Nigg(er)(a) and its Nigg(er)(a)s

You know what really grinds my gears? People who used the word nigger. Yup, here I go. I'm going to engage in the same conversation that authentic conscious people have been engaged in for the past several years since the word has pervaded the vocabulary of black people. There is nothing that chafes me more, than someone addressing me as a nigger. First of all, I have a name and second of all, that sh*t is degrading, demeaning, dehumanizing and a racial epithet. I will never be a nigger and it freakin' kills me when people call me and each other that. Now, the most common counter-argument I hear is that the masses of Black people have tailored the word so that it is now appropriated as a term of endearment. Are you effin' kiddin' me? So if I go to my wife or mother and say, Hey nigg(er)(a), I love you. <---That's supposed to be affable? Get the hell out of here. There's nothing cordial about calling someone or being called by the word nigg(er)(a).

Moreover, there's a lot of hypocrisy that stems from that premise. And most of us know what that is. It's that when a white person uses the word nigg(er)(a), it's readily received with tension. First off, that's completely unfair to any non-Black (or should I say anyone who's ancestors were indigenous to the continent of Africa) who thinks it ok to the use the word. That's one of the most asinine double standards I've ever incurred. Plus, the word nigg(er)(a) is palpable all throughout our music. How the hell can you so called, endeared "nigg(er)(a)s", complain when someone of another race uses the word when its all over your music. That word is used ridiculously in mainstream Rap music. If White people, or any other kind of people, hear us call each other nigg(er)(a) and then hear our music call us nigg(er)(a), of course they're going to think it's ok. That's freakin' logic and intuition.

Bottom line, those who use the word readily do not have a sincere appreciation for its history. And what kills me is that people always say, they "know", where the word originated. BS. If you have a complete understanding of the word's origins, why the hell do you say it. And I love when people proscribe to the messages of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (probably the most commercialized African-American hero in American History) and then call themselves and there brethren nigg(er)(a). I bet if Dr. King Jr magically showed up one day in front of them, their discourse would be crippled because they use the damn word so much. And they're not going to say that in front of Dr. King. So many people use the word nigg(er)(a) and profanity regularly because they can't find other words/phrases to express how they actually feel or what they're thinking. That's sad. Pick up a book people! People think articulation is a gift or a talent. And to some degree it just may be. But I bet, if you read something once in a while, you'd be able to express yourself a whole lot better than you used to. But back to my tirade.

This is why I don't accept that argument that the meaning of the word has changed for our generation. Would you use the word nigg(er)(a) in a job interview? How about in a conversation with someone you really admire who's done something that you want to do in life? My inkling is, no, you wouldn't. Why? Because the word nigg(er)(a) is semantically the same as profanity. There are negative connotations associated with the word just like cursing. Shoot, eff that. The word nigg(er)(a) is denoted negatively holistically. And for all you righteous folks out there, indulging in your piety, who think using the word nigg(er)(a) isn't a sin, you need to go repent. Make haste. Hypocrites.

I remember there being articles written in the New York Times about the City of New York pursuing a new Public School legislation that would stipulate students who use the word nigg(er)(a) would be punished or in some way reprimanded. I'm totally partial to that. I think people who use the word nigg(er)(a) should receive some kind of retribution for using it because no matter the context it is used in, it's wrong. Period. But Freedom of Speech just had to be a natural right. I guess that effort is futile now.

I don't think that people use the word because they really believe its a term of endearment. I think there use of the word is a product of the environment that they're groomed in. It's just like the old adage, "You are what you eat". If you think about that cliche abstractly, relating to why people use the word the nigg(er)(a), it makes sense. Just substitute the word, eat, with consume. My example for this assertion is Rap. If you consume music that is laden with the word nigg(er)(a) for long periods of time, pretty soon you'll be using it. Now think about the environment. If everyone is listening to the same music, everyone uses the word, and dialogs between people has the word in it several times over, then people will be become desensitized to what the word actually means. And that's exactly what has happened. In order to start some kind of change, there has to be individuals who don't use the word and socializes with people that do so that somehow, they can see that you can express yourself without using that God awful word. It might help to teach them what it actually means too.

I'm really anticipating Nas' new album. He's supposedly entitling it "Nigger" and I hope he's devising this album constructively so that it purports some of the things wrong with the ignorance that has consumed the masses of Black people. If it just ends up being a ploy for record sales, I'll be extremely disappointed. I hope Nas is sensing the same sense of urgency in our community that I have, especially with our youth, and his concern is manifested in his new album. Listen up:


Parting Thoughts:
You ever notice that every minority in America is viewed as an __________ American. "African American, Hispanic American, Italian American, Asian American". But white people in this country are just Americans. <----BS. White people are not indigenous to this country/continent. They need to understand and accept that.

Oh yeah,
Freshman Year is just about over. I'm one year closer to having to actually do something with my life. :(

I'm one year closer to actually doing what I want in life! :)