Can White people Really Comprehend the Words NIGGA and NIGGER the way I do? Does it keep us, African Americans, down as a race? Does it hurt our reputation as a ethnic minority in America? And does any, ANY white man (or women) have the right to say it because they see a black person say it. The answer to this question to all of these question is simply NO. Sorry White Guys And Gals...
I know you probably thinking " well if he can say it why can't I say it?".The emotion the comes with a white individual saying the word compared to the emotion of when a fellow black individual says the word is profoundly different. Basically when White People say the words they mean something entirely different when Black people say it to me. And Through my experiences the words meaning and use has spread from terms of endearment to angered racial slurs. And even when my close white friends let it slip, I rewarded them with a harder than play punch to the arm. And though they do not mean the word as harmful they fail to see my problem with their use. The Answer is simple...
Your Ancestors screwed it up for you. Sorry to sound so shallow minded but This Evokes Deep emotion. And if you still feel that my logic is unfair I completely understand that you don't understand. I don't expect that concept of respect that comes along with the use of the word. I also know that you would like more of an explanation and I dont want to even try and explain it all in one log entry because it wouldn't get the attention it needs so this is just the introduction. Any questions before I start my new blog tomorrow will be appreciated
NIGGAS and NIGGERS PART 1
By track_recka_2 - Posted on July 25th, 2008
Tagged: africa • Humanity • Race • roots
• African American
• african-americans
• N word
• Race Relations
• Racism
• Personal freedom
When I was in college, I took a class on Global Ethnic Minorities. I was the only "white" student in the class. During the first week of study, one of the other students (a young African-American woman) turned to me during a class discussion and told me that I "didn't have any business" being in the class, and that there was no way in hell that a white man could ever hope to understand what it was like to be discriminated against. My response to her went something like this:
"Oh, really? Well, I've actually been fired from a job because of who I am. Can anyone else in this class say that? Can anyone in this class tell me what it is like to see your boyfriend or girlfriend beaten nearly to death by a group of thugs with baseball bats, because of who he or she is? Have any of you ever been thrown out of your homes, because of who you are? Have you ever been denied service at a public business because of who you are? Have you ever had someone try to shoot your or kill you because of who you are? Well, I have had all of those things happen to me, and so I think that I probably have a pretty darn good idea about what its like."
Of course, I wasn't discriminated against, attacked or harassed because of my race, but rather because of my sexuality. But the girl in my class did the same thing that you are doing now. She failed to see beyond the color of my skin and to consider who I was as an individual person. Dehumanization is one of the first steps towards discrimination, since it is very easy to do something terrible to a distantly considered thing, and much harder to do the same thing to a person with whom you identify on some level.
In a similar anecdote, my college advisor (who happened to be the first openly gay professors at my alma mater) was teaching English 101 to a group of incoming freshmen (that included me). Dr. R. was quite well known because of his controversial public stance, but he had tenure, and back then that still meant something. During the class, one of the African-American students (a guy) raised his hand and very politely asked the question (and I apologize for the use of the terms which follow, both of which I find personally distasteful), "How many g's are there in the word 'faggot'?" Ever the quick wit, Dr. R. continued to write on the board and said causally over his shoulder, "The same number that you find in the word 'nigger'." I for one took the point of his response to heart.
As for your contention that a "white man (or women) [doesn't] have the right to say it because they see a black person say it," that position is plainly hypocritical. All discrimination is based on some kind of double-standard. If you don't like the word used on you, then don't use the word on yourself. I think there is a valuable lesson here to be used from the Dykes. "Dyke" used to be seen as a truly derogatory term in the lesbian community. But then that community decided to reclaim that word, and turned it into a celebration of their identity, rather than a slur. I have a friend who responds to comments like, "You're a dyke!" with a big smile and a "Yes I am, thank you for noticing," completely emasculating the intended attack against her.
If you really believe that "white people" cannot understand you, or your experience, then you are quite frankly part of the problem, and not part of the solution. If there is no possibility for us to understand one another as humans, then this kind of discrimination will never be overcome. That doesn't mean that you have to excuse assholes who use terms like the n-word as a weapon, but you should I think realize that your position here only exacerbates the problem.
