accent Archives - The Race Card Project

Can you say that again? LOL.

February 12, 2026February 15, 2026 accent, Caitlin F., Canada, East Coast, first language, frustrated, Midwest, NH, Southeast Asia

Caitlin F.,
NH

My Dad and his family are all from Canada, with thicker Canadian accents. Over time, his accent has become less noticeable, but growing up I did seem to also have somewhat of a Canadian accent. My accent became more mixed after living in the Midwest US and Southeast Asia. I never noticed it until I moved to the East Coast, to a predominantly white area where there wasn’t a lot of movement in and out of the community. I was constantly made fun of for how I speak. People (adults and kids!) would ask me to repeat a word and then say it back in a mocking way. It frustrated me and really embarrassed me, and made me not want to talk much in school. I was so taken aback that people went out of their way to interrupt a conversation to point this out. English is my first language, so I can’t imagine how horrible it makes people who are learning English or English as a secondary language.

Ashamed by parent’s accents. I’m American!

January 23, 2025January 23, 2025 accent, American, ashamed, different, Edina, first generation, MN, other, parents, speak my own language, thick accent

Caroline Correia,
Edina, MN

Growing up 60 miles away from New York City in the 70s and 80s may as well have been 600 miles. As a child, I was acutely aware of what “other” felt like, even within my whiteness. My town was white, Catholic, and it wasn’t the kind of place you just landed in – you were there for generations. I am first generation American, and my parents are German. We weren’t like other people in our small town. My Dad worked in the “city” as a hairdresser (but he is not gay, try to explain this over and over), they both had thick accents that none of my friends could understand, we didn’t have any family in this country so holidays were just the 5 of us, we listened to classical music and opera at home. We missed so many cultural references that everyone else just seemed to know. And I felt is so deeply – the differences didn’t feel good, they felt like something I should run away from. I refused to speak German at home, I didn’t want my parents to meet friends, I never talked about our traditions, I felt such deep shame and resentment. Without realizing it, I see it only now so clearly, that I sought connection to anyone else in my town that was also different. My church friend was the sole black girl, my tennis partner was the Korean adoptee, my first boyfriend was the black quarterback, the second one was the Jewish boy. They all bore the mark I had of “otherness” in our community. College was the turning point in my life. I was exposed to students AND professors from bigger worlds. I realized my background made me unique and people thought it was special. “Good” different, not “weird” different. It it taking me a lifetime to come to terms and try to understand all of these feelings within my “whiteness.” I spent too much of my young years harboring anger at my parents and their choices for raising their family in such an insulated area. They were trying to do the best for their children, sacrificing for us, giving us a good life. They saw our town as safe (they are both children of WW2.) This need for physical safety was more important than emotional safety, which was never considered nor spoken of. I have learned to be grateful for my childhood because this is how I practiced straddling multiple identities. I can navigate any space I occupy. I have learned to understand. I am still learning.

You have something like Korean accent

September 9, 2024September 9, 2024 accent, Anna Hong, Korea, South Korea

Anna Hong,
South Korea

Judgment based on an individual’s ACCENT.

April 2, 2024April 2, 2024 accent, Ame Cruz, Black-white, CA, individual, judge, judgement, Sacramento, sound

Ame Cruz,
Sacramento, CA.

It’s not just about blacks & whites. People tend to judge based on others’ accents as if they’re not good enough because they don’t know English well.

Your accent… Are you from here?

April 2, 2024April 2, 2024 accent, CA, English, Ivan Vazquez, rejected, Sacramento, Spanish, vocal chords, where are you from

Ivan Vazquez,
Sacramento, CA.

Although I was born and raised in San Diego, CA ; I grew up in a household that comprised of both the English and Spanish language, about 60% English and 40% Spanish. I am a child of second-generation immigrants and even though I received my entire education in English, I came to realize an accent was attached to my vocal chords. The ironic thing about it all, even when I was in Mexico among other Spanish speakers I received the same reaction and came to learn I also have an accent when I speak Spanish. I don’t necessarily feel rejected, however, on that same token I don’t really feel as I belong to either group…

Am I American o de alla

December 1, 2022December 1, 2022 accent, america, American, clothes, language, Mexican, speak, talk, tortillas, white-washed

Juan Dominguez,
Sacramento, CA.

