The N Word

Column published July 12, 2007

THE OTHER SIDE
by Kelvin Wade

Can we really bury the N-word?

On Monday, the NAACP symbolically buried the N-word. After the Michael Richards and Don Imus incidents as well as the prevalence of the N-word and other derogatory terms used in a lot
of rap music, the organization feels it ís time to rid our society of this epithet for good.

The NAACP symbolically buried Jim Crow in 1944. But Jim Crow was different. It was a system of state and local laws that mandated ìseparate but equalî facilities for blacks and whites, even
though the facilities for blacks were always inferior. It was a way to keep blacks in their place with the mask of equality. But overturning laws is easier than overturning a mindset.

Frankly, the NAACP doesn't have the national clout or street credibility to make an impact on
black youth in America today. And an organization with "colored people" in its name burying the N-word is likely going to make many blacks scratch their heads.

There ís a Web site called www.abolishthenword.com that plays a devastating slideshow intro
of actual photos of lynched blacks while the haunting anti-lynching anthem Strange Fruit, made famous by Billie Holiday, plays in the background. Perusing the Web site may be enough to turn some socially conscious young blacks from using the slur.

But it ís naive to think that young black comics and rap stars are going to cease using the word.
As long as it pays to keep throwing the N-word around and other derogatory language, it will continue. A lot of old school rappers like Kurtis Blow are challenging the new breed to up their game and not use the word, but I fear dollars will prevail over sense.

There are many blacks who feel that they've appropriated the word, redefined it and use it with
pride. And these aren't just easily dismissed uneducated inner city blacks but many black intellectuals. Watch Todd Williams' documentary, "The N Word: Divided We Stand" and you will see wideranging views from scholars, actors, rappers and social commentators.

In my family, my parents didn't allow any profanity. They stressed certain codes of conduct both at home and when my brothers and I were in public. That home training carried over to adulthood. I cringe when I hear the word used in a public setting. If people could grasp that indecent, offensive words shouldn't be casually slung around in public whether it ís from one's lips or blasting from one's car stereo, we'd go a long way to creating a more respectful community.

And maybe that ís the best we can hope for since the genie is out of the bottle. A good start would be to get folks to move the word out of the public sector. Our society has coarsened enough. You wouldn't use the F-word in church. Why are you blasting fillthy lyrics including
the N-word at a stop light?

Some think there ís never a time and place to use the N-word. I can respect that. But others don't and for them maybe the best we can hope for is they use that word in a private setting.
Start there.