Video: “People Died Because Of That Word” – College Students Call Old Man A ‘N*gga’ While He Buys B

[Cunt_Lyfe]

...

I'm not pretending anything--I'd just like to see y'all discuss other issues with the same fervor. The usage of the n-word in the Black community is NOT an issue to me at all. It's nowhere near as pressing as someone Black being killed every 36 hours for looking suspicious, or the fact that more Black men will be incarcerated at higher rates due to systematic racism. When I think about the broader scope of our problems, 16 year old Black kids calling each other nigga doesn't matter to me in the slightest.

First of all all of these topics come up on this site pretty regularly. Second, you can't act like you're aware and conscious of racism and related issues but completely ignore the psychological aspect of it. If young black men are identifying themselves as the same term that racist whites created to describe them as something that is less than human how can think that isn't going to be self-destructive?

What you call "looking suspicious" a racist white would just consider a "nigger". When you say 16 year old black kids are killing each other and they call each other "nigga" guess what whites call them? When you say black men are incarcerated at higher rates due to systemic racism, a racist just thinks "there's a lot of niggers in jail."

I'm not sure how you're able to remove the word from its context so easily.

When do those types of topics come up on this site regularly, man? Other than the Trayvon Martin and Renisha McBride, I don't think there's really a time when people are discussing other forms of systematic racism and the effects they have as a regular occurrence. If I'm wrong, feel free to point out where they are to me.

Trust, I understand the psychological aspect to it. But there are other things that require immediate attention other than deliberating on a word that marginalized people have every right to use if they choose to, imo. There's more psychological, as well as physiological consequences from the type of violence being inflicted on us economically and politically every single day that I want to pay more attention to.

Look, even if we were to stop using the n-word, white people would still find words to degrade and humiliate us with. Case in point, the example of Richard Sherman. Never was the word nigger used, but the white media repeatedly referred to him as a thug in an effort to try to make him feel inferior.

 

[Stiff]

I think you missed my point - I was saying your whole argument is pseudo-intellectual. The etymology of the word is irrelevant and the fact that you think that "nigger" having it's root in "negro" is some kind of hidden knowledge available only to you is only more evidence of this.

So you're saying that talking about the origin of a word is irrelevant when discussing whether or not the word should be used or not....ummm that's kind of silly and I don't know even know what to say to that bra. And no I don't think "nigger" having its origin in the latin word for black is hidden knowledge available only to me but I'm willing to bet most people with your stance think that "nigger" was invented during slave times as a slur so it's relevant to the discussion.

Let me see how you feel if an old white man walks up to you and says "whassup, my nigga?" - you gonna be like "oh it's cool - he was smiling when he said it"? I guess also by your logic it's cool to call people darkie as long as they have dark skin?

If a old white man walks up to me and says "whassup, my nigga" and he's smiling then he's probably mocking me so nah I wouldn't be cool with that. I don't believe white people should use the word at all simply out of respect but that's a different topic--I'm talking specifically about Blacks using the word to refer to each other.

I guess also by your logic it's cool to call people darkie as long as they have dark skin?

Again, this sounds silly to me...honestly don't know how you got that from anything I said. But so I can be clear, no I don't think it's cool to call people darkie if they have dark skin. lol what are you talking about bra?

You're just arguing for the sake of it which is corny.

So anybody that disagrees with your point of view and tells you specifically why is "arguing for the sake of it" and that's corny. Okay guy.

 

[Stiff]

African Americans are the only people that take a slur like nigger to describe themselves. Imo it reflects internalized racism

Not necessarily.

Like I said earlier, gays call each other faggots and dykes positively. Women refer to each others as bitches and cunts positively.

I've heard Latinos refer to themselves as Spics before.

Honestly, I haven't heard anyone argue why marginalized people don't have the right to use a word, if they know the history and want to use it amongst themselves to subvert the oppressive meaning behind it.

idk about gays but latinos use nigga more than spic, there's really no comparison in the use of nigger in the Af-Am community and any other group

the only word that comes close is "nèg" in Haiti which has the same root as nigger but is used by all Haitians

Actually i think its def a reflection of internalized racism.

Our brothers in South Africa were called kaffirs (which has the same connotation as nigger) and they actually banned it, they never tried to identify themselves as kaffirs

South Africa:

Act No. 4 of 2000: Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act.

10. (1) Subject to the proviso in section 12. no person may publish, propagate, advocate or communicate words based on one or more of the prohibited grounds, against any person, that could reasonably be construed to demonstrate a clear intention to -

(a) be hurtful;

(b) be harmful or to incite harm;

(c) promote or propagate hatred.

