Play the white man

Play the white man is a term used in parts of Britain meaning to be decent and trustworthy in one's actions. The similar American expression is "that's mighty white of you" with the meaning of "thank you for being fair".^[1]

The origin of the phrase is obscure. The colour white has long been associated with purity and virtue in English culture, but the racial sense of the expression may refer more explicitly to the administrators and soldiers of the 18th, 19th and 20th-century British Empire.

In popular culture

In the movie Bringing Up Baby (1938), Cary Grant uses the phrase "that's pretty white of Mr. Peabody." In this sense it meant as being noble.

Television

An episode of Coronation Street in July 2013 featured the expression as a plot point. Paul Kershaw (Tony Hirst) uses the phrase during a game of darts at the local pub as is promptly accused of racism by Lloyd Mullaney (Craig Charles). Lloyd is joined by his friends but both men refuse to back down, due to differing thoughts of the phrase's connotations.^[2]
In the Showtime original series Californication, the character Hank Moody (David Duchovny) uses the phrase regularly.
In "The Way Through the Woods," an episode of Inspector Morse, DCI Martin Johnson (played by Malcolm Storry) tells Inspector Morse not to "play the white man."

Film

In the Spike Lee film, She's Gotta Have It (1986), Jamie uses the phrase "that's mighty black of you." In this sense, it means courteous. Hence the reverse meaning of play the white man.

References

↑ Smitherman, G (2006). Words and Expressions, Proverbs and Familiar Sayings. Word from the mother (pp. 45). Routledge: New York.
↑ Coronation Street July 12 2013

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White people

Caucasian race European peoples West Asian peoples North African peoples Bold refers to countries and territories in which White/European people are the majority group

Worldwide diaspora, descendants and immigrants	Africa Algeria Angola Botswana Democratic Republic of the Congo Kenya Morocco Namibia Saint Helena South Africa Tunisia Zambia Zimbabwe Asia Pakistan United States Canada Bermuda Bahamas Barbados Cayman Islands Israel Jamaica Latin America Argentina Bolivia Brazil Chile Colombia Costa Rica Cuba Dominican Republic Ecuador El Salvador Guatemala Haiti Honduras Mexico Nicaragua Peru Puerto Rico Uruguay Venezuela Oceania Australia New Caledonia New Zealand

Historical concepts	Aryan First white child Honorary whites Play the white man Racial whitening Branqueamento / Blanqueamiento White Australia policy The White Man's Burden White gods

Sociological phenomena and theories	Acting white (Passing as white) Angry white male Missing white woman syndrome Skin whitening White flight South African farm attacks White fragility White guilt White privilege Whiteness studies Whitewashed film roles White savior

White American caricatures and stereotypes	Poor Whites Redlegs Rednecks Mountain whites

Identity politics in the United States	US definitions of whiteness One-drop rule Christian Identity Non-Hispanic whites White Anglo-Saxon Protestant White ethnic White Hispanic White nationalism White pride White separatism White supremacy

Scientific racism	Human skin color Color terminology for race Alpine Armenoid Dinaric East Baltic Irano-Afghan Mediterranean

Commons

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Play the white man

In popular culture

Television

Film

See also

References