Mexican people say I am a shame to our people with gauges in my ears, the clothes I am wearing, the fact I do not have an accent when I speak. It’s like I was raised in America but by Mexicans that eat tortillas with every meal celebrate mothers day the 10th of May. Am I white washed or just a mix of both cultures?

Life Divided By A Common Language

October 18, 2022October 18, 2022 accent, American Accent, Bronx, David H Lippman, English, father, London, mother, New Yorker, Newark, NJ

David H Lippman,
Newark, NJ

My situation is different…my mother is English, my father a third-generation New Yorker, so I either sound like I come from The Bronx or from London.

The accents switch at the slight move of my tongue, which can be voluntary or involuntary. It’s involuntary if I’m talking about specific subjects. I can’t talk about baseball in an English accent. I can’t talk about British history in an American accent. It even impacts my emotional reactions. I can only say, “Bloody hell” in an English accent and “”Ya gotta be kidding me” in an American accent.

On numerous occasions, I will say some phrases in the “wrong accent,” which is involuntary. An outfielder makes a fine running catch at Yankee Stadium and I say to my pal, “That was rather well done,” in an English accent. I finish buying a pizza in New Zealand, rattle off the end of the order, and add, “That’s all she wrote” in my Bronx accent. Everybody gets puzzled.

Because of this dichotomy, I failed US Navy broadcasting audition. The instructor said my voice was a cross between Walter Cronkite (CBS) and John Snagge (BBC), two legendary newscasters. “Your voice is a cross between The Bronx and London,” the instructor said, which I knew.

However, I answered him, “Well, look here, old boy, (British) what the **** are youse talkin’ about? (Bronx)”

They sent me to a broadcast unit anyway, where, among other things, I had a radio show, and my Senior Chief, a great character, called me in said, “Dave, if you ever say ‘shhedule’ instead of ‘schedule’ again, I’ll kill you. It wasn’t the only time I lapsed into English on the station…I introduced a segment on the Nagasaki bombing by quoting William Shakespeare…in English. British English. Our headquarters guys commented on the segment: “Why is the narration in an English accent?”

When the sergeant who did the markup came to us, she got NOTHING but the English accent from me. She was puzzled and amused.

It leads to other things, some bad, some good. The bad was when I was a kid and my English voice was associated by my schoolmates with latent homosexuality. Therefore, I had to be beaten.

The good side was that I could understand both British humor (based on puns, absurdity, Benny Hill in a dress, Goon Show inside jokes, and Monty Python multiple characters and animation.

And American humor: Three Stooges slapstick, Marx Brothers three-corner lunacy, Mel Brooks satire, and Abbott trying to con Costello.

Totally different theories.

Other different theories: history itself. I had trouble when the Americans fought the British in two separate wars, even if the first created America. I had relatives on the British side. I had even more trouble with historical myths, as a guy who writes World War II history for magazines. The movie “Patton” is wrong. Montgomery was not a strutting, jealous, incompetent in a Paisley scarf. There was no “Race to Messina.” The movie scene never happened. WW2 was won by John Wayne, Errol Flynn (a Nazi sympathizer), and the kid from Arkansas who was too young to die.

More importantly, I do not and never will regard the Royal Family as a source of gossip, fashion, and entertainment. My family has served them in battle and as civil servants since 1680, all over the world, sometimes landing in unmarked graves, doing so at their command. They are direct connections to Britain’s past and who we are. When the Prince of Wales speaks out for the World Wildlife Fund and environmental conservation, when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex work on the Invictus Games, when the Duke of Cambridge goes to New Zealand to console victims and survivors of a ghastly hate crime, it’s reminding New Zealand that their future king is not a distant ruler, but — as he put it — the future head of “the family.” I take that seriously. Americans do not. They worship the Kennedys and the Kardashians. The former for glamor and wealth, the latter for glamor and low-cut dresses.

A few years ago, I went to an event hosted by the British Consul-General in New York to mark the 100th anniversary of The Somme. My great-uncle went over the top on the first day with the 1st London Scottish and was never seen again. Great War language is very familiar to me. After the event, two of our diplomat hosts said to me, “Well, we’re done here. You’ll have to leave now.”

