Instead of Co-Opting the N-Word, Let's Give it Back to the Racists Who Value It
By: Deborah Mathis, BlackAmericaWeb.com
Bad news for Damon Wayans. The comedian and actor has lost his latest bid to get a patent on the N-word so that he could turn it into a money-maker, plastering it on clothing, paraphernalia and who-knows-what-else. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ruled the word “derogatory” and noted that federal law prohibits licensure of such terms.
When I first got wind of Wayans’ effort, I had hoped that he was trying to make a political statement, not a profit. If someone could own the rights to the word, I thought, it could make users liable in a court of law -- an unenforceable mess, for sure, but at least one that would put the word in its place, which is to say, in infamy’s toilet.
Trust me, I know the street value of the word. I know how it has been used as a term of familiarity, of camaraderie, even of endearment. I am surrounded by folks who use it that way and, to be honest, am not always offended when it is uttered among black friends.
Like many of you, I come out of my skin if someone of a different race uses the word, no matter the circumstances, or when one black person slings it like an ax against another. Or when yet another teen on the subway uses it in a mixed crowd of riders.
The Wayans episode has made me think about the word again, and I’ve decided I can and shall not tolerate it any longer.
What made me come to this conclusion is a recent reading of the ex-slave narratives commissioned by the long-defunct Works Progress Administration in the late 1930s. The interviews were transcribed phonetically.
Here’s a passage from a man named Joseph Holmes, who was 81 at the time:
“Miss had de slaves hide wid de meat; an' when dem Yankees find dat stuff, day jes' gib it all tuh de niggers, an' I 'members too, how Ol’ Miss calls us all tuh her atter day lef' and tole us dat us wuz free, but she tole dat us had tuh gib back sum ob de meat …'cause she didn't hab a bit tuh eat. Course we wuz glad tuh do it, 'cause Ol' Miss sho' woz good tuh her slaves. I 'member ebery Sunday mawning dat she make de older slaves bring all de little niggers up tuh her big white two-story house.”
The more than 2,000 narratives are littered with the word. Man after man and woman after woman refer to themselves, their loved ones and other blacks as “niggers,” driving home the point that, like the rest of the English language, these were not their words; this was not the way they would have referred to themselves if not forced to speak the master’s tongue. They called themselves “niggers” because they were told they were.
Consider this from a man named Richard Toler
"Some of the people I belonged to was in the Klu Klux Klan…. They went 'round whippin' niggahs. They get young girls and strip'em stark naked, and put 'em across barrels, and whip 'em till the blood run out of 'em, and then they would put salt in the raw pahts.”
Across the decades, there have been countless attempts to neutralize the word. Dick Gregory, bless his soul, tried it by repeating it throughout his comic monologue, hoping to remove its sting. Many have defended it, glorifying it in song, in rap, in poetry, in literature and in everyday conversation.
It doesn’t work. All these years later, it still pains the ear to hear old Mary Reynolds, 100 years plus, recalling her time on a Louisiana plantation.
“When a nigger died, they let his folks come out the fields to see him afore he died. They buried him the same day, take a big plank and bust it with a ax in the middle ‘nough to bend it back, and put the dead nigger in betwixt it. They'd cart them down to the graveyard on the place and not bury them deep ‘nough that buzzards wouldn't come circlin' round. Niggers mourns now, but in them days they wasn't no time for mournin'.”
The word, you see, is garbage. Was then, is now. And despite our adoption, it is not our word. It cannot be made beautiful or tender or loving or friendly. It’s like the pigs feet we pickled or the hog maws we cleaned and boiled -- scraps from the master’s table. No matter how we spiced them up, they are bad for the body.
So is that word. Give it up. Better yet, give it back to its rightful owners that they may be held accountable for the vileness they made.
Last edited by royal1 on Fri Jun 16, 2006 9:34 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Black Fraternities, Sororities and Other Organizations Asked to Discourage N-Word Usage Towards Children
Atlanta, GA (BlackNews.com) - In 1994, Attorney Roy Miller became the first and only person to succeed at having the n-word deleted from a major dictionary. Part of his argument has been that, if we have any respect at all for our ancestors, Black adults should be ashamed to call their Black babies and children the n-word.
