“To Protect and Serve”: African American Female Literacies

“To be successful in environments where White middle class values dominate, Black females must learn the language and literacy practice of style shifting/codeswitching” (Richardson 691). Style shifting or codeswitching is an important concept in this passage. “Codeshifting has been defined as ‘a shift between different language systems. It refers to the change between overall dialect systems, such as that between a standard and vernacular dialect’” (Richardson 691).

This particular passage is important because I have found myself in various situations where I too have had to “codeshift.” I have realized that I "codeshift" quite often. I had to do it when I interviewed for a paid internship with Fears Nachawati Law Firm (where I am the only black employee), and I also have to "codeshift" at church. My pastor taught us about “codeshifting.” At the time I did not know the name for it, or that there was a name for it. He taught us not to use “slang” or vernacular language in the pulpit, but to use proper English and to pronounce our words. I believe that this is important because it is a major focus of all black parents for their children not to feed into any of the black stereotypes that whites have for us, but to exceed and excel and to break the stereotypes.

This passage was compelling as well because in the reading by Leoni C. R. Smith she discusses how in an all white environment while she was getting her bachelor’s degree her white peers could not understand her either because of her vernacular or her accent. This reiterates why it is importance to be able to switch between the two so that people can understand you and so that you can better communicate.