Mr. E's Forum: 2006-2007 -> Multicultural Studies -> News #5: Racial Slur Banned in NYC
Post Info TOPIC: News #5: Racial Slur Banned in NYC
mre

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News #5: Racial Slur Banned in NYC
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Before the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday this year, the headmaster of NBHS made comments on the announcements concerning the use of the 'n-word' in the hallways of our school by students.  Students began to discuss the issue with their friends and their teachers.  Most students knew that the roots of the word are traced back to the centuries of enslavement in America of Africans and the deeply seeded racism that is connected with it.  Dr. David Pilgrim, Professor of Sociology, and Dr. Phillip Middleton, Professor of Languages and Literature at Ferris State University have studied the historical use and meanings of the word for the Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia.  Author Randall Kennedy also wrote a book called N*****: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word to explore its roots and its meaning today.  If you search in Google by the title of this book, you will see a webpage from the Washington Post where the first chapter is published.  It is an interesting read.

[Note to students: when creating this assignment on the forum, I noticed that the software that runs and moderates the forum automatically blocks the n-word from being published.  I included links to Wikipedia on the n-word and a link to the book above that would not work because of this software block.  This is, most likely, to prevent people online from using racists slurs against each other.]

What do you think?  Obviously, the New York City Council cannot enforce its ruling below, but they are making a statement.  Is the word appropriate?  In what context is it or isn't it?  Should it be heard in school hallways?  What does the word mean today?  Can words be 'reclaimed'?  Does it imply racism, no matter who speaks it?  Share your thoughts [80 points] and respond to another student's post with a comment or question [20 points]. 


BBC NEWS Racial slur banned in New York By Jeremy Cooke
BBC News, New York

The city council of New York has voted to ban the use of the word "******".

The resolution to ban the so-called "N-word" is largely symbolic as it carries no weight in law and those who use the word would face no punishment.

But it reflects a growing unease that the racial slur is now part of everyday conversation and that the taboo against its usage has been swept away.

The word is in common usage among sections of the younger generation in the United States.

'Throwback to slavery'

For many years the "N-word" has been used by young African Americans who have appropriated it as a, perhaps ironic, term of endearment.

Now, other ethnic groups have started to use it in a similar context, and those who insist it should be banned are growing increasingly outraged.

Many African American community leaders, with the backing of fellow lawmakers, say it is offensive in every context and that is a word which should never be said.

For them the word is loaded with offensiveness.

They regard it as degrading and a throwback to the times of slavery when blacks were regarded as sub-human, to be bought and sold by their white owners.

The New York City resolution was sponsored by Councilman Leroy Comrie, who says the "N-word" was derived solely out of hate and anger and that its meaning cannot be changed.

But for America's so-called hip-hop generation using the word among themselves is about self-empowerment.

Its usage is habitual and seems culturally fixed and to stop it is likely to take a change in their attitudes rather than an edict from elected officials.


 

-- Edited by mre at 14:44, 2007-03-01

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JAIMIE

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I THYNK THAT THE WORD NI99ER WAS USED AS A RACIAL SLUR BUT AS TIME PROGRESSED IT HAS CHANGED. PEOPLE WHO SAY IT USUALLY DON'T MEAN ANYTHING BY IT OTHER THEN A FRIEND OR GOOD FRIEND I DONT THINK THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO STOP IT BECAUSE OF HOW MUCH IT IS USED BUT THEY WOULD HAVE IF IT WAS A LONG TIME AGO SO I DOUBT THAT WILL CHANGE ANYTHING MIGHT HAVE A SLIGHT EFFECT ON COMMUNITIES EVERY WHERE BUT WONT CHANGE THEM

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Jamie Dias

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In my opinon i think the word is not appropriate but it depends how you are using it for example if your withyour friends and your like "whats up n****" then i dont think it is a big deal but if your using it to offend someone then i dont think it's right.I dont think the word should be heard in school hall ways even if its not to offend anyone.I dont think it implys racism but then again it depends how you use it.

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kevin

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I think the n word should be used by nobody even if your black the word has an ugly meaning behind it and there is no need to use it like black people cant come up with something better but if i use it they are ready to fight but if a black guy says it its okay it just doesnt make any sense.