So in answer to your question, "Can White people Really Comprehend the Words NIGGA and NIGGER the way I do?" I would say the answer is without a doubt, "Yes." I do think it is unfortunate, however, that so few people--on both sides of this racial divide--are willing to step back and TRY to understand each other.
TTFN,
Blackout
-------------------------
Yes, I've changed my username from "percivale" to "Blackout." Go here if you want to know why.
While you certainly know what it is like to be discriminated against, that does not mean you understand that word "nigger" the same way he (or any other black person) does. This is a word specific to black people, our history and all of our struggles. White people can understand and compare it to their own lives and history, but they can't know what it's like to be called a nigger and every feeling that comes with it.
I'm kind of back and forth on the word Dyke. While I know many lesbians who refer to themselves as such, I've had too many people say it to me as an insult for me to be completely comfortable with it.
Black is Beautiful
...that is complete and total bullshit. Humans have far more in common with one another than they do differences, and the idea that we cannot fundamentally relate to one another is the one of if not THE core premise behind all discriminatory attitudes. If you can't connect with that, and if you can't see the way that other people experience the same things you do--perhaps filtered through their own unique perspectives as individuals--then like the gentleman above, you are part of the problem rather than the solution. The particular detail behind WHY someone choses to discriminate against you may be different, but the EXPERIENCE of being discriminated against is the same, regardless of the excuse used by the aggressor to perpetuate his or her particular bigotry.
TTFN,
Blackout
"Black IS beautiful...but so are all the other colors, too."
-------------------------
Yes, I've changed my username from "percivale" to "Blackout." Go here if you want to know why.
The particular detail behind WHY someone choses to discriminate against you may be different, but the EXPERIENCE of being discriminated against is the same
That detail makes the difference. I didn't say we couldn't relate to each other, I said we understand a certain word differently. The Experience of being discriminated against may be more or less the same, but all experiences are not the same. When someone calls you a faggot do you think of hundreds of years of slavery? Do you think of Jim Crow? Do you think of gay men who were lynched all over the south? Do you think of your family and all the things they've had to endure for something they could never hide? Do you think about cultures that have been destroyed? This blog is about is about the word nigger and how blacks and whites relate to that specific word, not about discrimination in general. You might understand because you've had a similar experience, but not because you've actually had the same experience. So I stand by by first response.
And I know that all the other colors are beautiful, but that statement is about my personal experience and is the culmination of everything that's ever happened in my life and everything I've ever thought in relation to me being black (specifically a black female).
Black is Beautiful
I'm sorry i wanted to put my couple of sense in here.
I am Mexican-Irish-America.
And though this in no way means I have a right to speak about the descrimination of an entire race I had to ask: Why if this word brings up so many bad topics, Jim Crow, slavery , and such would you use it for one another. the wrod has a terrible meaning behind it yet you use it for yourselves. Now on a regular basis this wouldn't be bad except for the fact that you keep it's meaning alive by demanding other races not to use it. I have to agre with Blackout that this is a little to hipocritical. Take the word and through it out. No one should know such a horrible word. I like to curse I say "Fuck", "Shit", "Ass", and "Goddamnit". But i don't yell at anybody when they use it. By doing this i am incorporating it without a bad meaning. They are just words to me to express a feeling. But the N-word is a whole other ball game, you keep it's meaning, it is still a bad word because you make it one. Destroy the word, or destroy the horrible piece that is attached to it.
By the way i don't say it at all, and don't like to hear it from anybody...
Saint O Nothin' Says
Always go FORWARD, going straight will get you no where!
-Greenday
"some". I do not use the word, so I see nothing hypocritical in what I'm saying. It's easier said than done to destroy the history of the word. Blacks are not the only people using it. Also, not everyone wants it to be destroyed. There are people who still use it as an insult and those people do not care if blacks say it or not, so we alone cannot just destroy it no more than any other group can simply destroy a slur against them.
