Ravenheart
12-05-2005, 04:05 PM
Thoughts on the N-word
There are many words in the English language which can be used to denigrate and belittle other human beings, but one word stands head and shoulders above the rest in this regard. One word alone has the power to marginalize someone in the most damaging of ways. Yes, I'm talking about the n-word.
The n-word, of course, has a very specific definition according most dictionaries, but most people who use it in a derogatory manner do so solely out of ignorance and spite and are unaware of its historical usage and meaning.
The n-word is almost always used to verbally belittle members of one specific racial group. Some are quick to point out that some members of this group occasionally use the n-word to refer to each other. Often, this is done in a sort of jocular way. Still, when people outside this racial group use the n-word, it is nearly always designed to be hurtful, belittling, and marginalizing.
The most despicable usage of the n-word comes when it is applied to members of the racial group who value their identity as part of that group and refuse to adapt to the ways of the other racial groups around them. Bigots often malign them using the n-word and make sport of the fact that these people sometimes come from oppressed regions or economically-disadvantaged communities.
Yes, it's a sad testimony to the state of our society that the n-word -- a word with such power to hurt, to degrade, and to disparage -- is thrown around so frequently. It speaks volumes about our society that people who take pride in their identity are so often slandered with the vile n-word. It shows just how malicious people can be that we so often hear the n-word used to trivialize, alienate, and disenfranchise a whole segment of society -- people who may just have something valuable to contribute if we can look past initial appearances and see through the hateful name-calling to listen to what people have to say.
I am asking you now, from the bottom of my heart, to think before throwing out the n-word. Think before you defame, degrade, and denigrate someone just because they are different from you. Think before you use the n-word, a term which can have such a marginalizing and hurtful effect.
Think before you call someone a Nazi.
[Source (http://dissident1776.blogspot.com/2005/07/thoughts-on-n-word.html)]
There are many words in the English language which can be used to denigrate and belittle other human beings, but one word stands head and shoulders above the rest in this regard. One word alone has the power to marginalize someone in the most damaging of ways. Yes, I'm talking about the n-word.
The n-word, of course, has a very specific definition according most dictionaries, but most people who use it in a derogatory manner do so solely out of ignorance and spite and are unaware of its historical usage and meaning.
The n-word is almost always used to verbally belittle members of one specific racial group. Some are quick to point out that some members of this group occasionally use the n-word to refer to each other. Often, this is done in a sort of jocular way. Still, when people outside this racial group use the n-word, it is nearly always designed to be hurtful, belittling, and marginalizing.
The most despicable usage of the n-word comes when it is applied to members of the racial group who value their identity as part of that group and refuse to adapt to the ways of the other racial groups around them. Bigots often malign them using the n-word and make sport of the fact that these people sometimes come from oppressed regions or economically-disadvantaged communities.
Yes, it's a sad testimony to the state of our society that the n-word -- a word with such power to hurt, to degrade, and to disparage -- is thrown around so frequently. It speaks volumes about our society that people who take pride in their identity are so often slandered with the vile n-word. It shows just how malicious people can be that we so often hear the n-word used to trivialize, alienate, and disenfranchise a whole segment of society -- people who may just have something valuable to contribute if we can look past initial appearances and see through the hateful name-calling to listen to what people have to say.
I am asking you now, from the bottom of my heart, to think before throwing out the n-word. Think before you defame, degrade, and denigrate someone just because they are different from you. Think before you use the n-word, a term which can have such a marginalizing and hurtful effect.
Think before you call someone a Nazi.
[Source (http://dissident1776.blogspot.com/2005/07/thoughts-on-n-word.html)]