I smiled and said, “That’s a diplomatic way to say ‘Naff off sharpish,’ right?” They cracked up.

America provides opportunity for English accent

June 30, 2022June 30, 2022 accent, america, Andrew, British, CA, CEO, English, immigrant, Irvine, multi-cultural, opportunity, SoCal

Andrew,
Irvine, CA.

Love America and as an immigrant British CEO recognize the opportunity afforded by this forward thinking multi cultural environment that is SoCal

Wow, you don’t have an accent!

April 26, 2022April 26, 2022 accent, Allentown, Angelina A., Chile, Chilean, culture, Dominican, Hispanic, PA, Spanish, you don't sound

Angelina A.,
Allentown, PA.

I myself always get asked about questions about my racial and ethnic background and it never has bothered me. I usually always say I am half Dominican and half Chilean, then I go on to explaining that my dad is from Chile and my mom is from The Dominican Republic. Although I was born in New Jersey, I do not identify myself as being an American even though I know I am. This may be because my Hispanic culture is deeply rooted within my family and household, Spanish is my first language and I did not learn English until I went to school. Now it does bother me when people are amazed by that and say that I don’t have an accent or that I speak well. As if just because I spoke Spanish first they would EXPECT me to have an accent or not speak English correctly. That to me is actually insulting.

No, I’m not faking my accent!

January 2, 2022January 2, 2022 accent, fake, household, immigrant, latina, NY, Panamanian, Rachel James, Syracuse, you don't sound

Rachel James,
Syracuse, NY.

Growing up in a Latina household I learned the English that my mother spoke as a Panamanian immigrant. Therefore, I learned to say certain words while rolling my r’s or with an accent and I don’t notice it because that’s how I learned to pronounce them. But because I look more African than Latina people always think I’m “faking it”, “trying to be something I’m not”, or “trying to show off”. Seriously!? No, I’m not faking my accent!

Not you, you’re from the Caribbean

October 6, 2021March 14, 2022 accent, Caribbean, FL, Half, Indian, Johanne Rahaman, Miami

Johanne Rahaman,
Miami, FL.

I am half black, half Indian, from the Trinidad, with an obvious Caribbean accent, and while I enjoy adding my bit to the diversity of America, it’s also a curse, because I have often in the past heard people make derogatory comments about African-Americans in my presence. They have referred to them by the n-word, then looked over at me and say, “but not you, you’re not black. You’re from the Caribbean”. This used to infuriate me so much but I was undocumented at that time, so I never said anything, but I always felt ashamed for getting a pass. Now that I am a citizen, and I consider myself proud to be labeled African-American, no one dares to say that in my presence. I would tell them off, and I even tell off Caribbean people who think that they can use that pass as some kind of superiority. I stand up for African-American any chance I get. I am a photographer, and most of my work is done in the marginalized African-American and Haitian communities of Miami, where I use my talent to spotlight the faces of the people of marginalized communities for their resilience, their talent, the survival, their beauty.

I have an Indian accent, so?

June 27, 2021 accent, Batul Roowala, Indian, migrate, Mumbai, own race, UK, United Kingdom

Batul Roowala,
United Kingdom

Born and brought up in Mumbai.. I migrated to the U.K., working as a pharmacist, 18yrs ago. Still at times I get mocked at for my Indian accent and usually it’s by the people of my ‘own’ race!

Thirdculture and don’t understand white culture!

June 24, 2021June 24, 2021 accent, assume, comfortable, compute, culture, Doral, English, FL, head, hear, Kit Robison, logic, skin, thirdculture, understand

Kit Robison,
Doral, FL.

I am most comfortable when the primary language is other than English. People assume I understand when they hear a lack of accent and see my skin but no your cultural logic did not compute in my head.

Got an accent. In five languages

November 2, 2020November 2, 2020 Aberdeen, accent, African, Cameroon, country, different, immigrant, Ioana Hojda, Itlay, language, mixed, mother, passport, Romania, SD

Ioana Hojda,
Aberdeen, SD

Immigrant, white wife of an African immigrant and mother to mixed boys. We have moved to the US from Italy, our first country of immigration. When we travel abroad we have three different country passports for 5 people: Romania, Cameroon and the US.