He comments, "We give away the same respect that cost so many lives and cost so much pain. How is it that we can give away so easily, something that we never had to earn? At its worse, the n-word is the ultimate insult against Blacks. It is simply profanity. Whether being used in a musical way, a degrading way, a comical way or an evil way, profanity is still profanity. Profanity should never be acceptable language usage for children. Eliminating the n-word from adult usage may be next to impossible; however, we can reduce the impact that this profanity has on children."
Attorney Miller is asking for help. He asks that all Black Fraternities, Sororities and all other Black organizations issue a Resolution stating that their members will discourage use of the n-word against a child or to describe a child. Attorney Miller is requesting that all such Resolutions show the date of August 1, 2006, so that the accomplishment will reflect an act of unity. Every organization that issues a Resolution will receive an official Certificate of Appreciation.
Miller says, "Zero tolerance towards being disrespected must be established in the Black community and it must start with Blacks respecting Black children. How can our babies be children of God and n-words at the same time? Does not such reference to the child also refer to the father? What does God think?"
Attorney Miller is a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity. He is asking his fraternity members, as well as, all other Black Fraternities, Sororities and all other Black organization members to please forward this article and write letters of support to their organizations. Attorney Miller believes that there are those who live by the motto: If it doesn't reach the heart, it really doesn't matter.
"Let's show heart. Remember the mustard seed," he concludes.
Recently a small group of Brooklynites,inspired by Black History Month, decided to ''do something" about the "N" word. They created the web-site
www.abolishthenword.com . By doing that, they joined the army of brothers and sisters world-wide in the information war to save our race and to put us back on the world stage of history.
Recently a small group of Brooklynites,inspired by Black History Month, decided to ''do something" about the "N" word. They created the web-site
www.abolishthenword.com . By doing that, they joined the army of brothers and sisters world-wide in the information war to save our race and to put us back on the world stage of history.
I have no problem not using the word, but this wouldn't even be an issue, if it was just "us".
_________________ "a lot of yawl still soundin' like last year, the game needs change and I'm the muthafuckin' cashier"
Fri Jun 16, 2006 5:34 am
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Great thread, royal1...here's another interesting take on the subject:
Why the ‘N’ Word Refuses to Die
By Keith A. Owens
First, a warning. This column contains racially offensive language for which the author makes no apology. Not that offensive language - or at least language that is offensive to some - is anything new to Metro Times, but when it comes to certain subjects, even we free-wheeling types here at Detroit's own alternative weekly sometimes have to be careful how and where we tread. But in this particular instance, I'm hoping my readers will grant me a pass since there really isn't any other way to tackle this subject matter head-on like it needs to be.
Those of you who continue to be fascinated or repelled by how frequently - and sometimes joyously - some black people employ the word "nigger" amongst ourselves might want to check out a particular website that is leading a grassroots charge to abolish use of the "N" word altogether. The website - http://www.abolishthenword.com/ - according to its introductory statement, was begun by a group of frustrated African-Americans who feel that we as blacks have become far too comfortable with a word that was created by slave owners to degrade an entire oppressed race of people. This year, however, actor-comedian Damon Wayans stirred up a bit of controversy when the story broke that he has actually been trying to copyright the word "nigga" with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for nearly two years. Apparently he wants control of the word so he can use it to market some products he's trying to sell. So far his application has been turned down twice.
I think it's safe to say that times have changed when a black man wants to legally own the word "nigga" as his personal property. Somehow I have a hard time defining this as a symbol of how far we've come as a people, but it's definitely a symbol that things have changed. For the folks at abolishthenword.com, there's no question that any use of the "N" word by black people - except for historical context or educational purposes - should be banned. "As a small group of Brooklynites who grew up during the original old-school era of hip-hop, we remember when rap songs never used the 'N' word or profanity for that matter. We remember referring to our friends as "homeboy" and "homegirl." And we were still cool. We remember the airing of Roots and the sting of hearing the 'N' word on national television for the first time. Now we ask ourselves what happened. What happened in our community that the 'N' word is tossed around freely in everyday language? When the use of it makes you cool, down, accepted.
