N-word 2…continued

July 31, 2008 at 12:48 am | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

   I waited, to date there were no comments on N-word post one.  If you’re just reading this blog for the first time, see the previous post.

   I know that people have been reading it.  Local media critic Ed Bark of unclebarky.com fame printed a few teasy excerpts to wet his readers appetites.

   One co-worker told me at a company picnic he was “looking over his shoulder as he read it,” concerned about the use of the word and what might happen if someone caught him reading it.  That’s what our world has come to when we speak about language or words that deal with controversy or discomfort, all fear and political correctness, no honesty or conscious debate.  

Equality is now Diversity, Disabilities are now Challenges, Black Americans are now African-Americans.

It seems we can re-lable almost anyone or anything, but in dealing with the redifinition of a word born exclusively of American History, the result is  SILENCE.

That is why I gave a shout out to my Mother at the end.  She once told me “if you can’t talk about it, you can’t solve it.”  If we can’t talk about “the word” then we’ll never reach an intelligent comfort level with it’s various definitions and how they apply.

  Go to a Hip Hop concert, do you see Gangsta Rappers calling out the thousands of non-black fans who’ve paid good money to see them when they repeat the lyrics to their songs that include “the word?”  No!  That alone is evidence of how the word’s use and the emotions around it have changed.

   Another Co-worker of mine said to me: “Randy, you only got away with writing that blog because you’re Black.”  “A white person would have been fired.”

    I’m calling BS on that one.  No one from NBC 5 has ever told me what to write or not write in a blog.  It’s great working for a station where controversy is open to debate.  No one has told me not to use ”the word” in this post, I’ve chosen to limit it’s use because as I said in the orginal post, it’s just not a big part of my vocabulary.

    I wrote the post, because once again, debate on talk shows from radio, to cable tv to the ladies of “the view” were discussing it while bleeping it from being heard on-air.

    I concede this, because I’m black, I have the life experience to talk openly about it.  In my lifetime it’s been used as a word to try and intimidate me and a term of endearment by people close to me.  The word is part of my life, part of American Life.

    I reject the notion completely that someone Non-Black can’t speak, blog or address “the word” in any way without incurring some sort of backlash or even being fired. 

    For instance, show me one example of someone White who’s used “the word” publically and suffered a consequence as a result? 

    We recently have buried two Republican US SENATORS who made careers of bigotry and racism, used “the word” in it’s most intimidating sense, at the most volitaile of times in America, they retired US SENATORS.

    Sen. Robert Byrd of West Va. is a former Grand Wizard of the KKK, He’s used “the word” and he remains a sitting US SENATOR.

     Mark Furman, remember him?  He repeated “the word” over and over and over and over and over and over…ON TAPE, had the audacity to commit perjury about his use of “the word” as a sworn Peace Officer and witness in a Double Murder trial!   Furman’s consequence, he makes more money now as a Conservative Talk Radio show host, motivational speaker, Published Author, and Fox News Contributor than he ever did as a cop.  I dare say the word “Nigger” is the best thing to ever happen to Furman.

   Then there’s old Don Imus, who years before the “nappy head-ho” comment got him essentially a 9 month vacation from an 8-figure salary radio gig, went on 60 MINUTES, the premier News Program of my Lifetime and told an interviewer he “specifically hired a producer to tell Nigger Jokes.”   He actually said that on 60 MINUTES.  Imus’ consequence, he’s still an 8-figure salary Radio Shock Jock. 

   So if you want to blog about it, blog, if you want to talk about it, talk but don’t hide behind excuses and don’t be so naive to think that we can eliminate ”the word” or it’s various uses from American Language.

   It’s funny, but one thing I’ve found to be universal in this world, no matter how small your vocabulary, unless you’re a young child, we always seem to know the dirty words.

    it’s a big man’s world, it’s a big man blogging.