Why nobody should be comfortable with the N-word

Language policing or banning words is not my goal; indeed, I believe freedom of speech/ expression/ thought must be protected because it is essential for social and individual empowerment, especially when it is informed. With that in mind, I will defend others’ right to self-expression and reserve my right to critic. When it comes to the word ‘nigger’ (N-word), I intentionally choose to reject its use, if not for educational purposes.

I find the use of the N-word by some sections of the black community as a term of endearment disturbing, just as I am unconvinced by the reclamation, appropriation and reappropriation argument.

We must be wary of turning into a less information constituency that unwittingly becomes a power boon for its abusers. If free expression is to be beneficial for our children and society, it must be supported by easy access to high quality information so they can be effective critics of their choices.

Initially, the N-word was just a descriptor, “negro,” a Spanish term for black with no value attached to it. However, from the early 17^th century, “negro” evolved to “nigger” an intentionally derogatory form. The term is inextricably linked with violence and brutality on Black psyches and casting aspersions on Black bodies.

From its rightful historical context in the 17^th Century, the N-word is a derogatory label that represents expressions of prejudice that elicit negative evaluations, dehumanisation, and discrimination of Black people. The term was used by white enslavers to emphasise their power and marginalise Black slaves. It is based on the basic premise that Black people are not human beings.

It is laden with racist connotations and can never be sanitised without ignoring our past and sacrificing Black dignity. No degree of appropriating can take away the burden of the slavery past laden with the dehumanisation of our forebearers.

That among many young people — black and white — today, the N-word can mean ‘friend’ is a social travesty and raises questions of the Black consciousness. Black people may choose to look the other way, be complicit in giving oxygen to the N-word, ignore its past, but they can never say they do not know its horrible legacy referenced back to slavery days.

We must understand the past is neither dead nor past nor nonconsequential. Whenever people pay less attention to their past, they allow abusers uninterrupted investment in it only to filter and present it in an easy-to-read history of convenience with intentional alterations, omissions, appendages, and misrepresentations that help them avoid the discomfort of facing the depth of their abusive past. When we intentionally minimise the past, excuse its scars and meanings or try to explain them away, we undercut valuable opportunities of learning from it and achieving genuine healing and growth.  

In a past where white people created a racial hierarchy that saw whites at the apex with blacks placed at the bottom, the N-word defined, restricted, poked fun of and ridiculed blacks; no degree of appropriating can rid the N-word of its derogatory legacy.

It was a term of exclusion and discrimination. The term carries much hatred and disgust directed toward black people and is often used as an insult to offend other ethnic groups, e.g., Jews are called White-niggers; Arabs, sand-niggers; Japanese, yellow-niggers.

Whether used as a noun, verb, or adjective, the term strengthened the stereotype of the lazy, stupid, dirty, worthless nobodies. Below are some examples of the word’s use and meanings:

Naggers: Acting lazily and irresponsibly.
Niggerlipping: wetting the end of a cigarette while smoking it.
Niggerlover: Derogatory term aimed at Whites lacking in the necessary loathing of Blacks.
Nigger luck: Exceptionally, but undeserved good luck.
Nigger-flicker: A small knife or razor with one side heavily taped to preserve the user’s fingers.
Nigger heaven: Designated places, usually the balcony, where Blacks were forced to sit, for example, in an integrated movie theatre or church.
Nigger knocker: Axe handle or weapon made from an axe handle.
Nigger rich: Deeply in debt but flamboyant.
Nigger shooter: A slingshot.
Nigger steak: A slice of liver or a cheap piece of meat.
Nigger stick: Police officer’s baton.
Nigger tip: Leaving a small tip or no tip in a restaurant.
Nigger in the woodpile: A concealed motive or unknown factor affecting a situation adversely.
Nigger work: Demeaning, menial tasks.

Taking ownership of an intentionally derogatory term used as part of a broad package of abominable actions aimed at dehumanising our Black forebearers by white enslavers is an ultimate insult; it is naïve and neither empowerment nor living forward but giving up.

Reclaiming the N-word is a wild and ill-thought-out dream; the term has a life of its own that cannot be unlived; it is deeply offensive; it cannot be genuinely detached from its problematic historical context. Appropriating and reappropriating it does not bring about collective Black empowerment. It takes a level of ignorance and self-hate for anyone to try and sanitise such a derogatory term. By using it as a term of endearment, we are effectively minimising its racist and slavery origins. I suggest we reject its use outside exceptional educational purposes.