 Over Here, Black Ain't Black By John MARONE |
The word for "black" in Russian is cherniy (Черный). It denotes the darkest of colors, the dirtiest of work and the market for illegal goods. It doesn't, however, refer to people of Sub-Saharan descent. Negroes are called just that in Russian - Negry (Негры) - which in no way should be confused with the offensive term "nigger" in English.
This isn't to say that Russian speakers don't have a pejorative word for Sub-Saharan Africans. The only one that I know of is "Chernomazyi," (Черномазый) which isn't restricted to Negroes. This also isn't to say that the word "Cherniy" isn't used as a slur. It is used primarily (but not exclusively) in referring negatively to people from the Caucuses.
What irony! Anyone familiar with almost any American application form will recall that the word "Caucasian" is used to classify white people, which presumably includes Chechens, Armenians as well as North Africans and Iraqis. Even in the days of "the Evil Empire," there were no designations of race in Soviet passports. The reason is that, unlike in the West (especially the US), nationality in the land of Rus plays a much greater role than the color of one's skin.
Russian speakers are perfectly well aware of the fact that some Georgians are redheaded and that it's not unusual to come across a Tatar with blond hair and blue eyes, but these people still get called "Cherniy" because of their supposedly black hearts: their inclination to make money by trade instead of collecting wheat or forging steel like a good Socialist. Most Russians and Ukrainians also have no illusions of racial purity.
At this point, however, let's make it clear that a slur is a slur, and if it lumps a group of people together under a single unpleasant stereotype, no reasonable person could defend its usage. It also should be pointed out that such practices are no more condoned in Russian-speaking society than in other places. The objects of these slurs, moreover, are locally determined and not always subject to cultural translation.
But how we in the West love to believe that Russians and Ukrainians are more racist than we are! Besides countless films supporting the image of the unashamedly racist Slav, journalists jump on the opportunity to report about a black man being beaten by Russian skinheads or a Ukrainian policeman detaining a group of dark-skinned foreigners, often including a bigoted quote from an otherwise loveable babushka. A few years back, a Russian pop group released a song called "They Killed a Negro," and Western media had a sanctimonious feast in response. I wonder if any of these journalists even understood the words to the song?
Words in fact tell us a lot about ourselves and about our cultural values. American English, for example, probably has 20 times more ethnic slurs than any other language I have studied. Most of the slurs are directed at Negroes (who in all fairness have a few of their own for whites). The U.S. record for racism hardly needs an overview but let it suffice to recall a couple hundred years of chattel slavery, followed by overt discrimination right up until a few decades ago.
Now, of course, we are model democrats and, like the reformed alcoholic, we love to teach others about the evil of which we have recently rid ourselves. After the Soviet Union broke up over a decade ago, we Westerners came pouring in with useful ideas about how to run a business and the latest computer software. We starting preaching democracy and human rights, convinced that the information we'd been fed about this part of the world for the past 70 years was both accurate and fair.
And how fair is the portrayal of Russians and Ukrainians as bigots? Do not skinheads beat up people of color in other countries? I believe the skinhead movement got its start in the UK. A lot of young former-Soviet Slavs shave their heads (for some reason), but don't belong to gangs. What about the police? Well, corruption, low morale and miserable salaries aside, whom would you stop on the street if you were told to keep an eye out for illegal aliens threatening to flood into the promised land of Euro bliss? I doubt there is any hard evidence to suggest that these exotic detainees are treated any worse than poor locals who are picked up.
Some readers may be thinking: "Wait a minute, I recall quite distinctly hearing some off comment about black people from my colleague or the woman who irons my shirts." No doubt about it!
The one that comes readily to mind goes something like this: "I'm not a racist, I just don't like Negroes - ha, ha, ha." Alas, compared to the image-conscious West, former Soviets are their own worst enemies. But that doesn't mean they hate blacks. I would label such comments as merely tactless, and at worst ignorant.
