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Essaibi George to become president of Boston Big Sister

By adamg on Fri, 10/21/2022 - 11:28am

The Dorchester Reporter reports on the next full-time job for the former city councilor.

Neighborhoods: 
Boston
Topics: 
Politics
Free tagging: 
Annissa Essaibi George


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Comments

By Mark- on Fri, 10/21/2022 - 12:42pm.

I think I’d like her just fine, if it wasn’t for some of her obnoxious supporters.

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By emac on Fri, 10/21/2022 - 2:07pm.

If she didn’t go out of her way to be “a moth-ah and a teach-ah and a bootlick-ah” to win their support. Two way street with the R-challenged “real bahstonians.”

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By Brent Jeffries on Fri, 10/21/2022 - 6:57pm.

She’s a “big sistah.”

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By Matt Frank on Fri, 10/21/2022 - 7:47pm.

Something about mocking someone's Boston accent , within Boston, irks me.

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By Brent Jeffries on Fri, 10/21/2022 - 11:04pm.

I suspect no one would be saying anything if she did not obviously exaggerate it to pander.

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By Matt Frank on Sat, 10/22/2022 - 7:31am.

Justify it anyway you want I guess. Honestly it gets really old really fast though. I have the accent and I've had people who literally moved here five minutes ago (and then left two years later) make fun of it. If you don't have one and you are not from here that's fine but im just telling you as someone who's dealt with that bullshit it sounds stupid and classist as hell when people come here and pull that sort of thing. You are inside the 128 belt, that's the accent that's known in the area. Would you go to another country and mock people in India or Ethiopia or France in the same way?

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By BostonDog on Sat, 10/22/2022 - 9:08am.

I’ve lived here for a long time, don’t have the accent, and feel the same way. The jokes aren’t funny and they get old.

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By Brent Jeffries on Sat, 10/22/2022 - 10:11am.

I hear you and I imagine it would be irritating, especially after a long time. I’m curious about one thing, what is/was your reaction to her exaggerating the accent in order to make you think she’s “one of you?” Talk about classist… and manipulative.

I get it, Boston accent jokes are old. But when it comes to her the accent jokes are about her pandering, not about the accent itself or the people like you who speak with it naturally.

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By Matt Frank on Sat, 10/22/2022 - 1:13pm.

For starters she's not faking it, she's accentuating it. I've spoken with her one on one , in group settings and I've heard her speak. That woman is definitely a Dorchester gal. Hey syntax, her vocal patterns, how she presents. I was personally shocked to find out she wasn't Irish at all tbh. I do remember the "drama" around her putting a little more umph into her accent and honestly I think some of you are just refusing to let go of it because you don't like her or her politics.

I live in Chelsea and while my Spanish isn't even close to fluent I've been here my whole life. I'll tell you this much, when Latino politicians and community leaders are giving a speech in Spanish they accentuate very differently then in a one on one setting. That's their language, their culture and I respect it. Do you think I should walk into Bellingham Square with a bullhorn and imitate that Spanish speaking community leader though? Does anyone here think that would be appropriate?

I'm gay and I know plenty of gay professionals and politicians. I've got news for everyone, they will sometimes add in the yasssss queen when making points to other gay people. Yeah some are always like that while others will put it on a little thicker when the time is right. Would that make it ok for a straight person to parade around Provincetown mocking those speech patterns?

Finally, can we draw a distinction between a Boston accent holder using the accent in a positive light vs non accent holders using it in a negative light? I think what annoyed me with this sub thread was it has nothing to do with any of that yet somehow I knew someone(s) would of course drag it back up. The horse is dead.

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By emac on Mon, 10/24/2022 - 9:13am.

Do you remember why she dropped her Rs extra hard? It’s because she was trying to other her opponent — “don’t forget, she’s an Asian woman who’s not from here, she’s not a real Bostonian!”

Right before AEG got beat by 30 points, her eighth (or ninth? I lose count) loss to Wu.

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By Matt Frank on Mon, 10/24/2022 - 10:55am.

For the record I really really like Michelle Wu. I also couldn't vote in this race. I also don't really care or see why it's irrelevant who got what votes. It just shows you are looking at this through a political grudge perspective as opposed to a logical one. Completely ignoring the POV of others (Yeah Townies can talk in psudeo intellectual jabbah too when we aren't chugging Dhunks and pahking our cahs in Hahvad Squahre)

Just keep being ignorant and continue practicing that particular brand of accent elitism I guess. What do I know, I'm just some chowdah-head anyway right?

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By Michael Kerpan on Sun, 10/23/2022 - 2:31pm.

... I adored hearing the various Boston accents. When finally getting to move here (for good) many years later, I was rather sad to see just how much less common it was to encounter Boston accents. I wish I had at least a bit of an accent, but I don't think I will ever manage to acquire one.

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By dd808 on Sat, 10/22/2022 - 6:43am.

I think it wicked pissa.

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By deselby on Sat, 10/22/2022 - 3:41pm.

You are right to be annoyed. Those people mocking the Boston accent are trying to signal they are of a higher class.

There's an arbitrary standard for accents - some are judged to be ok, some not.
I've known a few older real Brahmins of the type which is less prominent in the city. 17th century names. They dropped their Rs but the vowels were a bit rounder. Still, a Boston accent. Somewhat like JFK.

It's really ridiculous, "as if" standard American diction with vocal fry is so classy

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By Matt Frank on Sun, 10/23/2022 - 1:46pm.

I'm decidedly not from Brahmin stock but my accent is a bit more like JFK than Dorchester or Revere... In fact I had a job in Dorchester for a bit and at one of my first steps into a public meeting with locals I introduced myself and said "While I'm not from Dorchester , I do share the same accent as many of you" and a guy from the back of the room yelled "That's not our accent, that's not Dorchester!" I was like, well ok then, this is wicked awkward.

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By Matt Frank on Sun, 10/23/2022 - 2:06pm.

Duplicate

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By JJ3 on Fri, 10/21/2022 - 1:38pm.

who's that

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By joecab on Fri, 10/21/2022 - 3:42pm.

She didn't pay all the vendors that supplied materials for her campaign. If that's how she conducts business, why deal with her?

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By Mark- on Fri, 10/21/2022 - 7:57pm.

Essaibi George is still sending out campaign-labeled email, which sounds like she’s planning to run for something again. If so, this sounds like a story worth checking out. I prefer politicians who pay their bills.

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By g on Sat, 10/22/2022 - 6:19pm.

(a long time ago) I was interviewed by a linguist to document my Bahston accent. I have been stopped a number of time across the country and Canada and asked about the Sox or the Celtics or what parish I'm from.

If you have it, flaunt it.

Seth Myers got it mostly right.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLwbzGyC6t4

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