"Our community has come full circle as we extend an invitation to others to call us the 'N' word as well and we answer with a smile. Our ancestors must be rocking in their graves. The 'N' word is not a term of endearment. It cannot be re-appropriated. We cannot redefine the 'N' word or re-spell it to make it positive. Racism is so subtle, we now think that we can embrace the 'N' word and take away its power. However, not enough time has passed for this concept to be effective. The word is viewed as a racial slur at-large; it will continue to be so until it is put away for a generation, and then maybe it can be embraced at such time in a historical context."
And to help retire the word, the website sells "Abolish the 'N' Word" T-shirts and paraphernalia to spread the idea.
I, too, can remember the days of "homeboy" and "homegirl," and I also remember when rap was quite a different animal from what it is today. But I also remember a time long before rap came on the scene when the late comedian Richard Pryor had an album entitled "That Nigger's Crazy." Pryor later had a complete change of attitude about the word - and a spiritual awakening of sorts - after a trip to Africa. He renounced the word and swore never to use it again. A lot of black folks applauded Pryor's decision, which carried a lot of weight coming from someone so wildly popular and with so much street creed. No doubt a lot of other black folks made the decision at the time to erase the word from their vocabularies.
That was about 20 years ago or so, I believe. Today we have a new generation of youngsters, many of whom have never even heard of Richard Pryor, but who have a warm and cozy relationship with the word "nigger," "nigga," etc. In other words, Pryor has passed on, but the "N" word is alive and kicking. It simply will not die. And while I sympathize with the efforts of the folks who created this website, and I certainly understand their concerns, I can't help but wonder if they realistically have any chance of achieving their goal. Once Pandora's box has been opened, it's hard as hell to shove the contents back inside.
One argument I anticipate is that maybe the problem is folks like me who choose to voice their doubts openly instead of jumping on the bandwagon. Perhaps, but I doubt it. The emotional distance between what a "nigger" was and what a "nigga" is has grown too wide, and many of us no longer believe the word has any real power to do much harm - especially if we're the ones wielding the sword. And, sick as it may sound, a lot of us (this no longer includes me) really like the word and will not let it go.
During my nearly five decades on the planet, I've seen us call each other so many things it's hard to keep track. You could almost create a museum stocked full of black terms of endearment through the ages. For example:"Brotherman", "My brother", "Bro. Me", "Bro. Blood", "Black", "Son", "Homeboy", "Homegirl", "Homie", "Homes", "Cool Breeze", "Gangsta", "Baby Boy", "Pimp", "Playa", "Hoe", "Bitch", "Nigger", "Nigga" and "Mah Nigga."
I'm sure I missed a few, but you get the general idea. We've always got something to call one another, and too often it's something ugly. I'm hardly a sociologist, but I suspect it's because if you deal up close and personal with ugly for most of your life, then ugly is what you know best. When I was in high school, the brothers were calling each other "bitch" so much I'm surprised we didn't become gender-confused. If we were mad, it would be: "Bitch, I'll kick your ass." If we were in a humorous mood, it might be something like: "Oh, this bitch thinks he's funny 'n' shit." And if it was consoling, somebody might say: "Hey, bitch. You all right?"
But even back then, the "N" word ruled supreme. For example, let's just take that last phrase and construct a "for instance" conversation:
"Hey, bitch. You all right?"
"Fuck naw. That nigger think he can come in here startin' shit and ain't shit gonna happen. You watch, I gotta surprise for his black ass."
"Man, you better watch yourself. You know that nigger's crazy."
"Bitch, that nigger ain't seen crazy 'til I commence to whuppin on that ass."
I know conversations went on like this all the time because I was in the room. To be honest, sometimes I still am in the room. Yeah, I know. What does that say about me, right? Feel free to draw your own conclusions, but I'll tell you this: Pandora's box is a bitch to close, nigga. For real.
(Keith A. Owens is a Detroit writer, editor and musician. Send comments to: letters@metrotimes.com)
What is really keeping the word alive is this continuing debate about the word. It would be a better idea if all intelligent people ceased to communicate with those who use the word, whether they are Black or White. I have always had a policy of not posting to Threads or Post that contain the word, other than on this occasion.
Those who talk about giving the word back to someone or taking the word back don't even know where the word came from or what it means. Most of the youngsters of today who use the word dropped out of school in the third or fourth grade, can't read or write too well, and are just trying to be "cool" among their peers. They don't know what end is up, and these are the same individuals who are running the streets killing off each other while "Whitey" sits back grinning and laughing at them for being stupid, and urging them to keep on killing off each other, until there is none left.
