Nine nursery rhymes you probably didn’t realize were racist

Mildred Europa Taylor January 18, 2020
Image result for ‘Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moe’ children
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Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moe

You might have sung this during a game of Hide ‘n’ Seek while growing up. If you thought you were singing about a tiger, well, the original lyrics show you are wrong.

According to The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes, the original lyrics are:

“Eenie, meenie, minie mo/
Catch an nigger by the toe/
If he hollers, let him go/
Eenie, meenie, minie mo.”

Believed to be rooted in the slave trade, it has been documented that the idea of the song comes from what people thought white slave owners would do if they caught a runaway slave.

Last Edited by:Kent Mensah Updated: January 18, 2020

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