Capitalizing Black But Not White Shows Respect
False Assumption: Capitalizing 'Black' honors shared history and identity of people of African origin, while lowercase 'white' is appropriate due to lack of comparable shared culture.
Written by FARAgent on February 10, 2026
In the late 1980s, civil rights leader Jesse Jackson urged a shift from "Black" to "African American" to emphasize shared heritage among people of African descent. This push influenced media and academic language, setting a precedent for treating racial terms as markers of identity. By 2020, amid national protests over racial injustice, editors Dean Baquet and Phil Corbett at the New York Times formalized a style rule: capitalize "Black" to honor its cultural and historical significance, while keeping "white" lowercase due to what they described as a lack of comparable shared experience. Other outlets followed suit, often citing parallels with capitalized terms like "Native" and "Indigenous."
The change drew praise from some quarters for recognizing Black identity, but it soon faced pushback. Critics, including linguist John McWhorter, questioned the evolving terminology, arguing it risked inconsistency and unintended bias. Commentators like Steve Sailer highlighted how the asymmetry insulted white people and amplified perceptions of media favoritism, potentially deepening racial divides. Some saw it as a subtle signal of disdain, contributing to broader cultural tensions.
The debate remains hotly contested today. Mounting evidence from style guides and public discourse challenges the original rationale, with critics arguing that uniform capitalization could promote equity without favoring one group. Proponents defend the distinction as a valid nod to historical context, while dissenters point to its role in fueling polarization. The issue continues to divide experts in linguistics and journalism.
People Involved
- In June 2020, Dean Baquet and Phil Corbett, editors at the New York Times, sent a memo to their colleagues. They announced the paper would capitalize 'Black' but keep 'white' lowercase. They cited internal discussions and a desire to show respect. [1]
- John McWhorter, a centrist Black linguist, raised questions in a 2025 New York Times piece. He examined the evolution of terms like 'African American' and pointed to imprecision in racial language. His words acted as a warning amid the capitalization debates. [2]
- Back in 1988, Rev. Jesse Jackson pushed for 'African American' over 'Black'. He aimed to add pride in heritage. This influenced terminology, though it did not ban 'Black'. [2]
▶ Supporting Quotes (3)
“… — Dean and Phil”— Time to Decapitalize "Blacks?"
“In the New York Times, centrist black linguist John McWhorter and centrist journalist David Leonhardt try to make sense of current race and ethnicity designations like “Black and white””— Will the press ever apologize for racist capitalization?
“In 1988, when the Rev. Jesse Jackson had a massive influence on the Black community, he basically declared that we need to start calling ourselves African Americans rather than Black”— Will the press ever apologize for racist capitalization?
Organizations Involved
The New York Times took a lead role in promoting the assumption. In June 2020, it adopted uppercase 'Black' while leaving 'white' lowercase. The paper enforced this style in its coverage to signal respect for Black history and identity. [1] The Associated Press followed suit. It capitalized 'Black' to honor Black identity, aligning with the New York Times and others. [1] The Washington Post diverged. It chose to capitalize both 'Black' and 'White', creating an awkward but even-handed exception to the trend in prestige press. [1] During the George Floyd Racial Reckoning, most news media mandated capitalizing 'Black' but not 'white'. They enforced this asymmetric style as the new standard. [2] The New York Times also published discussions on racial terms, all while upholding its capitalization rule. [2]
▶ Supporting Quotes (5)
“back in the mad month of June 2020, the New York Times announced it would henceforth spell “Black” with a capital B, but continue to spell “white” with a lowercase w”— Time to Decapitalize "Blacks?"
“The change will match what many readers are seeing elsewhere. The Associated Press and other major news organizations have recently adopted “Black,””— Time to Decapitalize "Blacks?"
“With the exception of the Washington Post’s awkward but at least fair-minded choice to capitalize both “Blacks” and “Whites,””— Time to Decapitalize "Blacks?"
