Folks tried to convince us that there wasn’t anything to the Huffington Post’s repeated use of “sassy” to describe Sasha Obama, They are at it again, this time on their 23/6 “comedy” site. No stereotypes here. None at all.
Sasha Obama didn’t tell anybody off. The youngest first daughter is brimming over with sass, and she COULD HAVE spent the day adorably demanding that people talk to her tiny hand or shaking her hips defiantly at every photo op, but she chose to reign it in. Incidentally, Secret Service have already changed her code name to “The Little Handful.” Huffington Post
We told y’all so. SO I guess we are going to chalk his one up to the multiple definitions of the word right? Are we going to sit by for four years of the Huffington Post taking digs at this child? They’ll try to hide behind “humor” but at its root is the racist belief that Black women and girls “spirit” is “attitude”.
UPDATED: To all the people who think thisi s “cute” and “harmless,” will it be “cute” when she is 11 or 15? Have you read the studies about the interpretation of African American girls “spirit” and “sass”?: How about this one about why Black girls being punished for being assertive:
A new study shows that teachers tend to view the behavior of black girls as not “ladylike” and therefore focus disciplinary action on encouraging behaviors like passivity, deference, and bodily control at the expense of curiosity, outspokenness, and assertiveness.. . The teachers’ actions appeared to be less the result of conscious racism or sexism than an unwitting tendency to view the behavior of black girls through a different lens than that of their peers.Gender Public Advocacy Coalition
She’s being what’s called “pre-tracked” for being a normal child her age.
43 comments ↓
I think these people are evil.
S.O. is a child and furthermore IMO the more attractive/adorable of the Obama children – why are these people attacking this kid?
She is a kid. I don’t get it?
You don’t get it? Let me clarify. They are threatened by her image in some way so they have to reshape it to make her palatable to them and we’re all going to find excuses for them to do it. How long before she get’s stuck with the “she’s got attitude” label.
This stuff always starts with “humor.”
I am still waiting for actual proof that Sasha is in fact sassy. I swear this girl gets more attention for stuff she has never done than Andrew Guiliani did when he actually mocked his dad Rudy when he was swearing in as mayor of NYC.
I think you take stuff like this too far. You need to get a life and blog more about the issues that really affect black women.
I get where you’re going at but you put way too much energy towards being negative than you do about changing things. You’re like a parakeet that squawks all day with nothing really intelligent or of substance.
Focus on putting forth a positive image of Sasha if you’re so concerned. Focus on what she IS and not what some disconnected blog says she is not. Your rhetoric is “rince-wash-repeat” and boring, try something new for a change.
email sent to hp
Children and the humorous then not-so-humorous labeling of them should be off limits for any presidential family.
Nicole, I agree with macdaddy. Sasha is a baby. A child. A little girl.
Why do you think it is ok for her to be attacked like tha?. Babies should be protected.
I can only imagine what kind of damage would occur should this child ever get wind of this.
It is not right at all.
Why are they trying to shape her into something that she is not & then say she had to “reign it in”. I’m surprised they did not mention her fabricated gum popping and neck and eye rolls. This is what happens when the only images of black females can be found on BET, VH1 or Jerry Springer. First they tried to say her mother and angry, strong, etc.. Now they are going after the youngest wee-Michelle???
Sad part is that it’s not just white folks who have a problem with Sasha…but I LOVE her and her SPUNK…she’s so cute and even through it all she’s still very WELL-MANNERED…i love her innocence and that she’s just being a child. We need to stop wanting kids to grow up so quick…after all do we want someone like Michael Jackson or Sasha Obama…I take the latter and I think she’s going to do just fine…as long as she continues to have a sense of humor and is open about her sheyt.
Wow – I completely disagree with this characterization of Sasha. I also feel very protective of her and her image as one of the first black “first daughters.” It bothers me that she might be stuck with this image and all its coded messages.
But does it change your mind any that this was published on HP’s humor site, “23/6″? A lot of the jokes on the site, like The Onion or The Daily Show, are tongue-in-cheek and push the envelope with a lot of NSFW humor. I even wonder if the people writing this aren’t aware of your previous post criticizing HP for how they describe Sasha as “sassy.” Could it be a dig at WAOD?
This is hipster racism. This isn’t satire. Putting it on a ‘humor’ site is the equivalent of CNN giving DL Idiot a ‘comedy’ show where he acts a fool. Sasha is 7 years old. She should be allowed to be who she is without being analyzed or attacked. I don’t recall any ‘humor’ writing about the Bush twins needing to ‘reign it in’ when they were getting drunk at bars while under the legal age for being served.