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kevin

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JAIMIE wrote:

I THYNK THAT THE WORD NI99ER WAS USED AS A RACIAL SLUR BUT AS TIME PROGRESSED IT HAS CHANGED. PEOPLE WHO SAY IT USUALLY DON'T MEAN ANYTHING BY IT OTHER THEN A FRIEND OR GOOD FRIEND I DONT THINK THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO STOP IT BECAUSE OF HOW MUCH IT IS USED BUT THEY WOULD HAVE IF IT WAS A LONG TIME AGO SO I DOUBT THAT WILL CHANGE ANYTHING MIGHT HAVE A SLIGHT EFFECT ON COMMUNITIES EVERY WHERE BUT WONT CHANGE THEM
:kevin if the word has progressed to good friend then why cant white people use it to if it doesent mean anything hatful or evil then it shouldnt matter to you anymore no matter who uses it.



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nessaA

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in my opinion, i think that if they are going to ban one racial slur, why don't they ban the rest of them.  yes, slavery was a big thing in our world but when imigrants came to america, they experienced a lot of the same racism that black people did after they were freed.  spanish people were called spics, portuguese people were called green horns, chinese and other asian people were called chinks, japanese people were called japs, hebrew and other people who practice the jewish religion were called jews, and there were many many more slurs used against people because of their religion and what they looked like and where they came from.  i don't think NYC has the right to ban the word n!gg@/n!gg*r without banning other racial slurs that hurt people just as much as the "n-word" hurts black people. 

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donald venerable

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I think the man is just saying that to make a statement but it seems to me like he likes getting laughed at. The word is appropriate now in society because black people took it and flipped it to being I am no longer their nigga im my own or you dont have to be their nigga you can be my nigga and thats how it is the times change me as a black man I can look at it and say I dont care about that word it no  longer hurts me or my peers its wrong they werent saying it was wrong when they used it now the powers that be are trying to take it and if they think they can take away a slur as they call it they have to take away all the words. And they think they can throw Mr.Kings name in it and make it so were not supossed to say it I will not stop using it in my everyday vocabulary. I think I could pursuade Dr.Kings views on that word and make him agree with me because I know what im saying but when im put on the spot I cant think but black people should take what ever negative slur and flip it so no one can hurt us with it. Just like gay people if you call a gay person a fag and they say I know already or they say im proud of being that what are you going to say think about it.

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Tiff

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In my opinion I think that the word N should not be used in the way that it is use. YES it has changed  the meaning but still a long time ago that was a bad word it was used to mistreat  African Americans  in  now it seems as African American have forgot about that. I don’t think that any one would like to be called that name. I think that if slaves were still around that word would not be used. I think the generation now does not know what African Americans went threw so they have changed the real meaning of the N word. This is why I strongly believe that the N word should not be used. 



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adays

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What do you think?  Obviously, the New York City Council cannot enforce its ruling below, but they are making a statement.  Is the word appropriate?  In what context is it or isn't it?  Should it be heard in school hallways?  What does the word mean today?  Can words be 'reclaimed'?  Does it imply racism, no matter who speaks it?  Share your thoughts [80 points] and respond to another student's post with a comment or question [20 points]. 

i think that NYC is probably the most populted place with alot of people who use that word. there is no way that  they can band that word... they can band it from resutaunts and what not but not from ur own home and things. the word isnt appropriate but nather is other words that people say,  it shouldnt be herd in school hallways,, nather should any otherbad words but its still happends.

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shallyn

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The N-word is absolutely inappropriate, Even though over the years the meaning has changed to a certain extent and even though we use it different the real true meaning remains. I believe it’s a racial comment and if it is allowed then everyone should be able to say it. If they believe its not a racial comment then why do people care who is saying it. It shouldn’t be said in school hallways.



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Catherine

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I think that they shouldnt say the word because of its back round but the word now is a different meaning then it was back then and its spelled differently just like they have to words with diiferent meanings its the same thing but we just cant say it because it sounds like a disrespectable word that was used back then.
I dont think its appropriate because it startes to much trouble just like how all the colored people can say it to each other but if a white person says it its a big deal then it becomes into violence so i dont think its appropriate.
I think it is not approprate if not everyone can say it and it does offend the older people that went through the situation we didnt not have to go through.
It shouldnt be herd in the hallways but know one can stop that its allways going to be said and herd know matter were you go for some people saying it alot it is now a habbit to them to say it and its hard to get rid of a habbit that you had for so long.
The word means to day is when you see a friend of your you say something like wat up my n****or if you talking about a person you say wait till i see that n**** its used for a lot of thing it can be used for a good term or a bad one.
They took it back and changed the meaning so now it means somthing good and not bad for there race that is how they reclaimed it.
Yes it imply racims because how it can be used by only one race and if other race says it that is when they get offended and take it to a violence actions.

