I stumbled across this article from Racialicious a little while ago. If you’ve ever read my “about me” section here, you’d know that all the bourgie-talk that’s tossed around here is pretty tongue-in-cheek. Still, I thought it would be interesting to view parts of this article and comment on its take on the word “bougie” (I favor keeping the “r” in the word) among Black folk.
Bougie* by Design
by Racialicious Special Correspondent Latoya Peterson
“No one ever means bougie as a compliment. It’s never ‘Oh, you’re so bougie!’ It’s ALWAYS a negative trait.”
I had asked one of my close friends about being bougie and how the word is perceived in black circles. Depending on how it is used, bougie can almost be a curse word. Bougie is a stand in word for being racially removed, for pretending to be superior, for being out of touch with “true blackness.”
For many, being hit with a bougie label comes at random. Maybe it’s because you speak English with tight diction and clear pronunciation. Maybe it’s because you prefer off-broadway to the “chitlin circuit”. Or maybe it’s because someone doesn’t like how you dress, how you wear your hair, or your attitude. Continue reading
bourgie, interrupted 