'They Talk About Me Like a Dog'

"They talk about me like a dog," said President Obama at a Labor Day speech in Milwaukee on Monday. He departed from his script to throw it in, which we know because he told us that too.

Where did he get the unusual line? It could have been Jimi Hendrix, whose song, "Stone Free" included the line: "...people try to pull me down, they talk about me like a dog, talk about the clothes I wear..."

Mark Liberman at Language Log has found at least four other references. One is an interview with Bobby Brown in Ebony. "They (the press) don't know me," said Brown, "and they talk about me like a dog."

He also noted an African-American preaching anthology, Preaching with Sacred Fire, which includes a sermon with this line:

The only way you can bother me out there is if I let you in here. And so I've decided tonight, you ain't getting in here. Roll your eyes at me; cuss me out; talk about me like a dog, but you ain't getting in, because, Satan, I know where you want to go. You want to control my reality.

One could also cite p. 241 of Ray Charles' autobiography: "They'd talk about a man like he was a dog. They'd call him crude, call him filthy."

Or, it could also be from Muhammed Ali who, as he was preparing to fight Sonny Liston, is quoted by the Lewiston (OK) Constitution as saying: “…They gonna talk about me like a dog when I lose, so when I win I let them all know it."

The saying is not uncommon in African-American street vernacular, or so I'm told. All the references cited so far come from black people. The expression usually includes a subtle drawing out and emphasis of the word "dog."

Unfamiliarity with black culture no doubt explains why several conservatives thought Pres. Obama was talking some kind of secret Muslim code language.

You wonder why he said it, and what it's about. Is he saying that his opponents--in the context of the speech, most likely GOP leaders and big bankers--look down their nose at him, give him the brush-off, show no respect?

I wouldn't be a bit surprised if that weren't true. Even in news clips, when they ought to be wanting to appear nicey-nice, their contempt for the president is obvious.

This is why I think the president took the line from Hendrix, and that he knew the line that follows: "They talk about me like a dog. Talkin about the clothes I wear. But they don't realize they're the ones who's square."

Comments (3)

James Bordonaro

Perhaps the republicans have got it wrong...isn't a dog the most loyal and trustworthy of all species? The more I know about people the more I appreciate my 3 dogs!

Posted by James Bordonaro | September 8, 2010 9:23 PM

Posted on September 8, 2010 21:23

Peter Tramel

Weird that conservatives don't understand the President in this instance, since his (and Hendrix's) intended use of that phrase is as common in ordinary white Southern vernacular as in ordinary African American vernacular. Aren't ordinary white Southerners supposed to be the conservative base?

Posted by Peter Tramel | September 9, 2010 5:11 AM

Posted on September 9, 2010 05:11

Dawn

This is a very common expression amongst African-Americans. I had a black female manager who used it. Of course I also know white people who say it. IT'S NOT MUSLIM. It's just an expression. I think President Obama must be very worn out and frustrated when he uses it. It's sad.

Posted by Dawn | September 12, 2010 9:27 PM

Posted on September 12, 2010 21:27

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