Sometimes you’ll hear someone who’s about to go into a job interview say “Feet don’t fail me now!” First off, people need to realize this is a racial saying. The saying dates back to vaudevillian minstrel shows where an African American performer would be scared by something and say “Feets don’t fail me now!” before running away. With that in mind, saying this probably shouldn’t be socially acceptable. It’s one of those things that should be more racist than it is. Saying “Feet don’t fail me now” is a step below wearing blackface. I don’t think enough people realize it’s a minstrel show saying. For those people who don’t, it still doesn’t make sense. Why would anyone say “Feet don’t fail me now”? When has anyone had their feet fail them? Even if you’re running and can’t run anymore, usually it’s your legs that give out before your feet. No one has their feet just collapse under them. Legs are the real heroes when it comes to walking and running. What’s the worse that could happen if your feet fail you? Just have them amputated and use fake feet. If your legs fail you that’s a much bigger problem. If you lose your both of your legs entirely you’re not running anywhere even with prosthetics.
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| Saying "Feet don't fail me now" calls back to a time when blactors only performed as racist caricatures. |
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