These individuals who are destroying the Black Community and has played a major role in the destruction of the Black Family are the Core of our problem, and until Blacks start to deal with this situation directly, they will destroy us all. Their only objective in life is getting high and getting laid. They rip-off, and destroy a few Blacks in the process, but they don't know from nothing else. I just read the paper today where 5 youngsters were killed in New Orleans yesterday.
This is a City that was devistated from Hurricanes, and are desperate to try and get back on their feet, but these youngsters are trying to destroy more Black people. Many Blacks don't seem to realize it, but most of this activity comes out of this violent Culture that has taken over the Black Community, and the N Word is all a part of that Culture, even though a few outsiders want to pick it up to give the impression that they are a part of that culture.
leart
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^5 leart3...
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From Sacred to Degradation/Denigration
By John R. Moore
One of the Ten Commandments is "Thou Shall not take the name of the Lord thy GOD in vain." However, the racist term "nigger," which is a derivative of the original name for GOD, N-G-R (pronounced "Net-ger"), has been used continuously as a racist, corrupt term to insult, degrade and provoke Black people.
The word "nigger" comes from the Egyptian word "Net-yer" or "Net-ger" for GOD, having its origins in the sacred, divine title for GOD. Words like "nature" and "nurture" come from this very root, so the idea of GOD being nature or nature being GOD - and other expressions that describe the various characteristics of the GODHEAD - stem from the Black African and Egyptian concept of what GOD is.
The ancient Egyptians also called their Pharoahs N-G-R (Net-ger), because the original Egyptian Pharoahs, who were pure Black Afrikans, not only saw Black skin as sacred, but also as a direct blessing from the Sun God Aten. They saw themselves as representatives of the Sun and the Sun God, so Blackness and Black skin were associated with GOD and the Sun. The recognition of Pharaoh as a living embodiment of GOD and the Black skin as a blessing, quickly spread around the world to other cultures, and the Net-ger became the Ethiopian Negus (Emperor) or Negashi (King).
Q. So how did this word for GOD, N-G-R (Net-ger) become "nigger," "negro" and "Niger"?
A. Well, the Roman invaders in Egypt, who would have heard the term used to describe the leaders of Egypt or Nubia, were the first people to corrupt the term N-G-R. The Latin term "Niger," which means "black" or "negro," was then used to refer to any Black or Negroid person that the Romans saw in Afrika or anywhere else. Before the time of Shakesphere, the term used for Black people in England was "Moor" or "Black-a-Moor."
The Romans then colonized and spread the Latin language to Europe, and because of this linguistic influence, the Latin term "Niger" became "negre" in French and "negro" in Spanish. The English colonists and slave owners later borrowed the term "negro" from the Spanish, and then proceeded to degrade and defile the entire name - first by enslaving Negroes and then by converting the original term "Ned-ger" (or GOD) into the racist term "nigger." So while oppressing GOD's original created people on Earth, they have been insulting GOD's sacred name as well, a phobia that is due to their own sense of inferiority. This is the origin of the "N" word, so always remember that the word "nigger" came from the Khemite or Egyptian term N-G-R or NET-GER for GOD.
In the Black languages of India, which are part of the Cushite branch of the Afrikan languages, the term "Naga" signifies original or first, so in ancient India the people with the Blackest skins were respected and held in high esteem, until the racist colonialists - alien to the concept of Varna, the cast-color racism of the Aryan barbarians - placed the Sudroids, Negro Tribals, Black Australoids, Indo-Negroids, Dalits, and other Negroids at the extreme bottom of Indian society, a cause against which the Buddha fought.
Very informative.
We need to stop using derogatory terms among our own selves, first.
_________________ **Ninety-nine percent of the FAILURES come from people who have the habit of MAKING EXCUSES**
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Tue Jul 11, 2006 9:12 pm
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To many Khemitian folks use this word.
This word will never die.
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Some people think the "N" word is a derivative of the mispronouncement, by Southers Whites, of the word "Negro" which was derived from the word Negroid, as the Piece states. So the lack of the Southern Whites to pronounce the word Negro, thus calling us Negree's, over time, based on their southern speach patterns, the "N" word was created. It's all a progression of generations of mispronounciations by whites. The Midget African on other Continents have been referred to as "Negreto's, but that's another discussion for another time.