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mr. MiKe JoNeS

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Most of the population of this country that use the word ni99er are black. But there are those minority of whites who are racist and say it in a negative form. But nowadays black people use teh word as a slang word for friend. But i dont think goverment officials should try to ban the word if teh majority of people are using it in a non negative form. But i see it as 100's of years ago black people used to be called this word as a negatory word but if they wanan call eachother that in this day and era i dont see why there is a need to stop them it is there choice and they have a freedom of speech.

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nathan

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i think that the wrod should not be used the way some people use it as, as a racial threat. It doesnt really matter that some people use it as another word for a good friend. But when people take it to the extreme and offend people with that word i think it should be tried to stop, i dont think it will. Teachers and principals tried to enforce it here but i think that they gave up at trying to stop it because there are too many peoplethat use it and they can not all be stopped at once. I think that the black people to offense when a white person says it because way back then the white people used to use the black people as slaves and call them n*****s, when they bossed them around and told them wat to do. 

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Mason

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I think that the n-word used to be a racial slur, and I'm sure it still is in some form, but today it doesn't really mean that anymore.  I do think that it is unappropriate to be said in school just because of its history, and I'm not sure why people want to use it the way they do now for this reason, but if people want to say it and not have it mean something bad towards someone else, then why not say it?  The word kind of has two endings now, -a and -er.  The racist word ends with -er but the one that means "friend" or whatever ends with the -a.  I don't really know if this word is bad or not anymore.  People just say it all the time and people from any ethnicity agree and disagree with whether or not it should be said.  This subject is really confusing, but personally, I don't think that this word should be said. If YOU want to say it though, go ahead, but that's just my opinion.

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Mason

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donald venerable wrote:



I think the man is just saying that to make a statement but it seems to me like he likes getting laughed at. The word is appropriate now in society because black people took it and flipped it to being I am no longer their nigga im my own or you dont have to be their nigga you can be my nigga and thats how it is the times change me as a black man I can look at it and say I dont care about that word it no  longer hurts me or my peers its wrong they werent saying it was wrong when they used it now the powers that be are trying to take it and if they think they can take away a slur as they call it they have to take away all the words. And they think they can throw Mr.Kings name in it and make it so were not supossed to say it I will not stop using it in my everyday vocabulary. I think I could pursuade Dr.Kings views on that word and make him agree with me because I know what im saying but when im put on the spot I cant think but black people should take what ever negative slur and flip it so no one can hurt us with it. Just like gay people if you call a gay person a fag and they say I know already or they say im proud of being that what are you going to say think about it.

Haha, you're totally right about the whole fag thing. Nowadays in the gay community a fag is just a feminine gay guy. I can kinda see where you're coming from now. Aha.



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Heather Roy

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I don't think the "N-word" should be used, but todays generation don't use the term in an offensive way. So it's a rough topic, personally I don't think it should be used because of what it use to mean..etc. But most people today don't find it offensive.

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Kate Snell!

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The banning of "the n-word" definately won't stop the youth from saying it.  Personally, i have no idea how it made such a big transition with it's definition through time.  I mean, originally, it was something to purposely offend an African American person, and now its a term of endearment? i dont get it.
I understand that New York wants to make a statement and show that the word itself shouldnt be used anymore.  But now its so regularly used, its basically going to go in ear and out the other with our generation.
It would be great if it wouldnt be used anymore.  But, honestly, i dont see it happening.

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Jenna

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“ I feel it’s two word. And Tupac kind of put it best. He said there’s ******s which is ******s that derived from hate and has a negative meaning. But then there’s this new term…which is niggaz. That’s just like saying my homie, my boy, my man. The way(Richards) said it…and how we went back in time with it, he was talking about ******s. He wasn’t talking about niggaz.”-Joe Torry (black comedian) I believe that is so true; I found this in a Jet magazine, the December issue.