LOL @ Nicole.
It’s so amusing when people come on another person’s blog and tell THEM to get a life. LOL.
Anyway, Arianna Huffington has always gotten on my nerves and I am so happy to see that HuffPos site hits have decreased dramatically since the election. That site became too big too fast. I prefer Tina Brown’s “The Dialy Beast” anyway.
As far as little Sasha Obama is concerned I have heard too many BLACK people comment on how sassy they think she is simply because she behaves like a normal 7 year old. Some of these people have children of their own that they emotionally and verbally abuse to the point where the children walk around with their heads down afraid to do anything. Something tells me that a fun-loving, spirited young black child makes a lot of people very nervous. Of course she doesn’t behave like her sister since she is THREE YEARS YOUNGER than her.
When I was 7 years old I was allowed to be ME and enjoy my youth. My family didn’t worry about how my behavior reflected on them because they had accomplished things on their own and were their own people. A long as my sister and I were well behaved everything was all good. They didn’t micro-manage our personalities. Thank god they didn’t because I would have probably grown up hating myself.
No wonder so many children of color suffer from low self esteem and self hatred. Just being happy and outgoing means she is “sassy”? I don’t care if it is a “joke” site, those girls are children and they deserve some privacy. Bad enough their whole entire childhood will be spent under a microscope. Leave them alone.
Sasha strikes me as lively, energetic, and has the signature charismatic personality that many youngest children are known for. She and Malia are obviously loved and adored by their parents. The President and First Lady have sacrificed their privacy by making the choice to become public servants. Their children deserve to enjoy their childhoods, and are not fair game in my opinion to be the subject of sarcastic comedic commentary. It’s not very funny or appropriate.
@ Faith: Okay, I had to look up “hipster racism” and I have to admit that the phrase does seem to fit this situation.
How long will it be before “Oh no she didn’t” start?
What has S.O. done to make her seem “sassy?” She’s a little girl. Why isn’t Malia being singled out- why the emphasis on Sasha?
@ Claudia, where did you find the definition of hipster racism?
Does anyone have an example where Sasha is sassy? That girl doesn’t say a word, Malia is the one who does all the talking when they had interviews and has made fun of Barack. The girls were at the Jonas Brothers concert and she wasn’t droppin it like its hot, she danced like a normal kid, (you how kids who didn’t watch BET w/ their parents while growing up dance). If she was truly sassy she wouldn’t be a Jonas Brothers fan, she would be a Lil Wayne fan.
I think Malia is being left alone b/c she looks like Michelle, and to them thats tall and intimidating.
Naima,
Let’s also not ignore the elephant in the room. Sasha Obama is darker than her sister.
Nicole, if that’s the way you feel about Gina’s blog, why are you here? What you see as harmless, others (including myself) see as harmful – it is how these things begin. Better to try to nip it in the bud than to wait until the problem becomes full-blown in the way black women so often tend to do while trying to please and protect everybody but themselves. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Gina is giving us a call in time for prevention to still be a workable remedy. We so seldom get that option.
I’m not surprised they are analyzing and demeaning a seven year old girl … but lest not forget … when Sarah Palin was parading her clan out all across the country … it was ‘how dare you say that about; do that to children!”
This is the President’s young daughter, they need to back off and show the same courtesy towards Sasha as they did to Chelsea Clinton.
@ Zabeth A.J. Plaid attribute the term, “hipster racism” to blogger Carmen Van Kerckhove (of Racialicious) as:
“… ideas, speech, and action meant to denigrate another’s person race or ethnicity under the guise of being urbane, witty (meaning “ironic” nowadays), educated, liberal, and/or trendy.”
http://www.racialicious.com/2008/07/14/the-new-yorker-and-hipster-racism/
BOY this sure did not take long did it? SMDH!
So it starts, they did not give Michelle a break dring the whole campaign, and now they will start on the weeMichelles. I see nothing “Sassy” about Sasha. She is a normal little girl, a happy, spirited, fun-loving little Black girl. People cannot stand the fact that the first lady and first daughters are BLACK, and nor can people stand to see Black females happy (No, they prefer to see us full of anger, sadness, dispair, and hating ourselves!) so that is why they are doing this garbage. This trifling Arianna Huffington is way out of damn line!
Sasha is a baby, LEAVE HER ALONE! And leave Michelle & Malia alone too you stupid, trifling anti-Black female SCUM!