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Atlanta Attorney Receives International Support For Resolution Challenging Black Society to Discourage the Use of the "N" Word and Mark It Out the Dictionary on August 1, 2006
Attorney Roy Miller
Atlanta, GA (BlackPR.com) - In May of this year, Attorney Roy Miller of Atlanta, Georgia announced his challenge to blacks to mark the "n" word out of his or her dictionaries on August 1, 2006. Attorney Miller has encouraged groups, clubs and organizations to adopt resolutions discouraging the use of the "n" word against a child or to describe a child and to make the resolution a part of their guiding principles. He has called on families and groups to meet on August 1, 2006 and discuss how the use of that word has impacted their lives. Miller, who specializes in juvenile law, has asked for them to sign a resolution to pledge to discontinue the use of the "n" word when referring to themselves and particularly when referring to children. As a show of solidarity, he as asked for the children to initiate marking the word out of their dictionaries and out of their lives. The children will take the lead and announce to the world that it is not acceptable, humorous, nor in style to refer to them as "n" words. Since that announcement, support has poured in from across the globe.
Since his 12-year old niece was shocked and offended by the definition of the word "nigger" that she found in her dictionary, Attorney Roy Miller, of Atlanta, Georgia has launched a crusade against its use by black persons in general and toward black children in particular.
That incident provided the motivation to make Attorney Miller beseech dictionary publishers to delete the "n" word from future publications. In 1994, Attorney Roy Miller became the first and only person to succeed at having the "n" word deleted from a major dictionary. Part of his argument has been that, if we have any respect at all for our ancestors, Black adults should be ashamed to refer to their Black babies and children by that offensive and disparaging term.
Attorney Roy Miller is renewing his challenge to families and organizations to meet on August 1st, 2006 and talk about how that word toward them and its affect on their lives then adopt resolutions pledging to acknowledge the "n" word as the ultimate insult against the black race. Furthermore, Attorney Miller is asking that all persons mark out the definition in their personal dictionaries on August 1, 2006 as a show of unity. A sample resolution can be found on Attorney Miller's website.
Since the initial publication, Attorney Miller has received worldwide support. The London-based Organization Ligali, founded by Toyin Agbetu, has partnered with Miller and pledged support. Jill Merritt, of www.abolishthenword.com, included Miller's challenge in the site's recent newsletter. In Detroit Michigan, a grade school teacher is using the resolution and discussion as the basis for a class project. Gabrielle Ellison, a broadcast communication major at Purdue University Indiana, will be hosting an assembly of fellow students to discuss the issue from the "20-something" perspective.
Other groups and companies that have expressed agreement include Morgan Communications of Atlanta, Georgia, the Atlanta Chapter of the Tuskegee Airmen, and the Dayton Ohio Chapter of the NAACP.
Attorney Miller states, "Zero tolerance towards being disrespected must be established in the Black community and it must start with Blacks respecting Black children. How can our babies be children of God and 'n' words at the same time? Does not such reference to the child also refer to the father?"
About Attorney Roy Miller
Attorney Roy Miller, P.C. practices juvenile law in the state of Georgia. www.attorneyroymiller.com
Wed Aug 02, 2006 6:08 pm
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Succinctly, It Is Global Black Fratricide, Morally, Mentally and Physically
H. Lewis Smith
Los Angeles, CA (BlackNews.com) - H. Lewis Smith, trail blazer and front-runner is the acknowledged and distinguished author of Bury That Sucka! A Scandalous Love Affair with the N-Word - again sets his sights on bringing awareness to African American communities nationwide. He is always ready to bring about change and harmony, as he continues to place U.V.C.C. (United Voices for a Common Cause) in motion to aide in the challenge.
Lewis is very aware of the predictable demise the African American community, the cultural hindrances, along with the negative stigma that is placed upon people of color. While reading his aforementioned books, it will unquestionably admonish the fact that - there is an urgent need for stirring up the print media and the minds of all that are affected directly or indirectly by the use of the n-word.