Black is Beautiful
I think of the centuries of burning, raping, and other horrific punishments, actually.
http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/ediblewoman
That still doesn't mean you feel what I feel about the N word, in the same way that I feel it.
Black is Beautiful
But I think Blackout's point was that he (and other people who have faced discrimination for any reason) can relate to the feelings that words can invoke. We may have different trigger words, but the feelings that rise up in us when those words are wielded against us as weapons are the same.
http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/ediblewoman
I understood what he was saying, but I'm not talking about general discrimination. I'm talking about the N word and the way I feel about it. I know we all have different trigger words, but the topic of this blog is one specific word and that word is a trigger for Black people. That is why I agree that a white person doesn't understand the word the way a black person does. Yes, a white person can abhor the word and know that it is dehumanizing to a black person, but they are not the ones who are actually being dehumanized. That word does not represent their oppression.
Black is Beautiful
You know (im going to have to step on a few toes here but please i don't mean any offense) Many people have been opressed, Look at the Jewish nation, they have gone through the Holocaust, Spanish Inquisition, Egyptian enslavement, plus racism from many people (on account of them being Jewish). There are so many opressions going on that i don't have time to mention them on.
My point is that the Black opression though a horrible one is just one of many and for us to get over it and live in a more "Progressive" and Equal society we have to shave off nicknames like the N-word. The n-word gives people something to harp on, you use it in daily life but don't wnat it to keep it's meaning with others. Drop the word as a society so only the racist use it, and well... only the racist use it. I don't even know what im saying. If people would let Slavery go into the past we would be better off. Just remember what happened as a page in the history book. If we don't do that it just builds hate against another race, and you know the word for that...
Saint O Nothin' Says
Always go FORWARD, going straight will get you no where!
-Greenday
I disagree. We don't have to forget the past to move forward. I know people like to say just let go of it, but honestly nobody is holding onto slavery. I guarantee you most black people are over it, that does not mean we have to never mention it and forget that it ever happened. There's no benefit in that. Slavery is a fact of history that has affected the present.
Black is Beautiful
But only for not censoring myself.
Not for my opinion.
In addition, after i posted that other comment i read the blog. And now I'm even more upset. Do you realize how you sound? Arguing for the advantage to use a word that was created to separate you from humanity? My God...
"Prefiero morir parada que vivir la vida en mis rodillas"
You want to slap ME? Or the blogger? You replied to my comment, though, so one might think you meant me. Be careful with those reply tabs. Pay attention to the flow of conversation. I don't think I said anything slap-worthy.
http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/ediblewoman
Lol..no not you. The blogger. I was trying to reply to your reply with the "f word" title. I guess i hit the wrong button.
"Prefiero morir parada que vivir la vida en mis rodillas"
I wish a Mexican American (or more ideally, a once indigenous person of what is now Mexico) would come and share his/her experience.
Indigenous people of the "New World" (modern day Mexico) were slaughtered, dehumanized, sacrificed, forced to change their religions and their language and their ways of life; they were raped and made into slaves and beaten and tortured until they renounced all of their beliefs and became more like the Spaniards.
People were placed in categories based on how "pure" their blood was. People born in Spain were the most "pure" and got full rights and control over people who'd lived in the area for thousands of years; next in line were the people of pure Spanish blood who were born in the New World; next in line were the Mestizos, people half-Spanish and half-indigenous; finally, the indigenous people, who were at the very bottom of the "food chain." Even after the Spaniards had completely destroyed the Indigenous culture and "civilized" those people, they smashed them into the ground, renouncing their rights, not allowing them decent jobs or education, not letting them shop at certain places.
Those people don't have a word associated with them that's as common as the word "nigger," but I'm pretty sure that they can 'relate' if that's what it is you're looking for. They don't need a word to evoke anything. In fact, I don't see nearly as many problems with them being "discriminated" against.
And their discrimination isn't even all in the past. People from the Yucatan who still live the way they did in their past are still ridiculously discriminated against.