Not the same bro. The South African word Kafir comes from the arabic word "Kafir" which means infidel or outsider. So when whites in South Africa called blacks "kafir" they were essentially calling them outsiders in their own homeland. A word like that could never be flipped because it represents in it's essence how white people came from Europe, took over and then pushed the native people to the bottom of society.

Like I said, nigger comes from nigre which means Black in latin. Before it was a slur it was a neutral term for Blacks. We also can't ignore connotation. The only reason "nigger" is an insult is because we're told that it is. It'd be different if Black people were walking around calling each other porch monkeys--then I'd see your point about internalized racism.

If its not internalized racism why dont other English speaking people of African descent use it to describe themselves

Like who? Black Canadians do, Caribbean people that I've met here do

Only the ones obsessed with american culture/hip hop

In the islands they dont use that to describe themselves in English speaking africa they don't use it either

What do you think the difference is?

History and difference in culture. Every English speaking country today besides America was a British colony up into the mid 20th century(with a few exceptions maybe). I could ask you the same question: If it's internalized racism then how come only American Blacks use the term? Blacks worldwide were oppressed under similar conditions. I just think American Blacks reacted differently then Blacks that were under the British sphere of influence, but I don't believe Blacks in America have lower self-esteem than Blacks elsewhere.

Every nation in the western hemisphere had slavery yet only american blacks use slurs to identify themselves. Nigger is a slur on all English speaking countries.

And honestly do believe that african -americans have more successfully internalized white supremacy than other groups due to differences in the type of slavery in america

I went to Botswana and people my age there would use nigga frequently. :-??

i bet they were into American culture correct?

@stiff African-Americans dont use nigger to refer to themselves because the root means black so the point is moot

@BlackJerryMaguire‌ I don't disagree with this. What I'm going against is the argument/belief that we shouldn't refer to ourselves as nigga because the term "nigger" was invented to demean us, or because it's somehow connected self-loathing or anything like that.

Like @Cunt_Lyfe‌ said there are way more pressing issues that we as people should be worried about and the "n-word debate" to me is really a non-issue and a distraction.

I still believe its a sign of internalized racism i don't believe we should be using that to describe ourselves. It was not created as a slur you are correct but it is something we all agree is slur

So when a black man refers to his best friend as "my nigga" it's still a slur then?

 

[StillFaggyAF]

African Americans are the only people that take a slur like nigger to describe themselves. Imo it reflects internalized racism

Not necessarily.

Like I said earlier, gays call each other faggots and dykes positively. Women refer to each others as bitches and cunts positively.

I've heard Latinos refer to themselves as Spics before.

Honestly, I haven't heard anyone argue why marginalized people don't have the right to use a word, if they know the history and want to use it amongst themselves to subvert the oppressive meaning behind it.

idk about gays but latinos use nigga more than spic, there's really no comparison in the use of nigger in the Af-Am community and any other group

the only word that comes close is "nèg" in Haiti which has the same root as nigger but is used by all Haitians

Actually i think its def a reflection of internalized racism.

Our brothers in South Africa were called kaffirs (which has the same connotation as nigger) and they actually banned it, they never tried to identify themselves as kaffirs

South Africa:

Act No. 4 of 2000: Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act.

10. (1) Subject to the proviso in section 12. no person may publish, propagate, advocate or communicate words based on one or more of the prohibited grounds, against any person, that could reasonably be construed to demonstrate a clear intention to -

(a) be hurtful;

(b) be harmful or to incite harm;

(c) promote or propagate hatred.

Not the same bro. The South African word Kafir comes from the arabic word "Kafir" which means infidel or outsider. So when whites in South Africa called blacks "kafir" they were essentially calling them outsiders in their own homeland. A word like that could never be flipped because it represents in it's essence how white people came from Europe, took over and then pushed the native people to the bottom of society.

Like I said, nigger comes from nigre which means Black in latin. Before it was a slur it was a neutral term for Blacks. We also can't ignore connotation. The only reason "nigger" is an insult is because we're told that it is. It'd be different if Black people were walking around calling each other porch monkeys--then I'd see your point about internalized racism.

If its not internalized racism why dont other English speaking people of African descent use it to describe themselves

Like who? Black Canadians do, Caribbean people that I've met here do

Only the ones obsessed with american culture/hip hop

In the islands they dont use that to describe themselves in English speaking africa they don't use it either

What do you think the difference is?

