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This is a article, thanks for sharing. Also, I cringe every time someone claims they had a student/patient/whatever named La-a.

Thanks for sharing!

@Anya: me too!

@Anya: so that *is* a real joke? I have a couple biracial friends (black & white) that can pass for white. They have always said I wouldn't believe what white people said about black people behind our backs.

Overall this is a good article. Let's keep in mind when we reinforce the idea that black kids have (or supposed to have) these black names then we reinforce the idea that when black kids are not named in this way they have white names. Either way teasing ensues. If a white person asked me to help them with pronouciation as the teacher does in this article I would not be any help and would take offense.

@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: I am the same and it's so awful the things I hear because people think I am white.

OP, thank you for posting this article. It was very interesting and eye opening. It will definitely give me pause before discussing any "younique" names I come across.

@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: I think people think they are telling a true story.. I don't know, it's a bit perplexing. I've had it happen twice during real life conversations and it comes up every once in a while on here too. If you search "crazy baby names" there is a thread.

Really interesting article! I've really never thought of "name shaming" as a form of racism before, but this article made me think.

Has anyone read the Freakanomics chapter on names? It raises the point that people with traditionally black names tend to be less successful not because of their name, but because if they were born in to a family that would use that name, the likelihood is that they are of a lower socioeconomic class and therefore haven't been afforded opportunities that would lead them to success. A synopsis below:

"The data show that, on average, a person with a distinctively black name—whether it is a woman named Imani or a man named DeShawn—does have a worse life outcome than a woman named Molly or a man named Jake. But it isn't the fault of his or her name. If two black boys, Jake Williams and DeShawn Williams, are born in the same neighborhood and into the same familial and economic circumstances, they would likely have similar life outcomes. But the kind of parents who name their son Jake don't tend to live in the same neighborhoods or share economic circumstances with the kind of parents who name their son DeShawn. And that's why, on average, a boy named Jake will tend to earn more money and get more education than a boy named DeShawn. DeShawn's name is an indicator—but not a cause—of his life path."