Lewis' applauded recognition as an author and community voice came about when he released Bury That Sucka! This book carries great dialogue as to various psychological conditions plaguing African Americans. In a recent interview with New York based AMAG/Awareness Magazine, Lewis stated that "For centuries the African American community has been a slave to negative imagery. And much of the cause is linked to the inappropriate use of the n-word. When you are a slave to someone or to something; it is hard to break away. A fine example of enslavement can be seen by looking at the detrimental affect drugs and alcohol has on individuals. The day that African Americans become strong enough to break the chains of mental, emotional and socio-economic enslavement - will be the beginning of new-found freedom."
Lewis realized another effective medium was needed, and United Voices for a Common Cause would be a great vehicle to drive the message nationally. The organization pledges and holds true "to not use the n-word as we strive toward cultural integrity and mutual respect for all Americans and to offer uncompromising resistance to social forces and structures which deny or limit our ability to do so. It is our intent to promote racial harmony, self-respect, pride and dignity affirming the highest of standards and values for our communities." The organization has launched a coast to coast media campaign to bring their organization to the forefront. The United Voices for a Common Cause have put steps in motion to work with schools, starting in California and New York.
Nevertheless, it is the perception of UVCC that, the high incarceration ratio, drug addiction problems, black on black crime, school drop-outs, suspensions and expulsions among Blacks is directly related to low self-esteem, the lack of productively placed energies and willful contempt for order. A quassi result of the continued use of the n-word would be; the psychosomatic consequences for all African American communities. Therefore, to further ignore and minimize what's at stake by the continual use of the n-word, is definitely global black fratricide, morally, mentally and physically.
Knowing this, "We need to get beyond moaning, groaning, complaining and always pointing the finger at the white man for our ills and woes while there are three more fingers pointing right back at us. It is time that we become self-empowered and start taking charge of our own fate and destiny," states Lewis.
To learn more about the United Voices for a Common Cause and how you can become a part of this self-empowered movement please go to: www.theunitedvoices.org
First, we are still here. We have been lecturing, doing school presentations, a youth conference and we recently tied the knot and we are expecting a new member of the ATNW family! So it’s been a challenge to pen a newsletter but in light of the recent events we had to reach out to our family and let you know we are still here.
Paul Mooney stops using the N word!
Bigger than Michael Richards’s racist rant is Paul Mooney stating he will no longer use the N word! Paul Mooney called me misguided and naďve on CNN after we were interviewed on CNN about our campaign. So I was really overjoyed to see him back on CNN explaining how he was married to the N word and is now divorcing himself from the word. Please click on the link below or paste into your browser.
Political leaders appeal to media to stop using the N word
Also in the news Jesse Jackson, Maxine Waters and the NAACP are taking a stand and calling for the media, rap artist and the entertainment industry to stop using the N word. We are very excited here at ATNW. Check out these articles:
I do have a question as why it took so long for the notables to step up. There have been several sites and campaigns against the use of N word and individuals launching their own movements against the use of the word. But Michael Richards simply being him self and getting caught on tape was the biggest motivation for the people with power to finally take a stand?
See, we at ATNW have very low expectations of racist when it comes to using the N word, so we don’t concentrate on them. The N word is a white racist word, it belongs to them but somehow we have convinced ourselves they shouldn’t use it but we can. Something is wrong with that type of thinking. We should be more upset when our own people fully knowledgeable of our plight uses a gutter word to describe ourselves.
Our mission is geared towards the African American community and people of African decent to stop using the N word in everyday language as a way to honor and respect the sacrifices of their ancestors and elders. Nevertheless, we are excited about our leaders taking a stand because our campaign has not been enough. We support our Political leaders as they join the fight to abolish the use of the N word and if it wasn’t for Michael Richards…well let’s just thank him for being himself.
Former NU Student, Author Confronts Use Of "N" Word
By: Katie Ressmeyer
4/30/07
The Daily Northwestern
Mark Twain wrote the word 215 times in "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn."Rappers use the word in their songs.
Now, it has become the basis for Jabari Asim's latest book, "The N Word: Who Can Say It, Who Shouldn't, and Why."
Asim, a former Northwestern student who did not graduate but has gone on to become deputy editor of the Washington Post Book World, spoke about the book and his take on the racial epithet Friday. About 30 people attended the event, which was part of the Crain Lecture Series, in the McCormick Tribune Center.