My position is that the Obama children should not be seen by the public period. I know that given the President is a poltician there will be approved family pictures. I have no choice but to live w/ this. But we are talking about girls whom live in a society where sexual interest in girls occurs much to early( I do not want to see the Vanity Fair spread). Add race into the equation and……
Let the children be children
.
Maybe I’m missing something and that’s why I’m not understanding the problem. HP also calls Piper Palin “sassy” (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/11/14/piper-palins-sassiest-mom_n_143784.html). What is wrong with being described as sassy? Websters Dictionary gives three definitions. 1 : impudent 2 : vigorous , lively 3 : distinctively smart and stylish Never have I seen HP describe S.O. as impudent but to me she does seem to fit #2 and #3. I’m the oldest sister and I’ve always been described as “mature” and “serious” while my younger sister, who is more outgoing, smiles more readily and is overall more bubbly than me has been described as sassy. Generally speaking, this is how it is with big and little sisters.
It just seems that some of us are being overly sensitive. I agree that we should be vigilant about how the media treats the first family and I’m certainly not giving HP an A+ in this area but in this particular matter, especially when they are not saying anything negative about M.O. and none of the pictures of S.O. have been captioned negatively, I’m inclined to just be cool about it.
Robert M. has a point. You rarely ever saw pictures of the Bush twins while their dad was in office. I don’t remember his daughters campaigning with him- or perhaps I’ve just forgotten.
Originalwombman also has a valid point- Piper Palin is described as sassy; she’s also around Sasha’s age. From what I remember about the campaign, despite public outrage, the media did GO HARD on the Palin family portraying Track as a drug addict, Bristol as a slutty, “boyfriend stealer,” and Piper of being sassy.
So maybe this is all just an example of the political machine being the political machine. But I will agree that it is wrong to marginalize a 7 y/o girl and families should be left out of it.
Hopefully, it will pass. During the beginning of their father’s term Chelsea was odd looking and the Bush twins were drunk college girls. The media eventually moved on to real news. Sasha does have a lot of spunk. Malia appears to be the responsible, protective big sister. No different than the relationship between my sister and me. I’m hoping the Obama’s will stop having them photographed and included in articles. The more we see of them, the more people are going to form opinions about them, regardless of their age.
I agree with Originalwombman… I think she’s meaning to use the word as with the definition of “lively”. Which is very much lively, social and energetic compared to her sister who seems more laid back and reserved. I think this is why the media doesn’t focus on her as much as Sasha. She doesn’t give them anything to talk about (and this isn’t a bad thing at all for what may happen with the world watching them grow up over the next 4 (God willing
years. The girls should be off limits no matter what though, and I know I wasnt to happy about their school being made public. But it is what it is. Again, my opinion, I don’t think HP was trying be mean or degrading, so for me, I’ll give Arianna the pass on this one.
I agree with Originalwombman… I think she’s meaning to use the word as with the definition of “lively”. Which Sasha is lively, social and energetic (Not a bad thing, she’s 7) compared to her sister who seems more laid back and reserved. I think this is why the media doesn’t focus on her as much as Sasha. She doesn’t give them anything to talk about (and this isn’t a bad thing at all for what may happen with the world watching them grow up over the next 4 (God willing 8..) years. The girls should be off limits no matter what though, and I know I wasnt to happy about their school being made public. But it is what it is. Again, my opinion, I don’t think HP was trying be mean or degrading, so for me, I’ll give Arianna the pass on this one.
Okay, I have changed my mind about their use of the word “sassy” to describe her. That blurb is straight-up racist. No ifs, ands, or buts about it.
This is from the Huffington Post essay, which Gina posted:
Sasha Obama didn’t tell anybody off. The youngest first daughter is brimming over with sass, and she COULD HAVE spent the day adorably demanding that people talk to her tiny hand or shaking her hips defiantly at every photo op, but she chose to reign it in. Incidentally, Secret Service have already changed her code name to “The Little Handful.”
My reply:
They are ascribing to her behaviors that one would imagine/expect from a grown woman believed to be a “ghetto queen,” when nothing about this child’s behavior to date indicates that she is anything like that.
Yes, she seemed outspoken at the family interview while they were on the campaign trail, but her behavior at all other campaign and inaugural events seemed exemplary and age-appropriate, ie., when she gave her dad a thumb’s up…
They are tracking her and inappropriately so. She is now 7. In a few years, at the end of her dad’s time in office, she will be 11. If he serves another term, she will be 15 by the time he leaves office. This is the start; what will they do in the future?