History and difference in culture. Every English speaking country today besides America was a British colony up into the mid 20th century(with a few exceptions maybe). I could ask you the same question: If it's internalized racism then how come only American Blacks use the term? Blacks worldwide were oppressed under similar conditions. I just think American Blacks reacted differently then Blacks that were under the British sphere of influence, but I don't believe Blacks in America have lower self-esteem than Blacks elsewhere.

Every nation in the western hemisphere had slavery yet only american blacks use slurs to identify themselves. Nigger is a slur on all English speaking countries.

And honestly do believe that african -americans have more successfully internalized white supremacy than other groups due to differences in the type of slavery in america

I went to Botswana and people my age there would use nigga frequently. :-??

i bet they were into American culture correct?

@stiff African-Americans dont use nigger to refer to themselves because the root means black so the point is moot

@BlackJerryMaguire‌ I don't disagree with this. What I'm going against is the argument/belief that we shouldn't refer to ourselves as nigga because the term "nigger" was invented to demean us, or because it's somehow connected self-loathing or anything like that.

Like @Cunt_Lyfe‌ said there are way more pressing issues that we as people should be worried about and the "n-word debate" to me is really a non-issue and a distraction.

I still believe its a sign of internalized racism i don't believe we should be using that to describe ourselves. It was not created as a slur you are correct but it is something we all agree is slur

So when a black man refers to his best friend as "my nigga" it's still a slur then?

yes

 

[SneakDZA]

nm, you're right - it's totally appropriate for black people to refer to themselves, their peers and their elders as niggers.

I guess it's also ok if my sister called my mom and grandma her bitch then since they flipped that word and young women call their friends that shit all the time and now it's a term of endearment.

(Just so you know I'm being sarcastic and also making an analogy. I have to explain this to you since you don't seem to be getting it.)

 

[atribecalledgabi]

Context was mentioned all over the thread tho...

 

[Jungz]

I don't even curse around old people.. much less call them nigga.. smh niggas outta pocket

 

[jono]

Context was mentioned all over the thread tho...

....yeah it really was

 

[High Revolutionary]

What kills me is how some of y'all cape for using the word.

If you don't think it's a big deal to use it, cool. But why cape?

 

[jono]

.

 

[Max.]

I just watched a doc on netflix ..the black panthers n how crips n bloods came about in the 80s n how blacks used to be together now they wana blam each other head off..instead of forgiving past beefs they cont to kill each other..

 

[Stiff]

nm, you're right - it's totally appropriate for black people to refer to themselves, their peers and their elders as niggers.

I guess it's also ok if my sister called my mom and grandma her bitch then since they flipped that word and young women call their friends that shit all the time and now it's a term of endearment.

(Just so you know I'm being sarcastic and also making an analogy. I have to explain this to you since you don't seem to be getting it.)

@"Sneak Dissa"‌

Yeah my guy I get that you're using analogies, they're just not good ones. Darkie is insulting because you're taking a characteristic of a person and putting "-ie" at the end of it. It's insulting to call white people "whitey", obese people "fattie", and stupid people "dumbie". Not a good comparison.

Bitch is insulting because it literally means "female dog". Not a good comparison.

And I'm all for respect. If a person doesn't want you to refer to them as "nigga" and you do so anyway, then it's not about the word at that point... it's about the lack of respect shown.

Here's a better analogy for you, @"High Revolutionary"‌ @BlackJerryMaguire‌ and @ShiveDreadz‌ . I want you to bear with me here... :

Say for instance if during the Jim Crow era, racist Whites had used the term "apple" to refer to blacks as a reference to hangings from trees or something crazy like that. And what if they would throw apples at black people to demean them.

Are you all saying that in 2014 a black person eating apples is wrong, self-loathing, or would be "inappropriate"?

And no I'm not talking about them calling themselves "apple" , because that would always be a negative because the term would be in reference to lynchings. I'm talking about eating apples. Should blacks avoid apples all together just because of this one period of time even though there are positives associated with eating it (ie. vitamin c,taste and all that).

Put an apple in the freezer and throw it at somebody then yeah it can still be hurtful. But used in other capacities then no an apple isn't harmful. In this scenario I think somebody could be pro-black AND have apples be their favorite fruit. Yeah I know the whole thing sounds outlandish but I really want to hear your take on that.

And to answer your question @"High Revolutionary"‌ , I'm not caping for the word, I'm caping for myself when people say things like if you say "nigga" you're internalizing racism, or you can't be pro-black if you say nigga. I'm very much black and proud and I say nigga profusely.

