Tom, my estimation of you has risen even higher!
> On Nov 1, 2015, at 5:41 PM, Tom Hinds via Callers > <[email protected]> wrote: > > When this discussion started I decided to actually use honky instead of gypsy > the next time I called. I would of course explain to the dancers this > extremely important and delicate issue that is now confronting the contra > dance community. Why not get a chuckle from the floor? I appreciate the > suggestion of red neck but I think honky flows better. See the end of this > email for calling examples. > > Several people have thanked me off list for what I said because they don't > want to be seen as insensitive. Basically we think there's way too much > mental effort and concern based on 1 person's complaint. That I'm actually > taking time at all on this topic is a bad reflection on my judgment. > > Ron, I really want to know: since you started dancing have you thought > badly of the Romani people because of the use of the word gypsy? Is there > any caller or dancer out there who has thought badly about Romani people > because of this call? > > At the time that I wrote my last email, I also wrote the following but > decided not to send it because I didn't want to be seen as insensitive. Here > it is. Maybe you'll get a chuckle. > > > > As a caller I've often used self-defecating humor to get dancers to relax. > It shows that we callers are human and can make mistakes etc. It also takes > the focus off of them and on to me. > > With that said I was thinking that we, the white majority in the US, might > consider pointing the finger at ourselves in a joking way. This might show > minorities that we to can take a joke and perhaps communicate that, in some > situations, it's important not to take things too seriously. > > Let's do away with the call gypsy and replace it with honky. Here are some > examples: > > "Honky your partner" > > or > > "Honky 'round your neighbor" > > or > > "ladies honky once and a half" > > If a Romani person ever complains to you tell them this: naming a move after > an ethnic group is one of the highest honors of our dance community. The > only other people to be so honored are the Dosidoes. > > Tom > > _______________________________________________ > Callers mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net
