Flumesday.com - The End of the 'N-Word'

The End of the 'N-Word'

    In solidarity with the NAACP, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Rev. Al Sharpton and comedian Paul Mooney, I have decided to never use the N-word on Flumesday. Not that I have ever used it. In fact, the only time I have ever printed it was in quoting Michael Richards' rant. And in that context, it seemed necessary. But as of today, you will never see the word printed on this website. Why? Well for one, I am deathly afraid of it. It is the most powerful word in the human lexicon, and I say "human" because this word transcends English. I've heard French, Spanish and Chinese people use it while speaking their native tongues. This word has the power to make people cringe, cry, spit, run and beat some serious ass and frankly, I wouldn't want to manipulate the word's might for a joke or to make a point. And second and more important, this word has never been mine. It has never been said and never would be said in reference to me, and my ancestors did not use this word in reference to anyone else. This word has never been a part of me or my culture.
    The history of the N-word is quite complex. The word is derived from a corruption of the Latin word for black, Niger, also the name of the great west African river. During the slave trade, Europeans used the word (with an 'r') to demean Africans. Often, when Europeans could not pronounce an African name, they would instead use the N-word. This pejorative usage continued in America when American slave-owners referred to their slaves as N-words. Apart from the Atlantic slave trade, the word also became quite popular among the Dutch in New York and Pennsylvania. The N-word, with an 'r', remained a commonly-used racial slur in American until the 1960s Civil Rights era.
    During the 1980s, the N-word was revived, but this time the 'er' at the end had been been shortened to 'a'. This incarnation of the word was used less as a slur directed at blacks from whites, but more as a colloquial way for blacks to refer to each other. While famous Black comedians had been using the word for years, the California rap group N.W.A., where the 'N' stands for the plural form of the N-word, brought this new form of the word into American consciousness with their controversial 1988 album "Straight Outta Compton."   The new N-word showed up in much of the rap music of the 80s and 90s and today, the word is casually and routinely used in a staggering number of hip-hop songs, in the locker rooms of sports teams, comedy routines, television shows, on pretty much any U.S. city street and most troubling, by whites and Hispanics who seem to have no concept of word's history.
    This past week, in light of Michael Richards's racist tirade, American black leaders called on entertainers to stop using the N-word. Comedian Paul Mooney, who played a character on "Chappelle's Show" called Negrodamus, has stepped to the forefront of this effort. Mooney, who said himself he once had a "romance with the word," vows to eradicate the N-word from his act. He said, "I'm free of it. I won't be using that word onstage, and I won't be using the b-word. We're asking the rappers and all the people on Earth to stop using the word." Other entertainers have followed suit. The Michael Richards rant has inspired an entirely new debate over the usage of the N-word. Here are some interesting opinions on the use of America's most dangerous word:

I have known Michael Richards for something like 20 years. We're friends. But I heard about the tape and I said, 'That doesn't sound like a comic routine. That sounds like a breakdown.' Then I saw the tape and I had an out of body experience. It was so ugly, so horrible. I hadn't heard (the N-word) like this — from someone I knew. Suddenly, I was directly connected. I was able to look at it not just through my eyes but through the eyes of the world. I had always thought it was endearing. It's NOT. It's not an equal opportunity word. I don't want everyone running around saying it.
- Paul Mooney, comedian

I don't use it because my mother raised me to believe that it is an offensive word regardless of who says it. But being that the word is so common, I am referred to by the 'n-word' everyday. 'Paul Wall, n***a you my favorite rapper.' 'That n***a Paul Wall got a clean grill.' Last year in Ozone Magazine, I won the "Realest N***a Award.

-Paul Wall, white rapper

In the privacy of my own home, with my closest friends, who shall remain nameless, we have used that word when we're talking about other people. I go back and forth between using it as a term of endearment, and it being just a very hateful, bad thing.

-Gayle King, Oprah's girl

Man, Seinfeld was my show and Kramer, he was my favorite character. But f**k him. Why run to his aid? There are neighborhoods in the U.S. and in Puerto Rico that look like Third World countries. I definitely don't plan to change my vocabulary or speech pattern because of this incident. You never hear from these leaders until something controversial happens.

-Noreaga, half-Puerto Rican/half-black rapper

I resent the word. I think it's the filthiest thing in the history of the planet. But we want to get rid of the word without really talking about it in America. You don't clean it up by denying that it exists.

-Dick Gregory, comedian

That word can still start a fight... I still say it in personal conversation with my friends, I say it sometimes on stage at the comedy club and I'm not gonna make a promise that I won't say it again on television but right now I just feel like people aren't responsible enough. There are certain things I've been through in the last year and there's certain things I've heard people say and also all of the older black women in my family... they really get on to me about it.

-Dave Chappelle, comedian

These racist remarks made in this day and age makes clear that stereotypes still run rampant in our society. As leaders we must be vigilant about blatant abuses, overt acts and vile words that characterize African American people in a degrading manner.

-Jesse Jackson, Civil Rights activist

He (Michael Richards) should go on stage and say 'The Aristocats!!!'

-Sarah Silverman, comedian

From the Sunday Papers:
•San Francisco Chronicle: Peril Behind Voicing Unspeakable Racial Slur
•NYT: Comedy On The Hot Seat