Ugh!

For the record, I'm aware that my first post to this thread and the comment that I reposted from another Mudcat thread contain mistakes such as words that should have been deleted in a correctly done cut & paste job.

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Since I'm here, let me mention that with regard to children's playground rhymes-the category of study that I'm most interested in on Mudcat-there are examples of contemporary children's rhymes that mention race and have text that document problems between people of different races. One rhyme that appears to be widely known in the USA among Black girls is this is an updated version of the rhyme "Down Down Baby" also known as "I Like Coffee I Like Tea" Here's a portion of that rhyme:

I like coffee I like tea
I like a Black boy and he like me.
Step back White boy. You don't shine..
I'll get a Black boy to beat your behind.

Down Down Baby-Race in Children's Rhymes

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There are other contemporary examples of children's rhymes that may appear to mention race but actually the children who chant them don't think of them as referring to race or ethnicity. "Shimmy Shimmy China" is an excerpt of this type of rhyme:

Shimmy Shimmy China
I know karate.
Shimmy Shimmy China
I can shake in my body.

-snip-

The children who chant this rhyme consider "China" to be a girl's name and not the name of that Asian nation or a referent for people of Chinese ancestry. This example is a good reminder for me that sometimes adults interpret children's rhymes and songs differently than adults do.