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Jenna

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kevin wrote:

JAIMIE wrote:

I THYNK THAT THE WORD NI99ER WAS USED AS A RACIAL SLUR BUT AS TIME PROGRESSED IT HAS CHANGED. PEOPLE WHO SAY IT USUALLY DON'T MEAN ANYTHING BY IT OTHER THEN A FRIEND OR GOOD FRIEND I DONT THINK THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO STOP IT BECAUSE OF HOW MUCH IT IS USED BUT THEY WOULD HAVE IF IT WAS A LONG TIME AGO SO I DOUBT THAT WILL CHANGE ANYTHING MIGHT HAVE A SLIGHT EFFECT ON COMMUNITIES EVERY WHERE BUT WONT CHANGE THEM
:kevin if the word has progressed to good friend then why cant white people use it to if it doesent mean anything hatful or evil then it shouldnt matter to you anymore no matter who uses it.


"It's like cultures that can call one another certain things and it's embracing, but if you're NOT part of that culture, you really don't understand it fully and you shouldn't use it" -COMMON (Hip-Hop Artist)



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mre

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Grades updated - March 3rd

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Amanda

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I think that the word is totally inappropriate. I think it’s a good thing that it was banned, but I don’t really see exactly what it will do, since it cannot be enforced and when something isn’t enforced people sometimes just look at it as a joke . I don’t think any slurs should be heard in the hallways at school because too many people use these slurs so freely as if they mean nothing at all, while others find them very offensive. Words do change in their meaning sometimes, but I think that once a word has had a meaning that was that hateful, it’s difficult for the word to fully change its meaning. I think that word can mean as some people say ‘a good friend,’ but I do think that this does not change the fact that it is a racist, hateful word. I think it still carries a lot of that in its meaning.

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Amanda

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nessaA wrote:

in my opinion, i think that if they are going to ban one racial slur, why don't they ban the rest of them. yes, slavery was a big thing in our world but when imigrants came to america, they experienced a lot of the same racism that black people did after they were freed. spanish people were called spics, portuguese people were called green horns, chinese and other asian people were called chinks, japanese people were called japs, hebrew and other people who practice the jewish religion were called jews, and there were many many more slurs used against people because of their religion and what they looked like and where they came from. i don't think NYC has the right to ban the word n!gg@/n!gg*r without banning other racial slurs that hurt people just as much as the "n-word" hurts black people.

 


I agree, I don't think just one slur should be banned. It'd only make sense to say that all slurs are being banned because there are many groups in America that have been discriminated against and it's only fair to ban the slurs used against them as well.

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Donald Venerable

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nessaA wrote:


in my opinion, i think that if they are going to ban one racial slur, why don't they ban the rest of them. yes, slavery was a big thing in our world but when imigrants came to america, they experienced a lot of the same racism that black people did after they were freed. spanish people were called spics, portuguese people were called green horns, chinese and other asian people were called chinks, japanese people were called japs, hebrew and other people who practice the jewish religion were called jews, and there were many many more slurs used against people because of their religion and what they looked like and where they came from. i don't think NYC has the right to ban the word n!gg@/n!gg*r without banning other racial slurs that hurt people just as much as the "n-word" hurts black people


I agree with you because so many other people not just black people have dealt with racism and its not right but the only thing to say is if they ban one they should ban them all. Does anyone feel the same?

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Valdir

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The word shouldn’t be used on any occasion, regardless of what people say the modern day definition is. The hate in the word is inveterate; something that profound cannot be “reclaimed.” You can’t conjure a new definition for a word and discard the history behind it, the entire reason why such a vile word is banned. It’s stupid, and should have died with the racists who made it what it is today.       



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Ashley Rego

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I think the word ni99a is inappropriate, but now a days if you say the word ni99a then its a gesture among our friends, but if you use the word ni99er then its a racial slur. People should be able to say what they want regaurdless.

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mike jones

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Jenna wrote:

“ I feel it’s two word. And Tupac kind of put it best. He said there’s ******s which is ******s that derived from hate and has a negative meaning. But then there’s this new term…which is niggaz. That’s just like saying my homie, my boy, my man. The way(Richards) said it…and how we went back in time with it, he was talking about ******s. He wasn’t talking about niggaz.”-Joe Torry (black comedian) I believe that is so true; I found this in a Jet magazine, the December issue.




i tottaly agree jenna... we have a new meaning for the word nowadays and the govermental figures should just stay outta peoples buisness.

