrum, 31, who had covered education for the paper since August, tweeted on Feb. 11 in response to a tweet by Johnson saying local media had “no interest” in reporting good news.

She wrote: “Bruh, national news is always going to chase the trend. Cultivate relationships with quality local news partnerships.” The mayor responded with: “Bruh? Have we met?”

The Washington Post published a news story asking ifs her firing was fair. Whether it was or not, Mangrum was taken to task by the mayor’s office and questioned by her editors. She was fired for the use of the tweet, which happened to coincide with her organizing a picketing of her employer the same day she was fired. So, whether it was fair or not probably deserves some more insight and investigation.

I think the firing wouldn’t have happened were there no strike. The article alluded to this.

What the article didn’t focus on was the elephant in the room: the use of a Black governance word/phrase by a white woman toward a Black man whom she was not familiar or friends with, in a tone to confront (and correct) him over something he tweeted. You can certainly confront a public official. But confronting a Black public official with Black language or phrasing when white isn’t wise.

Some may wonder if a Black woman or Black man had used the phrase, would the outcome be the same? Generally speaking, a Black reporter wouldn’t because social structure spaces deem our colloquialisms unprofessional. So, to maintain our appearance of professionalism and to keep the focus on our work (and also to show our brothers and sisters respect within an anti-Black society), we keep our governance conversations for governance spaces… because we know our audience.

So what lessons can we learn from my case and the case of Ms. Mangrum?

First, all colloquialisms among Black folk ain’t meant for every space. Second, Black colloquial words and phrasing ain’t necessarily to be used with non-Black people… particularly white people who have the privilege to use it against us and/or appropriate it from us—particularly to make money. And lastly, non-Black people—white people particularly—must be careful to never assume themselves so familiar to use Black governance language with Black people in conversation.

In the words of the basketball aficionado Kendrick Perkins … carry on.