Wednesday, February 13, 2013

"The N Word"

Nigger is an extremely loaded and powerful word. It gets it's power from many years ago when it was used to suppress black people during slavery by calling them the derogatory term. Now it is considered socially unacceptable to say, especially if you are white. Many black people still use the word but not in the derogatory sense that it was intended, they changed it to "nigga" and use it to address the brotherhood and connection the word is associated with. Some white people don't like that black people can use the word and they cant, they believe its hypocritical. I think that it all depends on the context the word is used in.
In the video on 60 minutes there is a book store that removes the N word and replaces it with slave, but by doing this it gives the word more power as a "bad" word. Using it as a tool for education, does not make it offensive. Mark Twain put it in the book over 200 times for a reason and by removing it, you are removing a large part of the books meaning and reasoning. How the word can and should be used is extremely difficult to say, because you never know who may be offended by it. I think that if the word isnt used in a demeaning way and in a way to discuss social issues then it is acceptable. To understand the past and why it was used helps in the understanding of why it should not be used now. There are a lot of bad words out there that may offend someone or hurt their feelings, words such as gay or faggot, yet sadly they are used commonly. Words gain power by people giving them power and that power can either be positive or negative. In the article by Peggy McIntosh she also addresses power, the power that white people have by just being born white. Some of the things she lists I had never thought about or appreciated before but it really opened my eyes at the advantages I have just from being born who I am.