Question: “How do you hide something from a black person?”

Answer: “Put it in a book.”

Subject’s Analysis:

“It’s funny and embarrassing because it’s true to the stereotypical extent. I learned this joke watching a movie, I think. It was when I was in my teens, I believe it was a progressive movie, like a satire. I don’t feel comfortable repeating it around other races or demographic, most black people don’t.”

Collector’s Analysis:

Being a member of the African American community, I have mixed feelings about this entry. I feel that it is untrue of me, however, I know of others who do not read frequently if at all. As we discussed in class though, jokes like this can become a self fulfilling prophecy. The more that people joke about blacks being uneducated and illiterate, the more that the community will feel that it is okay to be such. So while I felt that this joke was slightly humorous, overall I don’t think that it is very funny, it is supposed to have that effect for black people I think. If Jeremiah saw it in a conscious movie, then it was intended to illicit shame from blacks who were watching, and possibly encourage change.