The 1st Gen British Colony Accent

As I've gotten lazier with my speech, people have begun telling me that I sound southern. I suppose that makes sense. The southern accent is the closest thing to an English accent still left in the United States. Well outside of the British colonial English speaking accent that comes from former colonies, such as Jamaica, Trinidad, Pakistan, India, Mauritius, and more. Former victims of the crown or Queenie as my grandmother, so oddly, fondly calls her… Share a sort of overlapping accent when they speak English. It has all the makings of a proper English accent without the actual English accent. All of these places also began to overlap with each other as slaves and indentured servants were dragged across waters to do the bidding of England. So many of these countries, remnants of the original accents remain along with that strange English pronunciation. I didn't quite have a word for it until a couple years ago when I began to get close with somebody that didn't share a similar background to me in this way. Until that I had some American friends, but almost entirely spent time with my family or other members of former British colonies. That's my safe space. I couldn't quite understand, at first, why I didn't like this person's accent. We were dating. I always believed myself to have an American accent, so I didn't know why I didn't like his American accent. I didn't know until he started to point out all the little things I said differently, some of which I had been teased for during K through 12. Particularly comfortable, question, and vegetable. If you know how these words are pronounced, then you know. No need for me to break it down. It was then that I realized that I did not have an American accent. I have a West Indian accent. I have a flattened , Americanized West Indian accent. And I like i. I  love the way I speak. When slowed down, when speaking lazy I sound southern because I am pronouncing things the English way with a slight West Indian accent. The people around me have been doing the same. Prior to this, I'd really only dated other people whose families have a similar accent to my family. First gen West Indians, Pakistanis, or Indians. I did date one Puerto Rican guy, and I did hate his voice. I also hate him. I struggle to imagine, listening to a true American accent in my own home. I love the rise and fall of the former colony Americanized accent with a vocal fry. I love the way it sings. I love the way it swings. I love the story. It tells I think it is a beautiful part of the diaspora of us. I think it's kind of crazy how despite being pulled from Africa and Asia or having our countries cut up by by thoughtless British leaders we have somehow ended up in this country together and created our own accent. An accent that is detectable by each other.  It’s also a hot accent. Mine is particularly strong by nature of growing up in South Florida minutes away from the cricket stadium, Joy's Roti Delight, and the Dutch Pot. Yet when I had a Hinge profile people were swiping up commenting that they think I have a sexy accent. That's not something I would've ever said about myself, but when I hear it on other people, I do love it. It has all the suave of an English accent without the silly sounding English accent. I'm an English accent hater actually. It makes me laugh… like it sounds very unserious to me. But when I hear a long “O” on a flattened accent with a vocal fry, it's music to my ears…

I think there's something extra special about those of us that grew up in Florida, though. Mez in particular had an accent so similar to mine, I could barely hear him when he spoke. All I could think was “what sweet melody is this?” He sounds douchy, I think all of us sound kind of douchy. His manifests almost like a frat guy. However, I hear it, I hear the accent. In manifesting the syntax a lot too outside of the pronunciations. It sings. It maintains the melodies of the languages we spoke before English. Languages far better thought out than English. Not the hodgepodge of inconsistency that has become one of the most spoken languages. I don't know if I included this in my books or even in my blogs, but I started talking to Mez over the phone before we met in person for our first date. His voice really sold me. When I hear an American man accent in a hinge prompt it makes me want to block. 

In conclusion, I'd like to know of any of you feel this way too. A lot of my friends respond to my blog post by texting me. I encourage you to use the comment section so that I can easily take a screenshot and post on my story. Thank you!