I refuse to title this "black slang" or any other color slang. I use strange little slang phrases all of the time in my conversation. I'm not trying to sound "cool," I don't really care how I sound. I sometimes use them to be ironic. (When I use "that's how I roll," it's usually to laugh about some geeky mom thing that I do: "No, we cut the sandwiches into stars, that's how I roll") I do not say them to mock those of other races. If I am mocking anyone, it is myself or a really close friend. I don't use a different accent, although I'm sure when I'm being ironic my tone changes. I just think that there's enough actual racial and sexual inequality about which to be offended and plenty of people who are actually still trying to offend people of different races, sexes, and orientations, to take offense at people who mean none.

Intent vs. content. I can't say it enough....

LoL. I totally get you about the 'that's how I roll' thing. In my group of friends, we do the same thing, but with 'that's how we do'. As in, "You gonna go to the Harry Potter party dressed up when your 23-25 yrs old? Yeap. That's how we do."

Just a 'we are so dorky but we are cool to us" sort of thing. No harm and a laugh at our own expense.

Whenever we talk about the dumb things folks do all the time (like keep punching the "up" button on the elevator because they think it'll come faster), we say, "that's how they do!" The same way you'd say, "can you believe that?"

When someone stands there & keeps hitting the elevator button, around here, we say, what an effing idiot.

Yeah, we say that too and in that case, if you are one of the morons (of any color) who can't figure out how an elevator works--we ARE mocking YOU.

i have mocked the people i see who seem to be scared to step onto the escalator. i keep thinking, it's a regular escalator, you've probably been on one before- just STEP ON IT already!!!

so,as i stand there late for work the other day waiting in line to board the escalator, i have these thoughts and then as soon as i approach the escalator, my flip flop gets caught in the machinery, i trip and eat it. Karma can be a real beeatch, sometimes! Now, my scratched up toes and I have decided to be more patient at the escalators. ;)

Worse are the people who get off the escaltor, come to a halt, and look around. Remember that large moving conveyance behind you? It's still on, and people are still moving toward you. Get out of the friggin' way!

Oh, god - I can't stand it when people stop or congregate in doorways or at the base of an escalator. Inconsiderate dunderheads! My sweet husband actually shoved a little old lady for doing just that!

And while we are on the subject of slang, why do people persist in using the trendy and grammatically ignorant phrase "My bad"?

Whatever happened to "My mistake"?

UGH!

so self-obsessed that they become completely unaware that perhaps one of the other 100 people on the car behind you might want to get off at the same stop....

I CAN'T STAND IT when people use checks at a grocery store.

Now, back on topic.

I'm black. I think it depends on how current the slang is to say whether or not it's a certain culture's slang.

My pet peeve is when my boss refers to me as Bro (he doesn't do it all the time). I think he only does it to the black guys on his team. But he's generally a good guy, so I give him a pass. But there's something SO SINCERE when a white Southern guy refers to you as "Brother." Like when Hulk Hogan says it. The same way it's nice to hear the street vendors call you "bradda" or approach your wife and say "respect, respect," to you and call her "princess."

People can be morons, that's not a black or a white thing--it's a moron thing. I agree your boss shouldn't refer to only his black employees as "bro," and it sounds like he's a bit racially insensitive. But, saying "that's how I roll," calling your geeky friend "playa," or using, in a generic sense, the word "bro" is not mocking or insulting to black people. I'm also not trying to insult Jewish people when I use the word "schlepp" or say (sarcastically) to a person who is being an insensitive jerk, "yeah, you're a real mensch." That's why I pointed to looking to intent before instinctively saying it is racist.

So what do you do when your very white, very non racially interested husband finds Cartman of Southpark fame funny, and he can do a dead on Cartman impression, and says things like " F^@#n' jews " about 100 times a day? It makes me laugh even though it shouldn't be so funny..... Neither one of us feels any ill will towards those of the Jewish faith. Do we have to stop now, or shoudl South Park?