Nigger

Nigger: Should It Be Used?

Nolan Johnson

University of Phoenix

"Nigger": Should It Be Used?

Where did the word "nigger" originate? Honestly, the whereabouts of the birthplace of the word nigger is still being debated. The immersion of the word however will never be forgotten. It would seem that "nigger" would come to be a derogatory nickname for African Americans. There has never, since the creation of the word "nigger", been such a word that has had such an extensive impact. However, over the course of time, the "nigger" has evolved in pronunciation, usage, and meaning. "Nigger" is frequently traced to the Latin word niger, meaning black. The appearance of the word, at first, had no negative intentions. By the early 1800s it was established as a derogatory nickname. Ironically the area it was first used in this context in America, during slavery. Whether spoken, written, or shown in the media, reflect on the mass network of the anti-black prejudice. "Nigger" carried with it the anger, hatred, and disgust with it. It was used as noun, verb, and adjective to enforce the stereotype of Blacks being ignorant, lazy, dirty, and worthless. "Nigger" was used to strengthen words such as: Niggerish, Nigger-flicker, Nigger rich, and many, many more. The ladder of power suggested that the intimidation, deceit, and exploitation of blacks, was to help keep them in their place. From ministers to scientist the desire to prove that whites were superior to blacks was, in every way, socially acceptable. Of course with no choice but to take the demeaning abuse, blacks endured the ridicule.

A common debate is the difference between the terms African American or Black and "nigger". Being Black is defined as being respectable and middle-class. Being a "nigger" is defined as being disrespectful and low class. From slavery to today the negative images that white society internalized and cultivated cycles of self-and same-race hatred. Blacks' using the word only contributes to the power of the psychological force it has. The African American Registry.com has a passage that states: "Nigger is the ultimate expression of white racism and white superiority no matter how it is pronounced. It is linguistic corruption, an attack on civility." It would appear that experts are in frenzy about the word. Most feel that the context in which "nigger" was used is preposterous. The question "Why Blacks?" still remains unanswered by experts, as well as society in general. Experts also feel that the impact of all the abuse Blacks suffered, contributed to the self-esteem issues Blacks have had. It is somewhat unimaginable to try and put yourself in the stages the African Americans of this country were subjected to endure. "Nigger" has also had a very controversial existence in the media and literature. In the past nigger was sometimes used as a synonym for "defect". For example, the May, 1886 issue of Scientific American, page 308 said, "The consequence of neglect might be that what the workmen call Ð''a nigger' would get into the armature, and burn it so as to destroy its service". Also in the past, nigger sometimes meant a disadvantaged person. There were many controversial articles, books and novels in the 1920s. "Nigger in the Window" is a book written by a young black girl who describes the world from her window. Agatha Christie's novel "And Then There Were None", also known as "Ten Little Indians", originally appeared as "Ten Little Niggers". As you can imagine it caused quite a ruckus. Among the classic novels of Joseph Conrad (famous of his use of the word in "Heart of Darkness) is "The Nigger of the Ð''Narcissus' in 1897. In current media and literature the "N-Bomb" is how "nigger" is addressed, and that is on a rare basis only. Today "nigger" has a new meaning, usage, pronunciation, and issue. African Americans have changed the word to one of acceptance, it would appear.

In the U.S. both whites and blacks used the word until the civil rights movement of the 1960s. In which leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King, and Malcolm X led a peaceful revolution to banish segregation. Since that time it appears that "nigger" has lost most of its despicable meaning. The youth of today uses the word everyday. Youth use it with slur revising it to a self-referential term that stands for familiarity, endearment, and kinship. When used this way it is often spelled as such: nigguh or even nikuh for some speakers; however, currently, when used in this manner, the spelling is often changed to nigga or niggah. This revision of "nigger" is at the center of a debate that has been on going since the 1980s. In 1988, hip-hop group N.W.A. ("Niggaz With Attitude") released the album "Straight Outta Compton" which was the start of nigga in the hip-hop industry. Now days it is used universally by black rappers in casual context. While nigga raises relatively few objections when used by black rappers, it generally is considered off-limits to nonblack performers, with exceedingly rare exceptions. When Latina performer Jennifer Lopez used nigga in a song written by a black producer, it sparked a major battle. Even Eminem an immensely popular white rapper, appreciated by a multitude of races and with many affiliations to African Americans, refrains from using the word, although this might be out of choice rather than racial context. Recently many non-whites, but non-black rappers such as Fat Joe, Pitbull and most Latin artists, have used the word nigga. The slang term has brought some controversy to America and confusion to the white population as to what forms of the word is offensive and what forms are not offensive. Youth argues that nigga is a synonym for words like dude or guy. However, even with this interpretation it depends entirely on context. Including the influence of the hip-hop industry, the positive use of nigga is projected as strongly acceptable.

It could be an insult to say, "Hey, you niggaz"; whereas, "What up, my niggaz?" might sometimes be acceptable among blacks only. Also, if a non-black refers to a black person as a "nigga", it is sometimes considered insulting. In the first example, the use of "you guys" is similar to "you people", a phrase often seen as off-putting when used by whites to refer to blacks. The second example is in the African-American tradition of using the word to express kinship or affection.

It has also been said that "nigger"