Is "otay" a racial slur?

[Lindercles 0]

I was having a friendly conversation with a coworker of mine the other day and I happened to say "otay" at one point. Apparently she thought that was inappropriate and got a bit upset. Thankfully we're pretty friendly and she's not going to make a complaint about it or anything (which is good, because she works in HR).

The thing is, I never even thought of it that way, it was just something to say. Looking back I guess I can see how it's related to Buckwheat, but I'm still not sure I see how it's a racial slur, and it certainly wasn't intended as such.

[skydemon2 0]

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Otay


Never heard it being racial

Beauty is only skin deep, but ugly goes clean to the bone!

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[SpeedRacer 1]

Most people nowadays don't know this, but in the early 20th century "ofay" was a derogatory term for a white person.

Speed Racer
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[martinmcsh 0]

never mind we all say stupid shit at times

[Lindercles 0]

Yeah, I googled it and looked on urban dictionary as well just to be sure. But apparently at least one person thinks it is.

[Lindercles 0]

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never mind we all say stupid shit at times

Very true, and I wouldn't give a crap if it hadn't been at work. I'd hate to get in trouble for something I didn't know I was doing.

[waltappel 1]

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Yeah, I googled it and looked on urban dictionary as well just to be sure. But apparently at least one person thinks it is.

Her being a woman and you being a white male, you'd better watch it around her--especially if she is a minority.

Walt

[simplyputsi 0]

I think it's only a slur if you are in

you guessed it


an An-2.


and chuck norris is there.

Skymama's #2 stalker -

[2fat2fly 0]

You may have run in to someone that was just in the mood to be offended-sometimes it happens but that seems like quite a stretch to be upset about "otay"

I am not the man. But the man knows my name...and he's worried

[jtval 0]

why would it be racial?

IMO No.

I wouldn't be worried about it either. What is she going to do, go to the powers that be and say "He keeps conjuring images of Eddie Murphy's buckwheat?"
Was it racist when he did it? No. so why would it be now?

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[Buried 0]

racial = no
derogatory = maybe so.

Where is my fizzy-lifting drink?

[ACMESkydiver 0]

I think a better racial slur is "Shltupid crlackerrr..."

I have heard that one when someone was reeeeeaally drunk.

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[wildcard451 0]

Well, hell no it isn't.

If you are going to get in trouble though, smack the bitch and tell her to get back in the kitchen. You may as well actually be in trouble for something worht being in trouble over.

[Lindsey 0]

Isn't it what the little black kid on Little Rascals (was that the show?) used to say..."Otay Buckwheat!"

linz

--
A conservative is just a liberal who's been mugged. A liberal is just a conservative who's been to jail

[quade 4]

Context.

If completely neutral person asked you a question and you simply said, "otay" I can not believe that a rational person could take offense or believe it was a racial slur.

If an African-American person, let's say a sub-ordinate, asked you to have a special day off so he could celebrate some holiday from his, but not nessasarily your, culture and you begrudgingly gave him the holiday by doing your best "Buckwheat" impression and said "Oooooooo Tay!", then I'd have to say you did it intentionally and were a true asshole.

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[BillyVance 34]

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Isn't it what the little black kid on Little Rascals (was that the show?) used to say..."Otay Buckwheat!"

linz

[George Jefferson voice] Yes it is, you damn honky! [/George Jefferson voice]

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban

[pullhigh 0]

I thought Buckwheat was the black little rascal? Wasn't it Spanky, a white kid who said it TO Buckwheat?

[jtval 0]

there's so many reasons why that is funny

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[jtval 0]

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I thought Buckwheat was the black little rascal? Wasn't it Spanky, a white kid who said it TO Buckwheat?

No, Buckwheat would say it.

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[tigra 0]

You learn something new every day, huh? You didn't mean anything offensive by it, but someone DID take offense, and that doesn't mean she's a humorless uptight bitch anymore than it means you are a racist.

Most people associate "Otay" with Buckwheat- the original AND the SNL version. You can't say it isn't "racial", because the original Buckwheat character was essentially a stereotype of a lovable but uneducated black kid from the country, right? Eddie Murphy gave him a more "urban" edge, I guess................

Bottom line- she felt it was inappropriate and respected you enough to tell you how she felt about it. Why not give her the same respect right back, and try to see it from her point of view?

[waltappel 1]

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You learn something new every day, huh? You didn't mean anything offensive by it, but someone DID take offense, and that doesn't mean she's a humorless uptight bitch anymore than it means you are a racist.

The reality is that from this standpoint we can't really tell, but I'd have to say odds are that she *is* a humorless uptight bitch who has appointed herself among the enforcers of political correctness, i.e., the "PC Police".

Do you really think that, if she heard a black person say "otay", she would lecture them about making blacks look bad?

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Most people associate "Otay" with Buckwheat- the original AND the SNL version. You can't say it isn't "racial", because the original Buckwheat character was essentially a stereotype of a lovable but uneducated black kid from the country, right? Eddie Murphy gave him a more "urban" edge, I guess................

I'm 49 and "Spanky and Our Gang" was pretty old when I was a kid. Mike (Lindercles) is nowhere near my age so I'm pretty sure he didn't grow up watching that. I've also seen Eddie Murphy's sketches and think he was poking fun at an old stereotype. I don't think it was racist at all--quite the opposite. By extension, I don't think Mike was being at all racist.

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Bottom line- she felt it was inappropriate and respected you enough was her duty as a self-appointed member of the PC police to tell you how she felt about it.

Fixed it for ya'!

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Why not give her the same respect right back, and try to see it from her point of view?

Because next time she'll start giving him shit when she sees him eating an Oreo or a cracker.

Walt

[billvon 3,071]

>Most people associate "Otay" with Buckwheat . . .

And to think I associate it with a drop zone.

[tigra 0]

Walt,

Unless you personally know the co-worker, you can't say that. Based on the way he posed the question, I made the assumption that the co-worker in question was NOT a humorless self-appointed member of the PC police.

You never know WHAT might offend someone or why. I say things without thinking all the time. I'm pretty sure I'm NOT a racist or a mean person but that doesn't mean I've never offended anyone unintentionally or otherwise. If a friend or co-worker let me know that they were offened by something I said, I'd probably feel bad about it and try to see it from his or her point of view. I'd also appreciate him or her taking the time to approach me and talk to me about it instead of calling me a bitch or racist behind my back.


Plus, for the record, I never said Buckwheat (or "Otay" OR Mike) was "racist". I simply said you can't say the BuckWheat character isn't "racial" because it clearly is. I used to say "Otay, Buckwheat" pretty often and I never once thought of it as racist or offensive, and I still don't. BUT, this thread made me think about it and try to see it from someone else's point of view.

[MagicGuy 0]

Definitely not a racist slur. I can't believe that anyone would think it is. I have a friend (white female) that says it all the time, not even thinking that it be a racial slur.

[ryoder 1,590]

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Most people nowadays don't know this, but in the early 20th century "ofay" was a derogatory term for a white person.

And in the late portion of the century as well:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dk9ECvjma0E

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