And to respond to an earlier statement you made @BlackJerryMaguire‌ , African-Americans are definitely not the only people to use slurs to refer to themselves, and in effect "neutralize" the word or even use it as a sense of pride. Gays did it with "queer" which was originally a slur. Poor Southern Whites did it with "redneck" which was originally a slur. Those are just a couple of examples. It's called re-appropriation and here's an article on ithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reclaimed_word . No I'm not saying that we should do it because other groups did it but my point there is that it's not unheard of.

 

[blacktux]

Regarding your question with the "apple". I would say no.

But it is not a comparable analogy unless black people are calling themselves apples with pride knowing the negative way the word relates to their peoples past.

 

[blacktux]

The redneck relation was closer, but well off whites dont refer to themselves as rednecks. They refer to lower class whites with those derogatory words.

Blacks dont have a major separation of class like that, though i can see it happening. I dont know many black professionals/ upper class that use that word and when they do they are describing lesser blacks.

 

[StillFaggyAF]

nm, you're right - it's totally appropriate for black people to refer to themselves, their peers and their elders as niggers.

I guess it's also ok if my sister called my mom and grandma her bitch then since they flipped that word and young women call their friends that shit all the time and now it's a term of endearment.

(Just so you know I'm being sarcastic and also making an analogy. I have to explain this to you since you don't seem to be getting it.)

@"Sneak Dissa"‌

Yeah my guy I get that you're using analogies, they're just not good ones. Darkie is insulting because you're taking a characteristic of a person and putting "-ie" at the end of it. It's insulting to call white people "whitey", obese people "fattie", and stupid people "dumbie". Not a good comparison.

Bitch is insulting because it literally means "female dog". Not a good comparison.

And I'm all for respect. If a person doesn't want you to refer to them as "nigga" and you do so anyway, then it's not about the word at that point... it's about the lack of respect shown.

Here's a better analogy for you, @"High Revolutionary"‌ @BlackJerryMaguire‌ and @ShiveDreadz‌ . I want you to bear with me here... :

Say for instance if during the Jim Crow era, racist Whites had used the term "apple" to refer to blacks as a reference to hangings from trees or something crazy like that. And what if they would throw apples at black people to demean them.

Are you all saying that in 2014 a black person eating apples is wrong, self-loathing, or would be "inappropriate"?

And no I'm not talking about them calling themselves "apple" , because that would always be a negative because the term would be in reference to lynchings. I'm talking about eating apples. Should blacks avoid apples all together just because of this one period of time even though there are positives associated with eating it (ie. vitamin c,taste and all that).

Put an apple in the freezer and throw it at somebody then yeah it can still be hurtful. But used in other capacities then no an apple isn't harmful. In this scenario I think somebody could be pro-black AND have apples be their favorite fruit. Yeah I know the whole thing sounds outlandish but I really want to hear your take on that.

And to answer your question @"High Revolutionary"‌ , I'm not caping for the word, I'm caping for myself when people say things like if you say "nigga" you're internalizing racism, or you can't be pro-black if you say nigga. I'm very much black and proud and I say nigga profusely.

And to respond to an earlier statement you made @BlackJerryMaguire‌ , African-Americans are definitely not the only people to use slurs to refer to themselves, and in effect "neutralize" the word or even use it as a sense of pride. Gays did it with "queer" which was originally a slur. Poor Southern Whites did it with "redneck" which was originally a slur. Those are just a couple of examples. It's called re-appropriation and here's an article on ithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reclaimed_word . No I'm not saying that we should do it because other groups did it but my point there is that it's not unheard of.

the apple analogy doesn't work since apples were not created by Europeans to give to Africanslaves and they weren't force fed apples until they were convinced they liked it. also, apples don't grow in every country that had African slaves so the analogy fails there too. like i said nigger is slur south of the border too yet the african descended people don't use it to self identify

redneck and queer are still slurs although queer was never the worst pejorative for gays. reappropiation only works if everyone uses it (like "neg" in Haiti)

 

[The Lonious Monk]

I don't know why people insist on acting like language and words are stagnant. They aren't. They are dynamic. Meanings and contexts constantly change. It's like Black people love having this word to whine about. Again, the word would either disappear or wind up meaning something completely different if Blacks stopped holding onto it.

