‘Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moe’
Children often utilize this rhyme to determine who’s “it,” especially during a game of Hide ‘n’ Seek. However, the lyrics to this song were not originally about a tiger. The real lyrics, according to The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes, are as follows:
Eenie, meenie, miney moe
Catch an [N-word] by the toe
If he hollers, let him go
Eenie, meenie, miney moe.
‘Five Little Monkeys’
This nursery rhyme has been taught to many children to help them learn how to count. However, the original words used in the song have far less benign implications. Instead of “Monkeys,” “Five Little Monkeys” (also known as “Ten Little Monkeys” originally used the “n word” or “darkies” as a reference to Black people. But in that context, does the current edit make this nursery rhyme any less derogatory?