Why? How many blacks has the person who would say such a thing met in his life? American racism - or hatred of people of African descent - is rooted in fear. We abused them as slaves and now we're afraid they are going to get their revenge. So let's ridicule them to cut the tension. Although a lot of progress in fighting racism has been made in America, much of it has simply gone underground. The post-Soviet Ukrainian isn't burdened with such historical baggage. While his American counterpart nervously searches for the best word to describe a compatriot of African descent, he blurts out the first word that comes to mind because he really hasn't thought about it much. It is simply not an issue. The abuse in this part of the world was done by one class against another, and the abused proletariat took its revenge in 1917.
If you want an explanation for the kind of off-color humor that one encounters in Ukraine and Russia, a more suitable analogy would be the way Americans, for example, sometimes refer to people like East Asians: different, therefore silly and deserving of a joke or two. Although lately, as migration patterns change, efforts have been made in the politically correct West to ensure respect for groups that most of us have never even heard of. I for one never knew that the word Eskimo was pejorative, and that Inuit is the preferred term. And the word "Greek" was evidently a slur concocted by the Romans? The inventors of democracy, humanism and nude wrestling call themselves Hellenes.
But what about blacks living in the former Soviet Union? Most are from Africa. I can think of a couple of TV personalities and sports figures who are considered a welcome part of the cultural landscape. Why doesn't anyone mention the occasional babushka strolling with her grandchild of mixed African descent? Unlike in America, where things quickly get divided into black and white, a Sub-Saharan who learns the language and embraces the culture often becomes "Nash Negr" (Our Negro). Moreover, I dare say that there are still quite a few white men in the West who find black women unattractive. Here, "mulatkas" are the rage.
As the former Soviet Union has increasingly opened itself up to Western culture, the language has changed along the way. Sensitive to the confusion that the word Negr sometimes causes (as aptly illustrated in the Russian film "Brat 2," when a shootout erupts over the misunderstanding), the term Chernokozhy (Чернокожый) has become increasingly popular. Clearly, former Soviets are now more accustomed to Western views on race. "I don't understand! I was taught this word [Negr] in school," the Russian hero in Brat 2 earnestly confesses at one point in the film.
If all this doesn't convince you of Russian speakers' naive perceptions of race, consider the fact that the Russian language's greatest poet, Aleksandr Pushkin, was one-quarter black. His grandfather, from Sub-Saharan Africa, was given to Peter the Great as a gift from the Turkish Sultan. The meritocratic tsar in turn gave him an education and a place in society. No Russian textbook ever denied these facts, and the romantic Pushkin often bragged about his ancestry. True, the word used back then to describe Pushkin's noteworthy ancestor (or anyone else with dark skin and curly hair) was "Arab." Negro entered the language later - from the West.
Reader Alla Khrystych wrote to dispute my assertion last month that there is no Russian equivalent to the English 'guy.'
"To my understanding," she wrote, "the word 'guy' should be translated as 'paren' or 'priyatel.' At least, it is definitely used to describe a male older than just a boy." She said that she was also surprised to read that the word 'guy' is used in English to denote males only.
She wrote: "An American-born lady once said to me and my female colleague. 'You guys should come' to a party she was having. Since her use of 'guys' was unusual to us, we asked her whether the word could be used in reference to females. She assured us that in the States this was quite acceptable, and by no means would sound derogatory."
Though Ms. Khrystych obviously has a good knowledge of English, the English "guy," unlike the Russian "paren" can refer to males of all ages, as in "an old guy" or "a little guy." Regarding its use in referring to females, she is right - but only in the plural. Indeed, it wouldn't be strange to hear a group of American girls say, "Let's go, guys!" "Let's go, girls," oddly enough, would more likely (but not exclusively) be used by older women, who may like to think of themselves as girls.
So far as I know, "Podyem rebyata" could also be used by Russians-speaking girls.
John Marone is chief editor of Willard News Service.
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Read also previous issue' articles:
Neither a Borrower
Just Don't
In a Word
Hot or Not
Animal Farm
Hi on Health!
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