Trying hard to be classy

In a burst of procrastination today, I came across a friend of a friend’s MySpace page. Sure, she looked kind of hot, so I proceeded to check out the profile. Most of her pictures had little kids in them; I could never figure out whose kids they were. Not that it matters; she lives somewhere in Pennsylvania, a down home country girl. But after a while I came to realize that these toddlers — a boy and a girl — are named, wait for it… … …Mercedes and Lexus. Lexus is the boy.

For the love of Christ, why? Do you think those kids seem classy? Do those names make you feel sophisticated? Did you even consider what these kids are going to experience when they get older and people see they are named after automobiles? Why not just cut to the chase and name the Prius and Rav4?

I don’t understand why people try to class up their kids with names that only cry out “trailer trash.” OK, that’s a bit harsh, but seriously, we’ve also seen chicks named Crystal, Kristal, Diamond, Ruby, etc. It’s an attempt to raise these people from the depths of poverty to…ridicule?

Just as you’re 99 percent sure who you’re dealing with when you see a Sheniqua, Keisha or anything that begins with La- or T’, you have a good idea of what type of person you’ll meet when you encounter Mercedes and Lexus. Sigh.

UPDATE: This post seems pretty harsh. I’m sure Mercedes and Lexus are or will be nice people. And I have nothing against African-Americans…my point is that when people see your name, they will automatically assume you are someone — and often they’ll navigate towards negative stereotypes (white trash, ghetto chicks) before they even meet you. It can be detrimental.