#4 Blacks and Ask/Axe

The only thing worse than being ignorant about others, is being ignorant about self. In California, most Blacks come from families that migrated directly from the mid-southern US; Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana. So one does not have to go far to hear a Black person substitute ‘axe’ for ‘ask’. As a native Coloradan, and without much forethought, I just assumed that these ‘axing’ folks lacked phonetic sophistication. Of course, I was wrong. Mea Culpa.

How usage passes for ‘good’ English is based on what part of the country we are talking about. Everyone has an accent and many of us speak in English dialects, particular to specific geographical regions. Accents are defined as a unique ways of pronouncing the same words, while dialects are regional accents plus unique grammar and/or unique words. So it should surprise no one that any American, including Blacks, who as a group were forced to ‘home-grow’ their English, might have leftover speech attributes that may be different.

So why does the word ‘ask’, and the way it comes out of Black mouths, get so much attention? The knee-jerk answer for this is White racism. Singling out Blacks who say ‘axe’ is just another way of putting people down for not educating themselves to a higher standard of English. But hold on a second, there may also be another, more benign, reason. Axing/Asking someone is a phonetic double entendre (same sound, different meanings) that conjures up a visual of a person hacking another to death with an axe, ala’ the infamous Lizzy Borden, who was alleged to have killed her parents by axe in 1892, in Massachusetts.

So the next time you hear a Black person say ‘axe’ in place of ask, and it strikes someone's funny-bone, take a second to educate them on accents, dialects, double-entendre’s, and Lizzy Borden. But also know that the influence of their rude interest may not be a case of slam-dunk racism, but rather just simple regional ignorance egged-on by a whacky visual. And one last thing, White southerners say axe, I'm told, for all the same reasons.

James C. Collier

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