I Was Called A Cracker

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I went to pick up a wall-mounted sink on Sunday afternoon at the Home Depot on Victory Drive in Savannah. I was OC'ing my 1911 in a Blackhawk Serpa holster. I parked my truck, and as I walked toward the front door, I encountered an old black man coming my direction with a cart full of bags.

He looked at me, then down at my hip, then up at my face with a scowl. I said nothing. Then, as he passed by me, he says, "cracka!"

I turned and looked over my shoulder as he said it, then just laughed in disbelief. I then shopped, uneventfully, for my sink.

I've often thought I'd be confronted for OC'ing, though it never occured to me that it would happen like that. Meh, at least he didn't want to argue or call 911 about a MWAG.

:lol:

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I remember the first timeI was called a cracker. It was back in 1992 when I was still in high school, this black boy called me that andI had never heard that expression before, soI was totally clueless, andI actually started laughing. I guess since it did not have the desired effectI think he was going for, him and his "bro's" walked away, looking at me like I was crazy. I tried to ask some other students what it meant , but none seemed to know the origin or meaning behind it, even the black students I asked could not give me a solid answer, I still don't get it:quirky. I still think it's funny.

I do think it is supposed to be some type of racial slur though. But as we all know, sticks and stones......ect.

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If that is the worst thing ever said to you consider yourself lucky.

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I have yet to meet a whiteperson that's ever been offended by a racial slur. I guess were alljust proud of who we are.

Kinda goes along with I have never met another redneck that got offended for being called so(usually proud of it), yet if I call a city slicker "city boy" they tend to be offended. lol, it's all just funny. So keep on laughing when you hear it:lol:

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"Cracker" is a term heard mostly in the south. I was told once by an old Florida cattleman that it referred to those that made their living in agriculture, usually cattle ranching. Even today their are still places in Florida and Georgia where cattle are turn loose in wooded areas that make it hard to round them up..... unless you have some good dogs for the job. I'm not talking about those lovable bordercollies either. These dogs go for the head, Calahula and pitX. The ranglers would follow the dogs on horse back until they had a herd of cows bunched up. The riders carried bull whips, which they used to move the cattle or turn them, and sometimes to pop a dog that failed to "get behind" on command (fall back from the cows and take their place at the heels of the riders horse) . These riders and cow hands were pretty good with a bull whip, being able to "Crack" their whips with ease. Thus the term "Cracker".

A "cracker" house was usually of one story, near square construction, with a pyramid style roof. Many cracker houses have a covered porch all the way around. Cracker houses always set up off the ground on stone or block pillar foundations to allow the air to circulate under the house, keep snakes out, and give those dogs a cool place to crawl under during the hot southern months.

I suspect that some black folks might use the term "Cracker" or "cracka" as a derogitory towards whites, since racial descrimination was still fairly prevelant back during the old "Cracker" days. Not too many blacks own land back then and either were sharecroppers or worked for white "crackers". Problem is, being a "cracker" had never been concidered something shameful, by "crackers". Many old timers think of it as a badge of honor to be called an ol' Florida/Georgia Cracker.

Now, if Georgia has a different version of the "cracker" term, I'm not aware of it.

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I've never been sure of what "cracker" is exactly, though it obviously is intended to be a slur.

I've always thought it refers to a poor, unsophisticated Southerner who probably makes his living from the soil.

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'Cracker' is used in the same context as the 'N' word.It's a racial slur... but nobody cares. http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=cracker

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Actually, all my forebears were farmers, stockmen, lumbermen, coal miners, one riflemaker, etc. It occurs to me that they could be called crackers. If so, I'm proud to be a cracker.

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The way I look at it, any time someone tries to use a "slur" against another person, they are only desplaying their own self- loathing. In order to attempt to make them feel better about themselves they ahve to belittle others. It's an insecurity issue in my book.

I've been called allot of things, but the one thing that makes me the madest, is to be called "late for supper".

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Yeah...I'll have to say...never have understood why that was supposed to be a "slur" against my skin colour.

*shrug*

Only been called that once, and I just laughed out loud and the one who uttered it muttered and walked off.

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I agree! Those people are only trying to make themselves feel better by "attempting" to put down another person. It IS hard to take though, sometimes. BUT, don't feed into such intimidation tactics. Be a bigger man and keep on walkin'. It's simply too easy to call someone else a name after they've called you one. Racism takes many forms. I always thought the term was funny though. They say it a lot up in Chicago, where I come from. When I'm OC'ing down here, not many others attempt such insults. I like it that way. "F" 'em!

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Sonora Rebel wrote:

'Cracker' is used in the same context as the 'N' word.It's a racial slur... but nobody cares. http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=cracker

Click to expand...

You are correct as many blacks when I was growing up in SC would use that term as an insult to whites. Since very few whites would get offended from it the term never caught on as a slur as the "N" word did howeverthey were orignially meant to be in the same category. The term is derived from soda crackers being very pale and as such a reference to white people. I have heard blacks get mad at a white and call them a pale faced soda cracker the same way a white would use the other word (see I can't even say it ).

The term I never knew what meant was many times a black would call another black a peezy headed so and so. I never knew what peezy headed meant, possibly the same as nappy headed? I never heardnappy headeduntil Imus used it.

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PT111 wrote:

Sonora Rebel wrote:

'Cracker' is used in the same context as the 'N' word.It's a racial slur... but nobody cares. http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=cracker

Click to expand...

You are correct as many blacks when I was growing up in SC would use that term as an insult to whites. Since very few whites would get offended from it the term never caught on as a slur as the "N" word did howeverthey were orignially meant to be in the same category. The term is derived from soda crackers being very pale and as such a reference to white people. I have heard blacks get mad at a white and call them a pale faced soda cracker the same way a white would use the other word (see I can't even say it ).

The term I never knew what meant was many times a black would call another black a peezy headed so and so. I never knew what peezy headed meant, possibly the same as nappy headed? I never heardnappy headeduntil Imus used it.

Click to expand...

Here's my introduction to 'Cracker'... (I write this stuff)

<snip>

In central Flor’da, I was introduced

To cowboy’n one day, while out gettin’ juiced

Easy money I thought, to give me a boost

We didn’t get paid much back then

　

This fella asked me... "Can you ride a horse?"

Without thinkin' 'bout it... I said "Of course"

He said "We'll be needin' some drovers in force"

So I asked him 'bout what I would do



"Just ride the horse ‘n follow the dogs

Look out for the snakes ‘n maybe wild hogs

Try not to drown or get stuck in the bogs

‘n get them cows outta the bush"



Ropin’ ‘n such., I didn’t know how

But they gimme a quirt that they called a romal

It’ll make a loud noise when you smack a cow

That’s what bein’ a ‘Cracker’s about

<snip>

There's a type of house called a 'Cracker' too... tin roofed with a porch. Might have a window 'n might not.