Nigga, Please

Last week, Andy Dick went on a comedy stage and tried to make fun of the Michael Richards incident, yelling “You’re all a bunch of niggers!” at the audience. I was not surprised that some people thought Andy Dick wasn't funny. I was surprised when he apologized for the incident the next day. I don’t quite get it. Did he have to apologize because people were upset that he was making fun of Richards? Does the act of calling someone a nigger need to be protected because ridicule of it is offensive to some people?

Now, I’ll admit it. I have used the word nigger before, on this blog even. And I’ll continue to use whatever words I want to. Nigger nigger nigger nigger nigger. I don’t have a problem with the word. So why should anyone else?

Stop getting offended by a simple word. Now, I know, all of you are going to say, “But Steve, it’s not just a simple word.” But it is still just a word. A rose by any other name would smell just as sweet, and a nigger by any other name would be just as dark-skinned.

Before you say anything, reread that last sentence and think about whether the statement was accurate or not. Does changing the name you call someone change the color of their skin? That’s all I said.

African-Americans need to stop getting offended by everything. I don’t think anyone should be upset over being called a nigger any more than I think someone (gay or straight) should be upset over being called a fag, or someone being called a liberal. A derogatory word is only derogatory if the person receiving it believes it to be. Calling someone fat is only considered offensive if they are fat and they are ashamed of it. Calling someone a gomeral is only taken offensively if they understand what they were called.

The potential to be offended relies solely on the outlook of the person receiving the comment. The problem exists only in the mind of the person hearing the word, and so it is their responsibility to deal with it.

When you get offended by the use of a word, you validate the use of the word for the person who used it. Saying “the n-word should never be used because it is offensive to African-Americans” is really saying “if you really want to insult or degrade an African-American, just call them a nigger.” To quote Lenny Bruce, "It's the suppression of the word that gives it the power, the violence, the viciousness."

I think the real issue here is that African-Americans still see themselves as victims. And they need to stop. Stop thinking you need to be protected. Stop thinking you need to be given special favors to compete equally. Stop hiding behind the color of your skin as an excuse for low education rates, high poverty rates, and high incarceration rates. The worst result of racism is when individuals on the receiving end believe that they can not rise above the stereotype. I would love to expand on this topic here, and include many more groups, but I won’t here, because this post is about the reaction to the word nigger.

I’ll just say one more thing to end this. Do not tell me that I just don’t understand this problem because I am white. Besides that being a racist statement, it is an attempt to avoid having to back up your opinion. Whether you agree with me or not, and I have a feeling there are a few people who won’t, I have attempted to discuss this issue in an objective matter, and all I ask is that you do the same. Feel free to send as much hate mail as you like. You will only allow me to demonstrate my point. I do ask that you try to be a bit creative with it.