I'm not saying anyone is better or more at fault; I'm sincerely asking, why were they able to (in a sense) "move on?" Why do we still dwell on the word "nigger" and our past in America?
I'd like to hear someone who's part of that culture and how they feel about it. :-B
----
Procrastination isn't the problem, it's the solution. So procrastinate now, don't put it off. [Ellen Degeneres]
How do you know that they have "moved on"?
I know people can relate, duh. But I'm talking about the specific feeling that comes with being a black person in relation to the word nigger. I feel like people are not even arguing about the same thing as I am.
Black is Beautiful
When someone calls you a faggot do you think of hundreds of years of slavery? Do you think of Jim Crow? Do you think of gay men who were lynched all over the south? Do you think of your family and all the things they've had to endure for something they could never hide? Do you think about cultures that have been destroyed? This blog is about is about the word nigger and how blacks and whites relate to that specific word, not about discrimination in general. You might understand because you've had a similar experience, but not because you've actually had the same experience. So I stand by by first response.
Your response here is predicated upon exactly the same falsehood that is at the root of all racial discrimination...i.e. the illusion of "race." When someone calls me a f*****, my first thought is usually something along the lines of "oh, look...another ignorant prick." That same thought pops up whenever I hear the term n*****. And yes, I do think about all of the various incidents, perpetuated over the centuries against my fellow humans. THAT'S the point, here. If you see yourself as black first, and human second...then you are buying into the lie that makes it possible for discrimination to flourish in the first place. If however you see yourself as human first, then the rest rapidly becomes irrelevant.
Each of the things that you mentioned (lynching, Jim Crow laws, etc.) have equivalents within the context of LGBT history, but that's not why I think our experiences are the same. I don't see the events you describe as something that happened to "you people," and the similar events in the gay experience as happen to "us people." I see them ALL as terrible things that happened to other humans. That common humanity is all that is needed for us to truly understand each other.
TTFN,
Blackout
-------------------------
Yes, I've changed my username from "percivale" to "Blackout." Go here if you want to know why.
I must concede.
one thing...
If anyone knows that race is an illusion it's me, but that doesn't mean that people who are perceived as being of the same race don't have similar experiences related to that perception.
I was watching Jesse Owens on YouTube today, and thought how great it was the he won four gold medals, for all the people Nazis thought of as inferior. It made me think of this disagreement.
Black is Beautiful
I'm gonna break from the mold and not respond to Blackout's post, though I do agree with him.
I'm going to explain this using a bit of religion, because that's the best way I can think of explaining this. But please, don't turn this into a religious argument... regardless of whether the details surrounding it are something you can believe in. This is about discrimination and the idea that someone else can feel the same way you do.
One of the criteria for converting to Judaism is that you have a 'Jewish soul', in that you must be able to feel the horror at the countless tragedies that have befallen the Jews, and must feel the need to rise above these tragedies. In other words, you must be able to feel like the Holocaust and the Spanish Inquisition and all those other things were just as much a part of your past as it is for anyone born a Jew. They attribute this to your soul having experienced these things, but it was born into a body that was not a Jew; that your soul was present at the giving of the ten commandments, but got lost for a time through the years, and was found again in a body that was not born a Jew. So, you are rejoining the community (not joining, rejoining) when you convert.
Now, to turn this back to the question of "can a white person experience the word 'nigger' as much as a black person can?", why couldn't a white person who grows up in a black community, one who empathizes so much with the black heritage, experience the word the same way a black person can? To spread it out even more, why couldn't someone who simply studies the horrors of the American slavery movement empathize with black people, and see the horrors of the word? You all certainly did not experience slavery yourselves... for many, it's in the past. So why is it any different for them?
In the end, it doesn't matter who says it. If the word is so distasteful, everyone should stop saying it. If the word brings up such emotions as to remember the Jim Crow laws and lynching, why should it be any different when a black says it than when a white says it? Contrastingly, if a bunch of friends are together and accept the word as the term of endearment the blogger claims it to be, why should it hold any different of a connotation when people of different color say it? It shouldn't, and to say otherwise is pure hypocrisy, and you can't change the meaning of the word by making that double standard, because you are keeping the original meaning of the word alive.