Colombian? Where is your accent?

October 14, 2020October 14, 2020 accent, Boston, Colombian, MA, Spanish, Yessica Guarin Arias, you don't sound

Yessica Guarin Arias,
Boston, MA.

Yes, I don’t have the same accent as the actors and actresses on TV. The reason to why is because they were born in a specific part of the country in which I am not from. However, people only hear these people speaking “Colombian Spanish”. When in reality Colombia has many different accents depending on the area that you live in.

Did you grow up wearing shoes?

September 21, 2020September 21, 2020 accent, ambassador, Appalachian mountains, CO, Denver, East Tennessean, grow up, Home, Jessica Anderson, middle class, overalls, shoes, stereotype, white

Jessica Anderson,
Denver, CO.

I grew up in the Appalachian mountains of East Tennessee, but I now live in Colorado. People always ask ridiculous questions when they find out where I’m from, including, “Did you wear shoes?” and “Where are your overalls?” Being a white, M.A. holding, middle-class woman doesn’t shield me from these stereotypes. As a result, I have made my accent a little bit stronger; I want to be an ambassador for our beautiful, multidimensional region of the United States. East Tennessee will always be home.

I’m only allowed to be white

September 20, 2020February 21, 2021 12, accent, American, Carrie Hunsinger, College, DE, descent, Detroit, Dutch, first experience, Half, Holland, immigrant, school, Speak English, Syrian, white, Wilmington

Carrie Hunsinger,
Wilmington, DE.

I am a 1/2 first generation American. My Mother is American (Detroit) and my father is Dutch (Holland). He’s been here almost 60 years and he still speaks with a heavy Dutch accent and therefore I speak English with a bit of a Dutch accent.
When 9/11 happened I was in college in Newark, NJ. I remember talking about the events in class afterwards and getting yelled at by a Syrian girl during a class because I was talking about my fear of seeing backlash attacks in NJ. From her view I couldn’t know what it was like to be immigrant’s kid in America, because I was white, and could not have immigrant parents. A few days later cops pulled my father over on the highways with a bunch of other people because they were looking for terrorists driving mini-vans and he fit the description since he was tan and had an accent.
I have lost count of how many times I been told that being Dutch and being white is the same thing. That all of the western part of Europe is the same. I’ve been told being of European descent, especially being Dutch, automatically makes both racist and more at fault for slavery then other white people because of the Dutch slaves ships. Also, as I am constantly being mistaken for being German, I have been blamed for the Holocaust as well. I am not allowed to be a Dutch-American, or even a European-American. I don’t normally even see Caucasian listed anymore on forms. I am definitely not allowed to understand immigrant issues or what it’s like to be the first in your family to graduate college, or to have a family that overcame hardships and poverty to find the American Dream. I am not allowed to not be at fault for this country’s past (or Europe’s involvement) even though I learned in school along with all the other immigrants kids. I am part of the problem and at the same time, I’m told there’s nothing I can do help be part of the solution because as a white person, I am the problem.

White people in Jamaica no tourist

September 15, 2020February 21, 2021 accent, first experience, Jamaica, Rubani Streete-Hamilton, tourist, United Kingdom

Rubani Streete-Hamilton,
United Kingdom

I remember one of the first times I went to Jamaica for holiday and to see my family. I’m British born but both my parents are Jamaican. We were out in the bush when these two white people with dreads came through cutting down the bush with a mustache. They greeted us and had a full blown conversation in a thick Jamaican accent and using patois perfectly (something I, being of 2 Jamaican parents, had yet to master) which had me thinking, at 7/8 years old, are they taking the piss?

So i asked one of the adults, why did those white people sound Jamaican and he just straight face say ” because they’re Jamaican, how else would anyone sound Jamaican if they not born here”

That’s when i realized colour doesn’t matter and realised how easy it is to have a racist idea but also how easy it is debunked. People who are too scared to challenge their racist thoughts either have an ignorance they refuse to address or haven’t been given the chance to. I try to remember this when dealing with people with racist ideas and stereotypes.

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