UNCLE TOM
Uncle Tom n. (1922) Origin US; applied to a servile black man; from the name of the hero in Harriet B. Stowe’s novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, (1851-52). 1967, Punch, "An obligation… applies constantly to all underdog groups, constantly tempted by rewards to uncle-tom, to pull the forelock." 1977, New Yorker, "Pryor goes through his part pop-eyed, playing the Uncle Tom for Uncle Toms."" This definition and usage can be found in The Oxford Dictionary of Slang(41). In the New Dictionary of American Slang, a short definition is given. "Uncle Tom n. a black man who emulates or adopts the behavior of the white majority"(451). The Random House Dictionary, the 1987 edition, gives a more detailed definition; "Uncle Tom, disparaging and offensive. a black man considered by other blacks to be subservient to or to curry favor with whites. 1. Uncle Tomism, a policy of relationship between whites and blacks involving a benevolent but patronizing attitude on the part of the whites and a willingly submissive attitude on the part of the blacks"(2056-57). Random House’s earlier edition (1966) has a slightly different definition, "Uncle Tom n. Contemptuous. A Negro who is abjectly servile or differential to whites. Also called Tom." The definition for Uncle Tomism remains the same except for the term black (1987 edition) which replaced Negro (1966 edition).
Cassell’s Dictionary of Slang defines it as a noun and a verb. "Uncle Tom n. [1920] (origin US Black) 1. Subservient Black person, fitting willingly into the stereotyped and inferior image refined by generations of White supremacy. 2. [1990’s] a tattle-tale, a