Interestingly enough, I'm listening to Pocahontas playing in the next room. Do you think 'savages' might carry any of the same connotation as 'nigger' does?
~C
Check out the latest entry in the Between The Lines column!
Want the highest rated list to change? RATE those blogs, then!
I have to agree with that actually, but only in cases like what you described because most white people do not grow up in the "black community".
Black is Beautiful
But i didnt even read your blog. I just read the title. Im tired of "who can say nigger" debates. I say..say what the fuck you want. It doesnt matter who you are. You'll learn, when you say it, who it offends. You'll see how offensive what you say can be from the reaction of the person/people you say it to. Your risk is not mine.
And maybe you'll never say it again.
"Prefiero morir parada que vivir la vida en mis rodillas"
I agree. Although in my experience, most people who complain about not being able to say the word(as if that were actually true) really just want to be able to offend anyone without repercussion.
Well well, what a way to learn!
The sad reality you brought up is mostly one which is projected out of balance!
What you brought up so well, is one of many favorite white male youngsters attitudes
and behaviors between the age of 12 and 18.
To learn the best way to say nigger!
Some even learn to put the right emotional tone in order to get the right effect out of it!
The “RISK” is mostly well calculated and limited, since those youngsters who refer to these verbal actions, always chose individuals half their own age to practice upon!
“You'll see how offensive what you say can be from the reaction of the person/people/you say it to.”
Nice to read niggers are persons too, amazing how honest you are, lol
I love the way you express yourself, all clear for all to understand the deeper emotions which linger amongst us!
Gracias,
http://www.ghostsofcitesoleil.com/
Are you saying that you think im a young white guy?
Are you saying that im classifying the word nigger to whom it is most appropriate?
Did you completely misinterpret my whole comment? I think so.
First of all...and this will probably seem pretty ironic to you, I'm black, female, and pretty much an adult. When i said that a person can say what they want, and to use nigger/nigga at their own risk i meant exactly that. I never said that when you decide to use it..that it was to be used toward black people. Step out of the box.
I have plenty of white friends. If they say it to me i honestly dont care. If they say it to my brother, they'll be picking their face up off of the floor. Doesnt matter how they say it. I've run in to problems before, and I've called white people (that have had problems with my race) what theyve called me, and its hilarious. I dont say it. I dont say it because of blogs like this. Not because of what it means. But because people actually want to fight for the right to say it... in spite of what it meant.
De nada...
"Prefiero morir parada que vivir la vida en mis rodillas"
“Are you saying that you think I’m a young white guy?”
I was indeed assuming you were some mixed up white male youngster set to create trouble!
It is easy to misinterpret what you brought up in your comment, since it was kind of filled up with a rather thin approach on a sensitive matter, regardless if it was written by a Black or White individual!
“Did you completely misinterpret my whole comment? I think so”.
That I misinterpreted your comment, well, depends upon how you look at things!
“First of all...and this will probably seem pretty ironic to you, I'm black, female, and pretty much an adult. When i said that a person can say what they want, and to use nigger/nigga at their own risk i meant exactly that. I never said that when you decide to use it..that it was to be used toward black people. Step out of the box.”
“If they say it to me i honestly dont care.”
In case they are your friends and would carry that specific emotional mind state when calling you nigger it will stick you with hurt just like anybody else would feel the sting of hatred.
Not because of the word, but because of witnessing and experiencing their inability to project themselves other than by creating that difference which wasn’t there before any conflict which might have risen, making you to realize they only accepted you for who you are to a certain degree in their personal reasoning and affection.
Often people unwarily lift the curtain of their true self when they are getting caught up in their inability to express their anger or malcontent other than trough a an emotional impulse of verbal hatred!
To handle yourself around situations like this which are projected by loved ones, can be a surprising experience, one needs to carry a wise heart to be able to deal with those realities which can pop up whenever situations turn out in projections of hate.
These situations are not to be compared with hatred coming from complete strangers which are far more easy to ignore or leave for what they are while feeling unaffected.
