..anyone still attempting to argue that Ebonics is a problem for black students or that it is somehow connected to a lack of intelligence or lack of desire to achieve is about as useful as a Betamax video cassette player, and it's time for those folks to be retired, be they teachers, administrators, or community leaders, so the rest of us can try to do some real work in the service of equal access for black students and all students. (15) . Adam J. Banks
About This Quote

This quote is a great example of how language matters. It’s one thing to say that “Ebonics is a problem for black students”, but it’s quite another to state that “Ebonics is a problem for black students or that it is somehow connected to a lack of intelligence or lack of desire to achieve.” When people are willing to say this kind of thing, they are saying something about the importance of language. We may not always be able to explain why certain words or phrases are important, but we can say that they are important.

Source: Digital Griots: African American Rhetoric In A Multimedia Age

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