Ban The N Word
End This Double Standard
By D.W.

In the wake of the Michael Richards N word scandal a new effort is gaining traction to ban this derogatory and hateful word. But what is odd about the social dilemma of the N word is that today it is mostly African Americans who use it. They call each other this gutter word in very public venues and in the mass media. Black comics constantly use it on stage and many rappers profusely saturate their songs with it. And in private and social conversations, some African Americans employ it as part of their colloquial language as if it was as harmless as saying dude.

However, if any other non-black person uses the N word, it is automatically the most vulgar form of racial insult imaginable.

Why the double standard?

Constantly saying the N word confuses people over what exactly hate speech is and it reinforces racist stereotypes.

When young white and Hispanic people hear blacks call each other this word in such a nonchalant manner it encourages them to use other hateful speech. I have known many young people who cite blacks using the N word towards each other as evidence that they should be able to use it themselves.

But in all reality, the N word is a hateful and evil word no matter how you spin it, which is why it won’t be printed here.
 

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It is derived from its long history of use as a racial slur and it is commonly accepted as such. However, some rap artists are trying to recreate the meaning of the N word for use in their own social circles. However, their private understanding of the N word doesn’t change the English language; it is still hate speech.

Suppose your friends got together and decided that calling each other [EXPLETIVE DELETED] was a term of endearment rather than an insult. They are still not going to change the public understanding of that word.

But more to the point is that when blacks call each other the N word, it reinforces the stereotype of the racial slur. When many non-black people witness the act of blacks using this gutter word, they conclude that if these people have no self-respect, then why should we respect them?

And many ask why the N word is acceptable in one occasion and not in another?

Now I am not advocating a legal ban of the N word that would have cops ticketing people for saying it because that would be ridiculous, although certain members of the black community probably wouldn’t mind if white people were fined for saying it. Such legislation would be totally unenforceable and unproductive because it would create a perverse backlash instead of deterring the use of the word.

However, we can discourage the N word’s acceptance in public life and its communication through mass media, which has already taken place but only among white people.

For example, major record labels could prohibit its use among rap artists and major movie studios could remove it from their screenplays. We can admonish celebrities who use it in public (like what has already happened to white celebrities) and editors can strike it from magazines.

But most importantly, we as a society can educate people about why hate speech is not okay, even if it is employed by people who use it with a totally different meaning.

It is time to start discouraging everybody (and everybody actually means everybody), especially youths, from including the N word in their vernacular.

If prominent black celebrities take the first step and eliminate it from their vocabulary while admonishing everyone else who uses it, then youths will decrease their use of it as well. Once blacks stop saying the word amongst themselves, maybe everyone else will reduce using it as well.

A ban on the N word doesn’t necessarily have to be enforced with legislation or through litigation. It can be largely self-policed through public pressure from within the entertainment industry and in the black community. If black celebrities were to come out against the N word in force and with enough persistence the ban could be effective. Suppose Michael Jordan tells black kids that the N word is always hateful, they will listen to him. He, much like Bill Cosby, can also engage other black celebrities who use it and encourage them to stop saying it which would be far more effective than any law.

The easiest way to influence impressionable people to stop saying the N word is for the entertainment industry to be more responsible. This is really a matter of good taste and respect, so the imperative to ban this gutter word should be clear.

And if the African American community truly wants to increase self-respect and respect from others it needs to stop using the N word, especially since they expect everyone else not to say it.

Everyone can benefit from a country free of hate speech.

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COMMENTS FROM READERS

I agree with abolishment of the N word, however, how far should this political correctness extend? How about "cracker"? How about calling the President "a devil?" Who or what determines a word is evil? -Ted