“If they say it to my brother, they'll be picking their face up off of the floor. Doesnt matter how they say it.”
That’s one approach to go through life...
“I've run in to problems before, and I've called white people (that have had problems with my race) what theyve called me, and its hilarious. I dont say it. I dont say it because of blogs like this. Not because of what it means.”
It only means as much as one is willing to give it credit when it comes from complete strangers. Yet again, to endure it from loved ones can provide one with a huge hangover whenever it hits or when hateful emotion comes to surface.
“But because people actually want to fight for the right to say it... in spite of what it meant.”
Blogs like these can open up new ways of understanding for each and every individual who is willing to think out of the box.
Anyhow I have yet again learned another lesson myself, I had pictured you white, while you are not!
Please believe me when I say, I hate when this happens, sorry about that, I will fix this!
Espera,
http://www.ghostsofcitesoleil.com/
"In case they are your friends and would carry that specific emotional mind state when calling you nigger it will stick you with hurt just like anybody else would feel the sting of hatred." I meant that my friends use the word the "black way". You know.. when its supposed to be cool and friendly and happy go lucky like in all the rap songs ;).
"Prefiero morir parada que vivir la vida en mis rodillas"
I agree it's different depending on who says it. I've been called "nigger" a few times by strangers and although it made me mad, I was able to get over it quickly. But if a friend ever called me such, that relationship would be over.
black is beautiful
Can White people Really Comprehend the Words NIGGA and NIGGER the way I do?
White people comprehend much more than they are willing to admit!
Most white people fully comprehend the effect it can bring forward when using these and many other words, why? Because it is part of their education which is filled with assumptions. When I refer to education I see it in a bigger picture, a global social one in which still today a necessity to put white (status) upon a pedestal above all other color is a strange reality which many try to keep alive.
Religion, media, commercials, schooling and parental education, logo’s and cartoons are only few items to mention which mould our mind states into creating a illusionary difference between you and me!
Most white people are not to be blamed for this occurrence because some past events have created this atmosphere which will not change overnight, it takes time and proper approach.
“Does it keep us, African Americans, down as a race?”
What keeps African Americans down as a race is an illusion they keep sustained for
themselves!
To go through life with a black is beautiful attitude is one thing, but some might consider to learn about the past in order to understand the present! Learning about past other than that of one’s own color is always a good way to grow certain enlighting knowledge.
One needs to understand the emotional structure of all individuals in order to understand why there is all that friction between Black & White!
Regardless of what many might think, relations between Black & White people have never ever before been as good as they are today, still there is a social unbalance in which many are living a life of struggle, mostly people of color are suffering from these effects. Which are manifested throughout a lack of equal opportunities of various life aspects.
Still, one needs to keep in mind White people are not fully responsible for what is taking place today when it boils down to these unbalances.
In many cases they are self-inflicted due to a lack of insight!
Over the centuries white’s have trained their social offspring to become wizards in various fields, I will not elaborate upon how but rather would I like to focus upon the importance of insight.
It is exactly insight white people don’t always fancy to share with whomever!
Are they to be blamed for this? NO!
Our human nature is responsible for this, many pay a lot a importance in achievement!
In order to gain achievement one needs to become a “will” wizard!
A wizard in life is a person who masters to bring structure in his/her surroundings, personal life and profession.
Those kind of individuals literally shape the face of the earth, some do or chose to do this in positive ways while others use their talent in order to create havoc in whatever field they venture in.
To understand this is to understand there is a need to address social conflicts from within the conflict zone, to create a proper understanding of what needs to be focused upon.
To build a place like “Neverland” one can consider to have been a poor choice, made in a time were solid bridges were created between Black & White people.
Nothing much has changed until today, luckily enough the bridges that have been created will never ever break down again, regardless of how negative a view one might carry about his own future.
People have gained some important comprehension and consciousness to the fact that racial division is not the path to follow because it leads nowhere we won’t to be, regardless of the color of one’s skin!
