That’s interesting. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a black person say “peckerwood.” But I’ve heard white males say it many times. Maybe I was missing something growing up in MS.
Most black people I know would never use the term, since it is a slur, is bigoted, and is likely to be provocative. Many white males have adopted the term, either as a dubious honorific or in its original usage, as a slur:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peckerwood
I grew up in S. Central MS, and I don’t remember hearing any black person talking about ‘peckerwoods’. Heard it from plenty of white folks, though.