@pioneervalleywoman you should SOO repost this over at Michelle Obama Watch. The sentiment at WAOD is the complete opposite to what’s going on over at MOW. So its clear the two blogs have completely different audiences.
Will do…
I’m not so keen on words but if Piper Palin was described as Sassy (a word I’m not too familiar with) and the other Palinites described negatively, hmmmm I suspect then that the “sassy” description is not very positive.
I know for me, with kids around, I just have to learn to throw all pride out of the window. They will do the unexpected -especially if they are allowed to be the children that they are. Perhaps the H.P. is not used to such free spirited children?
Any rate, I hope people don’t give ear to this. How strange to be so fixated on a small child.
The Bush girls were far beyond sassy, and no one labeled them (not even when they got caught trying to get alcohol underage). Palin’s teen daughter got pregnant, and it was labeled “a private matter”.
However, I have a hard time believing that Huff the Magic Blogger is intentionally trying to attack or hate on the O girl. My guess is that she was using the word ’sassy’ archaically, for example http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/12/22/sasha-obamas-sassy-vacati_n_152876.html
She was clearly using defininitions #2 and #3:
sas·sy 1 (ss)
adj. sas·si·er, sas·si·est
1. Rude and disrespectful; impudent.
2. Lively and spirited; jaunty.
3. Stylish; chic: a sassy little hat.
jaun·ty (jônt, jän-)
adj. jaun·ti·er, jaun·ti·est
1. Having a buoyant or self-confident air; brisk.
2. Crisp and dapper in appearance; natty.
3. Archaic
a. Stylish.
b. Genteel.
nat·ty (nt)
adj. nat·ti·er, nat·ti·est
Neat, trim, and smart; dapper.
Having said that Gina, I do see where you’re coming from. We as a race have ’sassy baggage’, because black women have always been labeled ’sassy’ in a negative way.
“How strange to be so fixated on a small child.”
I believe they couldn’t “get at” Michelle Obama because she has the maturity and self-confidence to not allow – yes, I do think the definition of fits here – “hipster racism” to break her down.
Now a six-year-old child, that makes an easier target.
A lot of hatred disguised as “satire” has been directed towards the Obama family.
I’m glad sites like this allow people who care and understand the ramification of indifference to “little things” to remain alert and watchful of the Obamas.
Little Things are subtle tests to see if someone can get away with Big Things.
To all the people who think thisi s “cute” and “harmless,” will it be “cute” when she is 11 or 15?
I just think it’s a matter that the parents need to take control of. If we’ve noticed it, I’m pretty sure it has been brought to Michelle’s attention. Writing letters is cool, but the Obama’s actually control how much the world will be able to see of their daughters. We are in a time when Suri and Shiloh have become repeat cover girls on gossip mags. The media doesn’t give a dang about kids any longer.
What sass? When did she ever “tell someone off?” Why would she need to “reign it in?” Where’s the basis for this? Why are they going in a kid?
The girl is well-behaved. The only difference between Sasha and Malia is that Sasha can’t hide her boredom (LOL) which should be expected from a child.
I’m surprised at Huff Post. Especially when you consider their favorable coverage of Pres. Obama.
Gina,
I went on YouTube to see Sasha’s behavior, etc. to see all about this “sassy” business.
It just occurred to me. Perhaps the attempted “target” is Malia? To provoke jealousy or to provoke Malia to be more “spirited” and “sassy”? Just wondering.
WAOD,
I suspect that if there continues to be an attempt to break down either of the girls, Michelle will handle her business.
I have no doubt that lil’ Obama is busy. Most children usually are at that age. If she was timid or flipping the bird like Palin’s daughter, the press would be up in arms.
I am waiting for the President and First Lady to declare their children off limits to political commentators, etc. I hope they will do this sooner (as in today) rather than later (as in tomorrow). I agree the girls should not be seen or photographed; their privacy should be respected.
I dislike “The Little Handful” handle given to Sasha. Are these people too lazy to do their jobs? She’s a little girl.
Humor is always the other side of critical analysis and is not to be taken lightly.
My problem with this is that when “Sassy” is applied to a sista (Of ANY age) it is meant in a negative manner. We all know that it is code for what these anti-Black female racists REALLY want to say. Anyone who thinks these two precious girls will be given the same respect as Chelsea or the Bush daughters is sadly mistaken and naive!
The war on Black females continues, even when we live in the doggone White House! I hope the Obamas, great parents that they are, shut this crap down NOW!
Miriam, that would not surprise me one bit! These fools are up to no damn good!