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a days

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JAIMIE wrote:

I THYNK THAT THE WORD NI99ER WAS USED AS A RACIAL SLUR BUT AS TIME PROGRESSED IT HAS CHANGED. PEOPLE WHO SAY IT USUALLY DON'T MEAN ANYTHING BY IT OTHER THEN A FRIEND OR GOOD FRIEND I DONT THINK THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO STOP IT BECAUSE OF HOW MUCH IT IS USED BUT THEY WOULD HAVE IF IT WAS A LONG TIME AGO SO I DOUBT THAT WILL CHANGE ANYTHING MIGHT HAVE A SLIGHT EFFECT ON COMMUNITIES EVERY WHERE BUT WONT CHANGE THEM

jaimie i dont ahve much to say but i agree with you 100 % thats all i can really say

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mre

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Grades updated - March 9th



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shallyn

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i think that word is absolutely unexceptable, despite the way it is used. even though the meaning has changes as the years went on, its still a racial term at least to most people.

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lexie wetzel

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I think that the n-word was used as racial slang but over time the meaning changed. I don’t think
that any one would like to be called the n-word. I think that if slaves were still around that word
would not be used today. Our generation now does not know what African Americans went
through in the past so they have changed the real meaning of the n-word without realizing the
consequences.

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Nicholai

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As you named it in this forum, it is a racial slur and shouldn't be spoken of as should any other slur.  It is unacceptable by any means and no matter who speaks it.  It shouldn't be heard in school hallways, or anywhere else.  Anyone who was actually called that word would take offense to the fact that it is used as a friendly word among many young and older people these days. 

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mre

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Grades updated - March 26th

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Sabrina

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I feel that the N-word is unacceptable and extremely inappropriate.  This is in every context, no way should be accepted by us black people.  My grandfather once said he fought his whole life to have people stop using the word and now people use all the time not realizing what people went through to have that word be forgotten and never used again.  Once I heard my grandfather say that I realized the impact of the word and dont use it.  No it shouldnt be heard in hallways even thought people say the word has a different meaning.  Today the word is something you say to another friend of yours but I think kids today dont really realize what using that word again really means.  In my opinion that word cannot be re-claimed.  It is a very negative word.  I think it is a form of racism but I dont think that people that use it are racist or even realize that there saying something wrong, this is due to black kids using the word.

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Sabrina

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Kevin, i agree with you a 100%.  I also think that word is unappropriate and it doesn't make any sense for anyone to use it!!!!!

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Winnie Z.

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The N-word is not appropriate whatsoever. No matter what context the word is used, it is still not appropriate. It should not be heard in school hallways because it refers to the word used by slave owners and such long ago. Even if there is no malice or ill-will in the way teens and others are using it nowadays, the word is still quite offensive due to its' roots and history behind it. The N-word is used towards close friends and family. It is a term of friendliness rather than what the word used to mean years and years ago. Words can be "reclaimed" in that it would mean the same thing and not be twisted around to mean the complete opposite. The N-word implies racism no matter who says it. If a black person were to say it, they would think it is alright, but if a white person or someone other than black were to say it, they would be called a racist. You don't see many people around calling each other chinks if they're Chinese or wetbacks if they're Mexican. No matter who says these derogatory words, guaranteed, at least one person will be offended.


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Winnie Z.

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Sabrina wrote:

I feel that the N-word is unacceptable and extremely inappropriate.This is in every context, no way should be accepted by us black people.My grandfather once said he fought his whole life to have people stop using the word and now people use all the time not realizing what people went through to have that word be forgotten and never used again.Once I heard my grandfather say that I realized the impact of the word and dont use it.No it shouldnt be heard in hallways even thought people say the word has a different meaning.Today the word is something you say to another friend of yours but I think kids today dont really realize what using that word again really means.In my opinion that word cannot be re-claimed.It is a very negative word.I think it is a form of racism but I dont think that people that use it are racist or even realize that there saying something wrong, this is due to black kids using the word.
 I agree with you wholeheartedly on how the N-word shouldn't used at all and the people who suffered and worked so hard to stop it from being used. Good job Sabrina. ^.^


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mre

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Grades updated 4/1/07

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