To think this is a racist expression?

[Mrsknackered]

'One cotton picking minute'. My GM uses it A LOT especially when dealing with our DC (who are mixed race, although this is irrelevant)
DP has already pulled her up on the amount of gollys displayed around the house (in paintings, cards, china ornomants) he explained the history of them too her, she seemed to understand, then the next time she had put them back up!
I told her I think the expression has racist/slavery roots and showed her the google result for the phrase (which the top post describes it as an awful racist phrase) she seemed upset and said that it definitely isn't, and she's sure it is said in an episode of Vicar of Dibley ()
Whilst I was packing the car to leave this morning, I heard her use it twice! I spoke to my mum who said that 'I shouldn't be too upset, as she honestly isn't doing it with bad intentions' but it's really grating on me.
AIBU? Everyone seems to think I'm being over the top! It is racist isn't it?!

@TheHungryDonkey

Golly defender to me = Wanker.

I doubt anyone who defends gollies gives a shit if you think they are a 'wanker.'

People have got so bored with the naff political correctness from the whingeing lefties now, that they don't give a shit about anything they say.

As you were. Rant away. No-one cares....

People have got so bored with the naff political correctness from the whingeing lefties now

I am not a leftie.

You do take pride in this "blithe bigot" persona don't you olive?

olive trust me you're standing out as the odd ranty one on this thread.

I had no idea it's considered racist - although it's not a phrase I ever use.

I do use 'long time no see' though, am I being inadvertently racist?

I couldn't give a shit.

olive trust me you're standing out as the odd ranty one on this thread.

I couldn't give a shit.

I've only heard it in Looney Toons cartoons. I wouldn't think anything of it on its own.

I used to say "as a rule of thumb" a lot, until I found out the phrase originated from the width of stick a husband could legally beat his wife with. Then I stopped. Same here too. But some people almost say things as verbal tics. If she'd said it twice just while you were packing the car that's probably what it is. It'll stop when something else replaces it.

You do take pride in this "blithe bigot" persona don't you olive?

Oh yeah, i am sooooooo proud of it.

I am just a big old racist bigot me.

And homophobic too ya know.

My fave toy growing up was my little golly.

And I have a collection of about 100 of them now. all shapes and sizes.

I'm from the US south. Any phrase referring to the cotton industry you should veer away from: Cotton picking hands, cotton picking minute, we're in high cotton, etc.

Sure, poor white people picked cotton too, but it was an industry built on black chattel slavery.

Come to think of it, most colourful phrases from the old south are racists. Half the population was black and in bondage. Fact is, slavery tainted everything. Sadly, it's almost impossible to have uncomplicated nostalgia about this part of the USA.

All that said, I think your GM's intentions matter. Ignorance and habit are more forgivable than malice and spite.

^people were picking cotton in England

Not in our climate!

Agree that many phrases might be offensive if you knew the origin, but some of them have become "naturalised" - such as Long time no see.

But if you ask her not to say it round your children that's final. My late MIL had a habit of saying The thing is this much and when I heard DS, then 5, say it I told her she had to stop it in his presence because it is absurd.

She makes me laugh vlad. She's sure she's defending something worthwhile. Like a metric martyr gone to the bad

"Long time no see" is actually a direct translation from the Chinese. Chinese is much more clipped and abbreviated from English. What we think of as Chinese people speaking poor or pidgin English is often just a direct translation.

nell If it's any consolation dd was a lot older before she really understood racism. Correctly speaking she isn't direct mixed race, but due to a mix of ancestors she doesn't look vaguely Caucasian.

She was reception age when she casually told me she and her bf had been racist at school. Turned out dd had her wires crossed and thought it meant falling out with someone a different colour, so I had to explain it. But she couldn't really understand it, because in her experience treating somebody differently because of their skin/ religion/ culture was too stupid to be true. She just couldn't grasp why anybody would care about skin colour, to her mind it was as irrelevant as eye colour. Kept asking why they didn't just play together and be friends and see they were the same inside. She was quite a bit older when she really understood the full implications.

What, pray, are "Moslems" and "ethnics" and why do we need to know that your golly has that particular name?

(That was to the rottie, obvs)

Until reading this thread, it had never crossed my mind that cotton picking could be considered offensive. Literally, absolutely no idea.

Wouldn't you have just a bit of self doubt when you find yourself aligning with the thread nutter

So, if the jam people (Robertsons?) made a white skinned, soft toy and badges etc, would anyone be now saying that was racist?

Why would they guardsman?

why do we need to know that your golly has that particular name?

Presume that Rottie thinks it's really funny because of uncle Tom. So just more goadiness really.