That You Mean No Harm Does Not Lessen The Sting

Lately, I have heard the phrase, “to Jew you down,” way too often.

I have gone to a lot of yard sales. At yard sales, people often ask if the seller will take a lower price. Sometimes, sellers ask prices that are high. At least for yard sales and at least for me. When a price seems high, I sometimes ask if the seller will take a lower price. They say yes or no. Some buyers argue for a lower price. Some say what the arguers do, and even what I do, is try to “Jew” someone down.

Recently, several sellers have talked to me about people who will try to “Jew you down,” no matter the asking price. It bothered me to hear that phrase used. I regret to say that I did not question those who said it to me.

It bothers me a lot that this prase is so prevalent. If I hear it again, I hope I’ll say to the person: “What do you mean by that or why are using that particular phrase?” Hopefully, we could talk about it.

Most people who use the phrase don’t mean it to be rude or disrespectful of Jewish people. Many who say it do not even know Jewish people. Perhaps knowing people who are Jewish helps one to be sensitive to the negative implications of this type of phrase.

The phrase is an insult to the Jewish people and/or religion. It is prejudiced and thoughtless and hurtful.

If you would ask people what they mean when they use the phrase, most would probably say they mean trying to get the lowest price. But I doubt many could tell you the origin of the phrase. It is just one of those phrases that gets passed down without thought or consideration.

Although it is not good to be “cheap” - never giving, wanting something for nothing, returning used merchandise for refunds - being a good shopper is a good thing! My sister agrees. My sister and I are both Irish-Swedish-German-Norwegian Methodists. So you can use “to Irish-Swedish-German-Norwegian-Methodist you down.” But stop with the phrase “to Jew you down.” It is inaccurate, insensitive and hurtful. And just plain wrong.

Think about what you say. Many of the most used and familiar phrases should never have been said in the first place and certainly should never be said again.

MEMO: Your Turn is a feature of the Wednesday and Saturday Opinion pages. To submit a Your Turn column for consideration, contact Rebecca Nappi at 459-5496 or Doug Floyd at 459-5466 or write Your Turn, The Spokesman-Review, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210-1615.