It is clear some are slow learners in the process, but they are not to be blamed, they don’t know any better! Therefore it is important not to mirror oneself to whatever individual who inflicts verbal pain! To mirror yourself is to become exactly what you dislike in other people’s behavior.
To swallow the injustice is to create and bring to life exactly that difference which is needed to create a change which will eventually become beneficial for all!
All individuals who walk around while venting their cancer of verbal abuse are actually nothing more than a fraction of what they represent in color and unfortunately for now still in a negative way, lacking the will to accept and embrace!
Regardless whether they are black or white, it doesn’t make sense to try and change their mind state! It doesn’t work that way, and in many cases causes more division than to “leave them be”!
Human minds are like matches, to understand how they work and how they are to be addressed in the right fashion is a challenge we all face from the moment we enter this world until we leave again.
To bring understanding is not achieved by imposing it, but by setting an example on a personal level! We all know what a single match can reproduce when it is lit carelessly in a dry forest! Same applies to us ALL!
Abusive individuals are not worth the attention, they aren’t worth to be taken in any form of emotional consideration because they don’t feel all that well inside their mind.
Does it hurt our reputation as a ethnic minority in America?
The only reputation one needs to focus upon is his own personal one!
“And does any, ANY white man (or women) have the right to say it because they see a black person say it. The answer to this question to all of these question is simply NO.
Sorry White Guys And Gals...”
People can say whatever they wish! To become a responsible person is learning to handle your personal emotional state in whatever situation. If other people are not responsible is not one’s own personal responsibility.
" well if he can say it why can't I say it?"
Because no one is forced to copycat him/herself to a level which might be inappropriate!
“I know you probably thinking The emotion the comes with a white individual saying the word compared to the emotion of when a fellow black individual says the word is profoundly different”.
It is as different as you assume or personally believe it to be from your own personal perception and emotional mind state, therefore an easy way to open the door for conflict to enter!
“And even when my close white friends let it slip, I rewarded them with a harder than play punch to the arm. And though they do not mean the word as harmful they fail to see my problem with their use.”
They only fail to see what your problem is because you make it a problem instead of a concern, one you could easily translate other than by a meaningless reward of punching frustration they wouldn’t understand anyhow.
“Your Ancestors screwed it up for you”.
Ancestors didn’t screw up anything! All ancestors black and white have provided us
ALL with the luxury we are enjoying today, not to grasp the sacrifice and path they have paved for us to walk upon is not to understand the value of freedom and expression it has brought to existence.
There is never a simple answer to explain why we experience life the way we do, but many simple questions we might or might not be able to answer for all to understand!
“Sorry to sound so shallow minded “
There is nothing shallow minded in what you have pushed forward, this is more than a sensitive topic which is not all that easy to grasp, while it affects us all on a daily basis regardless of color!
I understand my writing is not all that easy to follow, in case anyone wishes me to elaborate on items I brought up in this comment, I’m an open door.
I do have one question, when was the last time you got verbally abused?
http://www.ghostsofcitesoleil.com/
I believe parents should pay more attention when they raise their kids, meaning not to wait the day until their child comes home in a confusing state of not understanding why they are being called names they cannot relate too.
Schooling education is partly responsible for this too, some kids take such a blow in their self-esteem they forget about all the dreams they carried inside when experiencing sleepless nights wondering why some people out there bring hurt inside their heart.
No wonder some amongst don’t get the grades they could otherwise easily achieve to reach if their peace of mind wouldn’t be tackled by racist individuals.
A person can bring verbal hurt just for the fun of it, many don’t realize what they vented can remain and affect one for days, weeks even years (when physical) because of this sick behavior.
Especially kids are most vulnerable when it boils down to harassment, some get filled with anger while others become nothing more than an emotional shadow of what they used to be.
I actually wonder who is responsible and creating educational programs for schools, are those in charge just plain stupid not to realize autism, dyslexia, sexuality, racism and gayness are extremely important to be open-end up and discussed in detail at a young age, for all to understand those issues are a part of our daily lives.
