Superspade is a term that has been used since the early 1900s to describe
African Americans
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa ...
that were exceptionally gifted in different areas. The label was primarily given to athletes (e.g.
Jesse Owens
James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens (September 12, 1913 – March 31, 1980) was an American track and field athlete who made history at the Athletics at the 1936 Summer Olympics, 1936 Olympic Games by becoming the first person to win four gold meda ...
,
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...
) and entertainers (e.g.
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
,
Sidney Poitier
Sidney Poitier ( ; February 20, 1927 – January 6, 2022) was a Bahamian-American actor, film director, activist, and diplomat. In 1964, he was the first black actor and first Bahamian to win the Academy Award for Best Actor. Among his ot ...
). The term was used to capture "the essence of what was expected of black folks. They had to be sensational." (Behee 1974) It stems from the notion that in order to be recognized, accepted and successful, individuals who were black had to outperform their white counterparts.
References
* Behee, John. ''Hail to the Victors!'' Ann Arbor: Ulrich's Books, 1974.
* Leab, Daniel J. ''From Sambo to Superspade: The Black Experience in Motion Pictures.'' Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1975. {{ISBN, 0-395-19402-4
African-American society
African-American slang