The Power of Language

It's that time of year - we are all counting down the days til our graduate program is over. Facebook events are popping up left and right - study sessions, celebratory drinks, and final gatherings before many of our friends leave the city.

One of my friends created an event called "CUSSW grads love picnics" - for a post-graduation gathering in Central Park. We were all busy inviting friends on Facebook and fantasizing about the weather actually being warm enough to sit outside on the grass (and without homework!!) when a peer pointed out something none of us had realized: we were using racist language.

In a kind comment left on the event's page, this peer - a well-respected anti-racist organizer - pointed out the following:

"Note that "picnic" has a history of being a derogatory term related to lynching African people...other words that could be used include "luncheon", "outdoor luncheon", "bar-b-que", "food in the sun"...get creative!...let's break the cycle of hurtful/unacknowledged language...all love!"

I was completely unaware of this awful connotation of the word "picnic".  When I first saw this comment, I was sitting in a car with my parents; they both confirmed that they had never heard this use of the word either and sounded skeptical of this darker meaning.  I accepted that it must be true, as this woman was much more knowledgable about the use of language in this context than I was, but I did have a momentary thought of "uh oh - another word that I have to remain conscious of not using" - as if this was going to be a burden for me.

A few days later, I received an email in my inbox from the friend that originally created the event. An excerpt:

"For transparency purposes, I would like to come forward as the creator of this event. The event was named without thought about the historical uses of the word "picnic", and I apologize for any unintentional offense it may have caused. Thank you______ for bringing this issue to light, and for speaking with me about it in person as well. I think it is a necessary and important dialogue for us to have. 

I'd like to ask that everyone please be respectful on the wall for this event. It is important to recognize that regardless of opinions, knowledge of linguistic myths, or disagreement in general, we all have our own personal experiences and oral histories regarding these kinds of issues, and sensitivity to these facts is much appreciated."

 I, of course, immediately had to email her and ask what comments had prompted this email (as they had been deleted). Apparently, a number of people (all social work students, mind you) had begun posting things from urban myth websites in an attempt to 'debunk' the assertion that picnic is a derogatory word. Where did this impulse stem from? What about the woman's comment had touched people in such a way that they felt they had to prove her wrong?


I think there was a strong personal element to this interaction. The comment shook people up - whether because they realized their ignorance (like me), because they had already been aware of this racist meaning but had not spoken up, or for some other reason.  Regardless, people felt a need to disprove and debunk this assertion, and in my opinion that debunking only serves to make yourself feel more secure and at peace. Otherwise, what purpose would denying someone else's history or experiences fulfill?


I feel that this conversation taking place over the internet emboldened people to disagree with the commenter. If the medium had changed, and this point had been made in class, I don't believe that many people would have spoken up in protest. Perhaps they would have expressed their disagreement with friends afterwards, but I doubt that insensitive or mean comments would have been made face-to-face.