TIME TO BURY THE “N” WORD?

Dr. Laura Schlessinger is under fire for her repeated use of the “N” word during a live radio broadcast last week.  And although her actions and words are being widely panned as insensitive and down right rude, some of her words may surprisingly prove that she might actually have a point.

“You turn on HBO and listen to a black comic and all you hear is n—–, n—–, n—-,” Dr. Laura said during her radio show, adding “If anybody without enough melanin says it, it’s a horrible thing — but when black people say it, it’s affectionate.”  Hmmm…

During the dark days of slavery in this country, the “N” word was frequently used as a demeaning term against blacks, who were thought of as less than human and therefore incapable of being legitimate citizens.  The term caught fire and found itself deeply rooted in the civil rights era of the 1960’s.  And it is still freely wielded today as a bonafide racial epithet by racists looking for the “ultimate dig.”

But some blacks, particularly within a younger generation, who have no real memory or connection to the racially charged 1960’s, look at the “N” word with a different set of glasses.  Some believe that if they openly use the word for any and all to hear, it becomes powerless and allows them to take back ownership of exactly what a “Nig**r” is.  Still, many other African-Americans, both young and old, have adopted what some consider an odd mentality of “I-can-use-the-word-but-you-can’t.”  And it is this double-standard mentality that has confused many whites and was partially behind Dr. Laura’s comments.

“So a word can belong to one race, huh?  Oh, now I get it,” Dr. Laura smugly said to the African-American female caller, who chastised the radio host for even forming her lips to utter the word.  But in truth, NO… a word should NOT belong solely to one race.  But somehow, African-Americans have bent that rule, which continues to cause all sorts of chaos and confusion such as with Dr. Laura.

The unwritten rule is this:  Any BLACK person can call another black, white, latin, or other person a “N*gga” (with the “r” correctly dropped for slang purposes).  Any BLACK person may also freely use the word “N*gga” on television, in music, while on public transportation or anywhere else they choose.  But no WHITE person may call ANYBODY a “N*gga” or use the term “N*gga” as a term of endearment or for ANY reason whatsoever, ANYTIME or ANYWHERE.  Should this be acceptable? Or is this the craziest and stupidest thing you’ve ever heard?

This past weekend, a panel took to the airwaves on CNN to discuss this very subject.  Some panelists believed that the use of the “N” word by other blacks is harmless, since it is done within the “family”. They pointed out that gay men frequently refer to each other as a “F*g” endearingly, and that it’s all part of the old school concept of “I-can-talk-about-my-mama-but-nobody-else-can.” But others quickly pointed out that with the history of slavery and racism in America, paired with the thousands of deaths and murders associated with the word across centuries, any casual use of the “N” word is like joking about 9/11 — you just don’t go there.  They also pointed out that Jews, for example, would never take a term or memory from the holocaust and try to flip it into something endearing or light-hearted.

So, should the “N” word remain the sole property of African-Americans to use at will?  Or should everybody get rid of using the term out of respect for its history and those who died because of it?