Question for any Jewish DUer? is this word a racial slur?

[KyndCulture]

I am a moderator on Randi's board and a user signed up with this name "shvartze" and I've heard from one user that says this word is a racial slur. He's not really trolling but it's disturbing us.

Can anybody clarify this for Randi's staff?

[yorgatron]

1. it means "black"

[Buck Turgidson]

12. True. But...

"Schwarzer" is Yiddish term for black Africans. In certain cases, it can be an insult.

[LiberalFighter]

13. Darn... beaten on the German word

[Warpy]

14. Not just black, it is generally taken to mean "black maid"

Getting "a schvartze" was a sign to one's friends and neighbors that one had made it into the good life. It's only a slur in Yiddish because of the connotation, not the denotation, which is just "a black."

[varkam]

2. schwarze = the color black in German n/t

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

3. Yeah, it's german for "nigger"

Very racist.

That said, it's also german (dutch? yiddish?) for black and in the context of a username it doesn't mean anything, really.

[SharonRB]

4. I just sent you a PM

[Bluebear]

5. That is Yiddish for "black" as in a person of color. nt

[Major Hogwash]

6. No, it's not a racial slur.

And you'll probably hear from someone else that it is.

But, it's not offensive at all, as far as I'm concerned.

[Bluebear]

9. '"black person" (somewhat derogatory)'

1961, from Yiddish, from schvarts "black" (see swarthy). Perhaps originally a code word to refer to black servants when they were within earshot, as Ger. cognate Schwarze apparently was in the mid-19c.:

"In Baltimore in the 80s of the last century, the German-speaking householders, when they had occasion to speak of Negro servants in their presence, called them die Blaue (blues). In the 70s die Schwartze (blacks) had been used, but it was believed that the Negroes had fathomed it."

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=code&searchmode=phrase

[ugarte]

7. Not necessarily a slur, any more than "Jew" or "goy" is a slur...

All depends on the context and tone of voice.

[still_one]

8. "shvartze" is the Yiddish word for "black" person

but even though the term is neutral, it could be an offense connotation

[Codeine]

10. Not really.

Itjust means black, and is pretty innocuous most of the time.

[mopinko]

11. it's a kind of beer

it may well mean something else, but a shvatrze beer is like a porter.

[ChristianLibrul]

15. Yiddish (Juedische)

Depends on your tone of voice and context, like so many other things.

[KyndCulture]

16. Thanks DUers, I knew I could find out something here.

None of us have a clue but since one of our users complained and I couldn't find out anything definite in google, I brought it here.

I passed all the responses up the chain to the admins.

[Solo_in_MD]

17. Depends on the context

Technically it means black. It was also a central theme of the Mel Brooks movie "Spaceballs" as in the "power of the shvartze".

[MurrayDelph]

18. Wrong word

In Spaceballs, they were talking about the Power of the Schvantze, which is slang for penis.

(And I don't want to get into a discussion of the Schvartze Schvantze)

[greyl]

21. Nah, Spaceballs was Schwartz, not schwanz. :) nt

[Solo_in_MD]

30. I stand corrected

Friend at the time told me it was "black" at the time and I never had any reason to question it since. Then again, Spaceballs is not a big piece of my life....

[Jack from Charlotte]

35. It should be a big piece of EVERYONE's life. (nt)

*

[RebelOne]

19. Well, I dated a Jewish guy for a few years, and whenever

he used that word, it was usually in a derogatory way.

[sabra]

20. I've generally heard it used in a derogatory way...

[Catherine Vincent]

22. My my.

Even the yiddish use black as a deragatory term.

[Misskittycat]

23. It's use is derogatory. I'm Jewish - grew up in '50's and '60's and

didn't hear it too much, but when I heard other Jews using it, it was the equivalent of "nigger." I never heard it used in a neutral way.

My grandfather, who wasn't always a very nice guy, used it sometimes. At least once, my mother confronted him on it saying: "Stop saying that, Pop. I don't want you saying things like that in front of my children."

[Misskittycat]

24. Correction: "Its" - Woops. n/t

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

33. My Dad would use it and it bothered the heck out of me and I

told him so.

[The Magistrate]

25. It Is Generally A Slur, Ma'am

[deaniac21]

26. .....

"Shvartze" is the neutral Yiddish term for "black", including the
person. There are other derogatory terms--some borrowed from English.
But there are Jews who can make "shvartze" offensive. However, even
though the meaning of the term isn't offensive, that doesn't mean that
the word hasn't acquired an offensive connotation over time. This is
the case with "shvartze". Historically, it was used in a nonneutral
way, regardless of its neutral meaning. In general, the term should be
avoided. Note that "shvartze" is also used to describe strict
observance. observance.]

[Mr_Spock]

27. I think it was used as a slur by Mel Brooks in Blazing Saddles

At least that's how I remember it (I think it was Blazing Saddles).

[rucky]

31. Wasn't a slur...It was a funny gag.

with the Yiddush speaking Indian-er- Native Americans.

Blazing Saddles was a satire that very deftly dealt with issues of racism.

[Mr_Spock]

32. I know it was a funny gag, but there is always more than meets the eye

We used to joke using that term quite a bit in our house after seeing that. It still reminded me of the terms that my Armenian mother used for blacks & jews - they were not meant as insults, but I never heard them used in a context where they weren't trying to hide something - if you know what I mean. I would say these terms have their subtleties.

[Seedersandleechers]

28. Urbandictonary says this:

1. schwartze A german word meaning "black", but was incorporated into American Jewish slang to be a derogatory term towards black people.

If you are black and someone uses the word "schwartze" in their conversation in your general direction, chances are he shooting racial slurs at you.

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[AngryAmish]

29. oh yeah

[Beacho]

34. I've always heard it a negative context

Much the same as someone referring to african americans as 'darkies'.