Older cats have the right to be upset about that word. It has meaning to them and that can't be changed, but it's dumb to act like kids that are damn near half a century removed from that period should look at things the same. They aren't, and they shouldn't. The N word is not special. There are tons of examples of words that were slurs and used to hurt and abuse people and were later redefined to mean something else. Hell, Cracked did a piece on it.
http://www.cracked.com/article_16967_8-racist-words-you-use-every-day.html

 

[Stiff]

nm, you're right - it's totally appropriate for black people to refer to themselves, their peers and their elders as niggers.

I guess it's also ok if my sister called my mom and grandma her bitch then since they flipped that word and young women call their friends that shit all the time and now it's a term of endearment.

(Just so you know I'm being sarcastic and also making an analogy. I have to explain this to you since you don't seem to be getting it.)

@"Sneak Dissa"‌

Yeah my guy I get that you're using analogies, they're just not good ones. Darkie is insulting because you're taking a characteristic of a person and putting "-ie" at the end of it. It's insulting to call white people "whitey", obese people "fattie", and stupid people "dumbie". Not a good comparison.

Bitch is insulting because it literally means "female dog". Not a good comparison.

And I'm all for respect. If a person doesn't want you to refer to them as "nigga" and you do so anyway, then it's not about the word at that point... it's about the lack of respect shown.

Here's a better analogy for you, @"High Revolutionary"‌ @BlackJerryMaguire‌ and @ShiveDreadz‌ . I want you to bear with me here... :

Say for instance if during the Jim Crow era, racist Whites had used the term "apple" to refer to blacks as a reference to hangings from trees or something crazy like that. And what if they would throw apples at black people to demean them.

Are you all saying that in 2014 a black person eating apples is wrong, self-loathing, or would be "inappropriate"?

And no I'm not talking about them calling themselves "apple" , because that would always be a negative because the term would be in reference to lynchings. I'm talking about eating apples. Should blacks avoid apples all together just because of this one period of time even though there are positives associated with eating it (ie. vitamin c,taste and all that).

Put an apple in the freezer and throw it at somebody then yeah it can still be hurtful. But used in other capacities then no an apple isn't harmful. In this scenario I think somebody could be pro-black AND have apples be their favorite fruit. Yeah I know the whole thing sounds outlandish but I really want to hear your take on that.

And to answer your question @"High Revolutionary"‌ , I'm not caping for the word, I'm caping for myself when people say things like if you say "nigga" you're internalizing racism, or you can't be pro-black if you say nigga. I'm very much black and proud and I say nigga profusely.

And to respond to an earlier statement you made @BlackJerryMaguire‌ , African-Americans are definitely not the only people to use slurs to refer to themselves, and in effect "neutralize" the word or even use it as a sense of pride. Gays did it with "queer" which was originally a slur. Poor Southern Whites did it with "redneck" which was originally a slur. Those are just a couple of examples. It's called re-appropriation and here's an article on ithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reclaimed_word . No I'm not saying that we should do it because other groups did it but my point there is that it's not unheard of.

the apple analogy doesn't work since apples were not created by Europeans to give to Africanslaves and they weren't force fed apples until they were convinced they liked it. also, apples don't grow in every country that had African slaves so the analogy fails there too. like i said nigger is slur south of the border too yet the african descended people don't use it to self identify

redneck and queer are still slurs although queer was never the worst pejorative for gays. reappropiation only works if everyone uses it (like "neg" in Haiti)

@ the bolded And as i've stated "nigger" wasn't created by Europeans to give to African slaves either. It was the word they used to refer to all darker skinned people, including pacific islanders, arabs, and even Italians. It wasn't created as an insult.

@‌ the underlined and nobody's saying that "nigger" used by a white person to demean a black person isn't still a slur. And who's to say what "worst" is..isn't that subjective? In my opinion being called an ape is a worse insult then being called a nigger.

 

[Stiff]

Regarding your question with the "apple". I would say no.

But it is not a comparable analogy unless black people are calling themselves apples with pride knowing the negative way the word relates to their peoples past.

Like I said in the analogy, blacks wouldn't call themselves apples because as a slur it denotes being hanged. But it would be ridiculous to say that Blacks shouldn't use or consume apples at all.

The redneck relation was closer, but well off whites dont refer to themselves as rednecks. They refer to lower class whites with those derogatory words.

Blacks dont have a major separation of class like that, though i can see it happening. I dont know many black professionals/ upper class that use that word and when they do they are describing lesser blacks.

I'm in Atlanta so there is definitely a major separation of class amongst Blacks here. And most Blacks across the scale use the word casually. And Jim Foxworthy is a pretty well-off comedian and his most popular bit is "You might be a redneck"

 

[StillFaggyAF]

nm, you're right - it's totally appropriate for black people to refer to themselves, their peers and their elders as niggers.

