Uncle Tom

noun, Disparaging and Offensive.
1.
a black man considered by other blacks to be subservient to or to curry favor with whites.
2.
a person of any race who exhibits overly deferential behavior, especially a female.
Compare Aunt Jemima.
Origin
1920-25, Americanism; so called after the leading character in Uncle Tom's Cabin
Related forms
Uncle Tomish, adjective
British Dictionary definitions for Uncle Tom

Uncle Tom

noun
1.
(informal, derogatory) a Black person whose behaviour towards White people is regarded as obsequious and servile
Derived Forms
Uncle Tomism, noun
Word Origin
C20: after the slave who is the main character of H.B. Stowe's novel Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852)
Word Origin and History for Uncle Tom
n.

"servile black man," 1922, somewhat inaccurately in reference to the humble, pious, but strong-willed main character in Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel, "Uncle Tom's Cabin" (1852). The image implied in the insult perhaps is more traceable to the late 19c. minstel show versions of the story, which reached a far wider audience than the book.

I don't recall anyone in the 1920s using the term 'Uncle Tom' as an epithet. But what's amazing is how fast it caught on (in the 1930s). Black scholars picked up (the term) and just started throwing it at each other. [Ernest Allen, quoted in Hamilton, Kendra, "The Strange Career of Uncle Tom," Black Issues in Higher Education, June 2002]
As a verb, attested from 1937.

Slang definitions & phrases for Uncle Tom

Uncle Tom

noun phrase

A black man who emulates or adopts the behavior of the white majority; a servile black man; afro-saxon, oreo

[1922+ Black; fr the title character of Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel Uncle Tom's Cabin, who was stigmatized as a dishonorably submissive black]