"I was very interested in looking at its role in American culture specifically," Asim said.
Medill Prof. Charles Whitaker, also the chairman of Students Publishing Co., the organization that publishes The Daily, facilitated the speech. He began with questions on the cultural history of the word and specifically Asim's charge that Thomas Jefferson was "the foremost architect of Negro inferiority."
Although Asim acknowledged that the Founding Fathers were proponents of slavery, he said Jefferson was different.
"He was lying basically," Asim said. "It was really inaccurate, awful by any measure."
Jefferson's written myths included claims that slaves did not feel physical or emotional pain.
Asim said Jefferson was not the only historical figure to contribute to the dehumanization of blacks: Charles Darwin said blacks would become extinct over time, and Abraham Lincoln did not believe blacks to be equal and proposed a number of colonization schemes for freed slaves, he said.
"We often have an all-or-nothing opinion of history," Asim said. "We need a comprehensive portrait of these men."
Asim said that in everyday language, neither whites nor blacks should use the racial epithet, which he excluded from his speech.
"There is no justification for conversational usage," Asim said. "We are capable of coming up with something better."
Journalists, writers and other artists have the right to use the epithet, he said. For example, according to Asim, a writer is obliged to use the word when portraying a period of history when this language was used with regularity.
A small number of rappers have also learned to use the word when it is justified, Asim said. However, he said he disagrees with many rappers' notion that the word must be "reclaimed."
"Why reclaim a word that is synonymous with black inferiority?" he said.
Readers have approached him with questions on the word and other similarly contentious words. Asim said this signals that Americans are ready to address the issue and recognize that they are responsible to a certain degree.
"People see it as an opportunity to facilitate another type of conversation," he said. "As long as racist attitudes exist, then we have to confront these questions."
For Asim, confronting these issues involves educating younger generations about the meaning and history of the word, he said."It is valuable to get the direct commentary from the people who have lived it," Asim said.
He said he recognizes the difficulty teachers face when trying to educate their students about words that essentially cannot be spoken in a classroom."They must tiptoe very lightly onto that land mine," Asim said.
However, teachers should not target black students when addressing such issues, said Medill Prof. Susan Mango Curtis."Bring up the subject, but don't direct it at the child," Curtis said. "They are not a representative of the race."
After hearing Asim speak, Weinberg senior Nick Tygesson said he enjoyed the discussion of the progress of race relations and plans to read the book.
"It was very interesting," Tygesson said. "I appreciated Asim's recognition of multiple viewpoints."
Fri May 04, 2007 4:44 pm
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The N-Word Syndrome...400 Years of Machiavellianism?
By H. Lewis Smith, Author of "Bury That Sucka: A Scandalous Love Affair With the N-Word"
Los Angeles, CA (BlackNews.com) - Community leaders all across America are now stepping up to the plate and challenging the insanity that's been going on within the black community relative to the self-deprecation use of the n-word, and other profane words. Mogul Executive, Russell Simmons is to be commended with his initiative to confront the issues relative to the music industries complicity, by calling for corporate responsibility, even though he did stop short of holding rappers accountable for anything.
However, the real work now begins because there are multi-millions of blacks who see nothing wrong in embracing the n-word and the denigrating and mindless lyrics of some rap music. There are blacks and whites alike all around the country trying to sell the idea that the n-word is just another word and will try to trivialize and minimize the true meaning and purpose of this Power...for it is indeed that a Power a diabolical Power...unlike any other word in the English language.
The N-word holds all of America hostage. Contemporary black and white America alike, are victims of a deep dark, sordid, and immoral past. There is more than just a disparaging meaning to this word. Derogatory terms such as wetbacks, kike, hymie, dago, faggots, etc. are just that...derogatory. Though there are those who try to reduce the full impact and purpose of the n-word as merely being nothing more than a derogatory slur...this can't be allowed to happen. A gross miscarriage of justice was committed for more than a span of three centuries all in the name of the n-word. There were vicious, terrible and horrible misdeeds inflicted upon the ascendants of African Americans that many people today would like to have swept underneath a rug and forgotten about. And to a degree have been very successful in doing just that.
