Wigger

For other uses, see Wigger (disambiguation).

Not to be confused with Uyghur people.

The satirical comic character Ali G invented and played by the British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen is a parody of "wiggers" and their appropriation of black culture

Wigger is a pejorative slang term for a white person who emulates mannerisms, language, and fashions associated with African-American culture, particularly hip hop in the United States or the Grime/Garage scene in Britain. The term is a portmanteau of white and nigger. The term is considered derogatory, reflecting stereotypes of African-American or Black British culture, and can be used pejoratively, because of its connotations of cultural appropriation. It is also often used in a racist manner, not only belittling the person perceived as acting black, but also demeaning black people and culture by proxy. Some, however, use the term neutrally, or as a light joke, without any racism intended.

Phenomenon

The phenomenon of white people adopting stereotypical black mannerisms, speech, and apparel – which in the general case is called allophilia – has appeared in several generations since slavery was abolished in the western world. The concept has been documented in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and other white-majority countries. An early form of this was the white negro in the jazz and swing music scenes of the 1920s and 1930s; as examined in the 1957 Norman Mailer essay, "The White Negro." It was later seen in the Zoot suiter of the 1930s and 1940s; the hipster of the 1940s; and the beatnik and rock and roller of the 1950s.

References in popular culture

• The satirical newspaper The Onion sometimes features an accountant/wigger columnist, Herbert Kornfeld, whose columns are written in Black English slang remarkably similar to that of the Staten Island, New York rap group, Wu-Tang Clan.
• Hardcore punk/thrash metal crossover band M.O.D. has a song called "Whigga".
• In his song "The Way I Am", Eminem lashes out at the "cocky Caucasians who think I'm some wigger who just tries to be black 'cause I talk with an accent and grab on my balls."
• The film Malibu's Most Wanted is about a well-to-do teenage boy who emulates stereotypical elements of Hip Hop culture.
• Chicago rapper Marz, who is of Croatian descent, is a self-proclaimed wigger. One of his common lyrical sayings is "I'm a wigger with an attitude". He has an Internet-released single called "Wigger Crown", which features lyrics such as: "If 50 Cent can go after Jigga and Nas/ I'ma go after the wigger crown/ y'all gone feel me now".
• On various music-sharing networks, such as Bearshare]], Kazaa and LimeWire, there is a song misattributed to "Weird Al" Yankovic called "I'm a Wigga" or "Carl the Wigga". The song was actually uploaded to MySpace by a person with the user name Bloody Fetus.
• British rapper Lady Sovereign has performed a song called "I'm a Whigga". However, this is not the same song being misattributed to "Weird Al Yankovic".
• The song Pretty Fly (for a White Guy), by The Offspring details how a wigger tries too hard.
• Wigger (1995) ISBN 1-55152-020-6 is a novel by Lawrence Ytzhak Braithwaite set in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It explores the class struggle, poverty, prostitution, exploitation of youth, desolation and absence of solidarity in a period of new negrophilia.
• In 2004, James Maker & Noko 440 recorded a song titled "White Nigger". It was played live when the band supported Morrissey on his 2004 'You Are The Quarry' tour. However, the song remains unreleased.

See also

• Chav
• Cultural appropriation Template:Nb10
• Jafaican

• Racism
• White Guilt

External links

• BBC explanation of the term