Changes

==Modern Usage==

==Modern Usage==

The name "Uncle Tom" Uncle Tom has become a pejorative term used by [[African American]]s to describe a black man who is ''overly submissive'' to white people, betraying his black roots.  Sometimes it is used to describe a black person who seeks favor or acceptance with white people by way of unnecessary accommodation. It is also used as a pejorative against any black person who chooses to support conservative ideas or Republican Party candidates (notwithstanding that, without Republican support, slavery would not have been outlawed after the Civil War, and neither the Civil Rights Act nor the Voting Rights Act would have passed Congress.   

The name "Uncle Tom" has become a pejorative term used by [[African American]]s to describe a black man who is ''overly submissive'' to white people, betraying his black roots.  Sometimes it is used to describe a black person who seeks favor or acceptance with white people by way of unnecessary accommodation. It is also used as a pejorative against any black person who chooses to support conservative ideas or Republican Party candidates (notwithstanding that, without Republican support, slavery would not have been outlawed after the Civil War, and neither the Civil Rights Act nor the Voting Rights Act would have passed Congress).   

This use has been criticized by others who point out that Uncle Tom was not submissive, but was beaten to death for refusing to submit. They also dislike the term as it suggests a black/white divide that implies interracial communication and friendship is improper.

This use has been criticized by others who point out that Uncle Tom was not submissive, but was beaten to death for refusing to submit. They also dislike the term as it suggests a black/white divide that implies interracial communication and friendship is improper.