I guess it's also ok if my sister called my mom and grandma her bitch then since they flipped that word and young women call their friends that shit all the time and now it's a term of endearment.

(Just so you know I'm being sarcastic and also making an analogy. I have to explain this to you since you don't seem to be getting it.)

@"Sneak Dissa"‌

Yeah my guy I get that you're using analogies, they're just not good ones. Darkie is insulting because you're taking a characteristic of a person and putting "-ie" at the end of it. It's insulting to call white people "whitey", obese people "fattie", and stupid people "dumbie". Not a good comparison.

Bitch is insulting because it literally means "female dog". Not a good comparison.

And I'm all for respect. If a person doesn't want you to refer to them as "nigga" and you do so anyway, then it's not about the word at that point... it's about the lack of respect shown.

Here's a better analogy for you, @"High Revolutionary"‌ @BlackJerryMaguire‌ and @ShiveDreadz‌ . I want you to bear with me here... :

Say for instance if during the Jim Crow era, racist Whites had used the term "apple" to refer to blacks as a reference to hangings from trees or something crazy like that. And what if they would throw apples at black people to demean them.

Are you all saying that in 2014 a black person eating apples is wrong, self-loathing, or would be "inappropriate"?

And no I'm not talking about them calling themselves "apple" , because that would always be a negative because the term would be in reference to lynchings. I'm talking about eating apples. Should blacks avoid apples all together just because of this one period of time even though there are positives associated with eating it (ie. vitamin c,taste and all that).

Put an apple in the freezer and throw it at somebody then yeah it can still be hurtful. But used in other capacities then no an apple isn't harmful. In this scenario I think somebody could be pro-black AND have apples be their favorite fruit. Yeah I know the whole thing sounds outlandish but I really want to hear your take on that.

And to answer your question @"High Revolutionary"‌ , I'm not caping for the word, I'm caping for myself when people say things like if you say "nigga" you're internalizing racism, or you can't be pro-black if you say nigga. I'm very much black and proud and I say nigga profusely.

And to respond to an earlier statement you made @BlackJerryMaguire‌ , African-Americans are definitely not the only people to use slurs to refer to themselves, and in effect "neutralize" the word or even use it as a sense of pride. Gays did it with "queer" which was originally a slur. Poor Southern Whites did it with "redneck" which was originally a slur. Those are just a couple of examples. It's called re-appropriation and here's an article on ithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reclaimed_word . No I'm not saying that we should do it because other groups did it but my point there is that it's not unheard of.

the apple analogy doesn't work since apples were not created by Europeans to give to Africanslaves and they weren't force fed apples until they were convinced they liked it. also, apples don't grow in every country that had African slaves so the analogy fails there too. like i said nigger is slur south of the border too yet the african descended people don't use it to self identify

redneck and queer are still slurs although queer was never the worst pejorative for gays. reappropiation only works if everyone uses it (like "neg" in Haiti)

@ the bolded And as i've stated "nigger" wasn't created by Europeans to give to African slaves either. It was the word they used to refer to all darker skinned people, including pacific islanders, arabs, and even Italians. It wasn't created as an insult.

@‌ the underlined and nobody's saying that "nigger" used by a white person to demean a black person isn't still a slur. And who's to say what "worst" is..isn't that subjective? In my opinion being called an ape is a worse insult then being called a nigger.

except it was, the fact is wasn't pejorative in the beginning doesn't matter because the word "black" and "dark" exist in the English language, "nigger" and its variants was used to describe Africans, then spread to being applied to other dark skinned peoples (notice how indians don't call each other coolies and pacific islanders don't call each other kanakas). in fact according to thishttp://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84025811/1904-10-14/ed-1/seq-5/

nigger was turned into an insult by whites because it was seen as a stronger insult as opposed to colored or black

there are commonly accepted levels of insults in every culture also.

which asks the question, why do African-Americans use it historically? why are we content to use some european word to describe ourselves?

Its not because of the root of the word (which is latin for black). its because the word (among other things) was used to strengthen the institution of slavery and white supremacy. AFrican Americans use nigger because thats what their slave masters told them they were. hence internalized racism

as of right now IMO, theres only three ways to make the word lose its power: let every one use it regardless of race, stop using it and allow it to become archaic, or have blacks separate from society so it becomes an ingroup out group thing

 

[Shizlansky]

The entire hip hop generation regardless of color says nigga.

YouTube is at y'all hand.