[Thomas K.]

Is the phrase 'Call a spade a spade' racist? If so, what does it mean? Does anyone know the origin of this phrase?

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Name : Thomas K., Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Jewish, Age : 34, City : South Orange, State : NJ Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Jay31097]

I don't think this saying has any racial connotation - it simply means 'don't euphemize, just identify something as it really is.'

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[T.C.]

I have never heard the phrase used as such, but if you read the FAQs for the Internet newsgroup alt.english.usage, you'll find that 'to call a spade a spade' was not originally a slur, although in present usage it can be taken that way via another popular phrase 'black as the ace of spades,' referring to a deck of playing cards: http://www.english-usage.com/faq.html#fxtocall

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[John29298]

Other than a pointy shovel or a card suit, what is a spade as pertaining to a population group?

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[Ivana21249]

Calling a spade a spade just means calling something what it really is. For instance, calling a fat person fat instead of big boned or heavy. You can see how it would be used in a racist way, though.

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[Bill23273]

I found this explanation on a site at http://www.wordorigins.org/wordorc.htm...... Call a Spade a Spade.......... Several people have emailed me and questioned whether or not the phrase call a spade a spade is racist in origin. It is not. Spade is a derogatory term for a black person, but that is not the spade referred to in the phrase in question. The phrase dates to at least 1542 and the spade in question is a shovel. The phrase simply means to speak directly, without euphemism. The British phrase to 'call a spade a bloody shovel' is derived from this, not vice versa. This British phrase means the same, only it is more forceful. The racist usage of spade dates from the 1920s and is American in origin. It probably derives from the card suit, as in black as the ace of spades. Even though 'call a spade a spade' is not racist in origin, it is probably best to avoid using it in situations where it could be misinterpreted. In fact, since it is so hackneyed it is probably best to avoid using it altogether. But that is a stylistic and not a racial reason.

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[Letty]

One of my friends has been called 'spade face' for years because she has a big nose, but I've never heard of any racist connotations with the phrase. Why a 'spade,' anyway? Why not a bicycle, or a raincoat?

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[Taz27452]

I was always under the impression that it was referring to the suits in a deck of cards. Everyone I know has always thought of it this way, too. It's another way of saying 'tell it like it is'. If it does have a racist origin, I'm sure most people are not aware of it, and certainly don't mean it that way. There are a lot of words that at one time had completely innocent meanings, but over time have been re-defined to mean something else not so nice. It's a shame people do this, but that's life. Sometimes things are meant to be taken at face value with no hidden malicious meanings.

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[Steve27672]

I remember seeing this phrase in the English translation of the Greek writer Erasmus; 'I have learned to call wickedness by its own terms: A fig is a fig and a spade a spade.' This would make it 300 BC or so. The saying is meant to indicate someone who speaks frankly. 'Spade' is clearly a racist term in the United States, likely due to the black color of the spade, as in shovel, or the spade, as in the Ace of Spades. Therefore, the saying has also had its meaning adjusted to 'if someone is black, call them black.'

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[Kirsten]

yes, spade is a term for a black person. it was widely used by the 'beats' and the counterculture groups of the '60s in the U.S., not necessarily in a negative connotation.

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[abdus-shaheed simms]

Calling a spade a spade... Meaning To speak plainly - to describe something as it really is. Origin It pre-dates the slang use of the term spade meaning Negro as exemplified in 'as black as the ace of spades'. In use since at least 300BC.

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