Why White People Grammar Policing Black People is Racist
Exploring the myth of white intellectual superiority
Racism is pervasive. It is in the systems, structures, rules, languages, expectations, and guidelines that make up our classes, school, and society.(Gullo, 2017)
In America, white people have a problematic history of grammar policing. This is because they force-fed the English language into Black and Indigenous people through violent, oppressive means. Black Americans using English is a testament to white colonists’ cruelty. They forced them to abandon their original African dialects. White people's grammar policing Black people is fundamentally racist, mainly because this dynamic assumes white intellectual superiority. This practice is more than tone-deaf; it’s dehumanizing.
It all started with America’s original sin — slavery. White people wanted to maintain control. And they knew good and well that if Black people could freely organize and communicate, they would not stay enslaved for long. White colonists never wanted to read about what life was like for Black people, which included the horrors of slavery and racism.
During the Antebellum South, anti-literacy laws made it illegal for Black people to read or write. These laws helped codify stereotypes about Black people for…