“During the George Floyd Racial Reckoning, most of the news media decided to mandate writing "whites and Blacks" as a racist insult of whites.”— Will the press ever apologize for racist capitalization?
“In the New York Times, centrist black linguist John McWhorter”— Will the press ever apologize for racist capitalization?
The Foundation
The assumption took root in the idea that 'Black' described a shared history and identity among people of African origin. This seemed credible after staff consultations at outlets like the New York Times. It led to related beliefs that whites lacked a comparable culture and that uppercase 'White' marked hate groups. [1] Editors pointed to capitalizing terms like 'Native' and 'Indigenous' as consistent. This analogy appeared reasonable for ethnic descriptors. Yet critics argue it misled by overlooking that these are not proper nouns like continents, which disrupted grammatical symmetry. [1] The rule built on the view that 'Black' deserved a capital for its cohesion, while 'white' did not. This gained traction amid 2020 racial activism, but mounting evidence challenges the resulting asymmetry in racial respect. [2]
▶ Supporting Quotes (2)
“We believe this style best conveys elements of shared history and identity, ... While there is an obvious question of parallelism, there has been no comparable movement toward widespread adoption of a new style for “white,” and there is less of a sense that “white” describes a shared culture and history. Moreover, hate groups and white supremacists have long favored the uppercase style,”— Time to Decapitalize "Blacks?"
“The new style is also consistent with our treatment of many other racial and ethnic terms: We recently decided to capitalize “Native” and “Indigenous,” while other ethnic terms like “Asian-American” and “Latino” have always been capitalized.”— Time to Decapitalize "Blacks?"
How It Spread
The assumption gained ground after the George Floyd protests in June 2020. Major news organizations adopted the style change, driven by nationwide talks on racism. [1] African-American publications had long used uppercase 'Black'. This practice influenced the prestige press during the protests. [1] The idea spread through media mandates in the 2020 Racial Reckoning. Outlets enforced it as standard style. [2] Social pressure from the Reckoning led to swift adoption of capitalized 'Black'. Resistance brought little controversy, much like Jesse Jackson's 1988 push for new terms. [2]
▶ Supporting Quotes (4)
“At The Times and elsewhere, the nationwide protests over racism and police violence have prompted discussions about many aspects of our coverage.”— Time to Decapitalize "Blacks?"
“which has long been favored by many African-American publications and other outlets.”— Time to Decapitalize "Blacks?"
“During the George Floyd Racial Reckoning, most of the news media decided to mandate writing "whites and Blacks"”— Will the press ever apologize for racist capitalization?
“Our culture was less cancel prone back then, so he didn’t succeed in banning the word “black.” Offhand, I don’t recall anybody getting in trouble for continuing to use the word “black,””— Will the press ever apologize for racist capitalization?
Harm Caused
Critics argue the style choice highlighted media bias against whites. It contributed to heightened racial animus in American society. [1] The practice treated whites asymmetrically, framing lowercase 'white' as inferior while elevating 'Black'. Growing questions surround whether this insulted whites and deepened divisions. [2]
▶ Supporting Quotes (2)
“What could have made clearer the media’s racist hatred of whites?”— Time to Decapitalize "Blacks?"
“mandate writing "whites and Blacks" as a racist insult of whites.”— Will the press ever apologize for racist capitalization?
Downfall
By 2025, a New York Times discussion by John McWhorter examined the awkwardness of 'African American' and the evolution of terms. This raised questions about the ongoing capitalization practice. Critics argue for a media apology, pointing to the exposed asymmetry. The debate remains contested, with mounting evidence challenging the original assumption. [2]
▶ Supporting Quotes (1)
“‘African American’ Is Awkward. It’s Time to Use ‘Black.’ The linguist John McWhorter on how language around racial identity is evolving. July 29, 2025”— Will the press ever apologize for racist capitalization?
Sources
- [1]
- [2]