Why allow youngsters to grow seeds of cancer which they vent upon others that don’t fit their mindset, isn’t school “that” perfect platform in order to mould a proper one in the first place?
Why aren’t there any books to inform children about these cancers some carry within and how to deal with those when they cross their path?
Is this yet again the veil and hypocrisy of religion which is trying to put its thumb upon
realities that matter for all who are trying to fit in socially?
Is it not the taxpayer who provides the funds for educational programs?
Have taxpayers no say whatsoever to point out needs which need to be filled in properly?
I wonder deeply!
http://www.ghostsofcitesoleil.com/
to the op
#1 I hate to break this to you but you dont have any right to say what words people are allowed to use or not use!
#2 my ancestors had absolutely nothing to do with yours being enslaved(provided you can even prove you are descended from slavery!)
It is hypocritical to the extreme for any black to say that "white" people arent allowed to use that word! Most of the people had nothing to do with slavery, it was reserved for the few, the rich and the powerful. As well many blacks in the states now immigrated to the USA and have nothing at all to do with slavery in any way shape or form...yet...according to you they are free to use the nigga/nigger terminology just due to their skin color....we have a word for that...its called racism! If you want to point a finger at me and call me a racist for calling you a nigger, then point that same finger at Shaquille O'neal for callling someone a nigger too!
Long and short: if you find the term nigger offensive dont use it, I dont use it because I find it offensive!
It really doesn't matter if your particular ancestors had anything to do with slavery. It was (and is) a word whites used against blacks to dehumanize them. Slavery is not the only thing that ever happened to Black people. There was this little thing called Jim Crow that lasted into the 60s (and early 70's in some places).
The way a person uses a word 99% determines if it will be offensive to someone. If a white person told some black person "what's up nigga", no one will probably get offended at the fact that a white person said this. But if a white person yells "stupid nigger", yes someone will get offended because it's obviously meant to be offensive. People don't get offended simply because the word is uttered. They get offended when the person saying this word means to offend.
And about African immigrants. African immigrants are still black. So even though they aren't descendant from slaves (in the US at least), they are still the people for whom that word was intended. "Nigger" is not a term exclusive to the US
I understand why many Blacks feel that it's ok for Blacks to say it and not whites. Even if a Black person said "nigger" as an insult to another Black person, it's makes no sense because it's kind of the pot calling the kettle black (no pun intended).
The OP seems to have a differing opinion... his white friends can say the word in the same way as his black friends, but he'll get offended over their use of it. So, the OP seems to think it's all about race, and not necessarily about the way in which it is said.
~C
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GOD IS A MYTH as OLD as MAN
lets see what our ol friend wikipedia has to say on the matter shall we?
"Nigger" is a noun in the English language, most notable for its usage in a derogatory context to refer to black people, and also as an informal slang term, among other contexts. The word originated as a term used in a neutral context to refer to black people, as a variation of the Spanish/Portuguese noun "negro", itself a variation of the Latin adjective "niger", meaning "black".
In the United States, the word nigger was not always considered derogatory, but was instead used by many as merely denotative of black skin, as it was in other parts of the English-speaking world. In nineteenth-century literature, there are many uses of the word nigger with no intended negative connotation. Charles Dickens, and Joseph Conrad (who published The Nigger of the 'Narcissus' in 1897) used the word without racist intent. Mark Twain often put the word into the mouths of his characters, white and black, but did not use the word when writing as himself in his autobiographical Life on the Mississippi.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigger
go read up on it, its quite....enlightening!
Words themselves are not inherently good nor bad, its the meaning which is intoned within them.
its the meaning which is intoned within them.
indeed
black is beautiful
I totally agree with you. Im an african American female and i do have alot of white friends. Many of them felt it was okay for them to say nigga and nigger to refer to the rest of the group. I told them it was right n not to do it againt before all of niggas start calling yall crackers. they werent to happy at all..... I think that black people deserve the word because it has alot of meaning and has alot historical accomplishment to keep it to themselves. I think white people will never understand even when they try to putt up all these diff reasons like being gay or having a certain manitlity its still not the same situation to mi..