It wasn't enough to just bring our ancestors over to work the land...for whatever reason...there was another agenda. This agenda was to destroy the minds of a race of people, rob them of their identity and mold their way of thinking as to how America wanted them to think. This was successfully done in a most unconscionable, malicious, methodical and unimaginable way.
The name that a people call themselves provides them with an understanding of their history by connecting them to a land mass, a language, a culture, a religion, a philosophy, etc. And in this vein you know who you are and your potential as a people. Today...we have no idea who we are...nor our potential. Some wants to think of us only as Blacks, others, African Americans and there are those who once again wish to be referred to as Negro--confusion reigns. Our distant ancestors of the Moorish Civilization who were conquerors of the free world as it existed at the time, builders of magnificent palaces, universities, thriving civilizations and who helped to free Europe from the Dark Ages, would look down upon us today with complete disdain and utter contempt.
Contemporary Americans know little about the most darkest and ugliest moments of n-word's history...the torturing...physically, mentally and emotionally of black Americans breaking them down to accept their newly imposed image, the image of a n**ger which is a metaphor for a sub-human (below the human race in development).
Being so-called up-right Christians...America needed something to justify their actions of insensitive, cruel, mutilating, torturous and inhumane treatment towards another man. Thus by destroying minds, and re-creating another image of what was labeled as a n**ger, this was all the justification needed to commit atrocities on a race of people in any way that they so deemed, seeing as how a n**ger wasn't considered a human being but indeed sub-human. This was supposed to make all committed acts of dehumanization justifiable.
Robbed of heart, mind, body, soul and manhood an image was created of laziness, savages, thievery, drunkardness, irresponsible, moral degenerates, slick, mindless, heartless, senseless, inferior, scum, something to be despised and considered worthless...lack of love and self respect for self, and to show no love or respect towards his woman or child. Even though the black woman was included in this vindictive conspiracy she was allowed to have a little more self-esteem than her counter-part black male, eroding the black man's image of himself even further. This is the N-word...it is mind-control...an image. An image that has been browbeaten and physically beaten, into the hearts, minds and soul of the African American for more than 300 years.
Present day attitude seems to be so what--who cares?--after-all they were sub-humans not fit to be respected and revered. What happened to them has nothing to do with me. Any Black person who is gullible enough to go for that crock of you know what...needs their you know what's kicked from here (California) all the way to New York City and back to California again. It's a darn shame that we have allowed ourselves to be bamboozled into thinking its okay to relate to a word that made it okay to crucify, castrate, torture, murder, maim and rape our ancestors and we are okay with this. There are those actually selling their souls for thirty pieces of silver to further undermine their own people. How preposterous is that? Where is the racial pride? Oh! I almost forgot that's something we were robbed of as well. Our Moorish ancestors must be fuming at such displays of imbecility.
The n-word is clearly a defined racist term steeped in ignorance, degradation and immorality and yet there are those who see nothing wrong in blacks continuing to identify with such a mind controlling self-deprecation of a word. Of course, the killings, lynching and murders are common knowledge...but far more than that...happened. Happenings...that no one cares to discuss or talk about.
e.g. In l904 black sharecroppers Luther Holbert and his wife were chained to a tree and a audience of 600 white spectators enjoyed treats like deviled eggs, lemonade and whiskey in a festive atmosphere while Mr. and Mrs. Holbert had first their fingers chopped off one by one, followed by their ears, followed by a severe beating that left Mr. Holbert with one eye dangling from it's factured socket, followed by "spirals...of raw, quivering flesh" being extracted from both Holberts via a corkscrew before the couple were finally burned alive. And as they were drawing their last breath the last words they would hear were the jeers of n**ger, n**ger, n**ger...a word that is today condoned and embraced by descendants of people such as the likes of a Mr. & Mrs. Holbert.
It's not just enough to no longer want to embrace this word, but we need to, and must understand--WHY?--we shouldn't be embracing it, for its meaning and PURPOSE far exceeds that of a racial slur.
H. Lewis Smith has studied the idioms, meanings and the psychological impact of words, its energy and vibratory effects on the human mind for more than two decades. He has been a guest on several talk shows, The Power, The Exchange, Andrea Williams' Jamin 98.3 and many more. Smith is the Founder/CEO of United Voices for a Common Cause, Inc. and is the author of "Bury that Sucka, A Scandalous Love Affair With the N-word."
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