Voice of Black Expression Forum Abolish the 'N' Word...!!!

No matter how it is pronounced or spelled, the "root" of the word remains the same. And there is nothing anyone can ever say to change that......Society is continueosly dimished by the media, government, and music industry, who heartlessly desensitize man kind, leaving common sense to be not so common....

As long as black people continue to use the "N" word we cannot be angered when someone else uses it, no matter how they pronounce it or the intentions behind it.
Black people set the standards. If other people see us using the word, they are going to use it. It is as simple as that. There is no rationalizing it.

Just think about it. We are the only race on earth that uses such a heinous racially violent slur as a so called "term of endearment" towards one another.
::confused:: ::sad::

I agree with you. Altthough slavery has been abolished many years ago many blacks continue to keep themselves mentally enslaved. The "N" word is only a way of degrading ones self. My ears bleed when I hear that word. Its is also disguisting that other people who are'nt black are using this word.

u kno i absolutly HATE when people outside of a race use a racial term such as the n word 4 african americans the s word 4 hispanics the c word 4 asians u kno wat i mean i'm not totally against using it amongst ur own ppl bc i use the s word sometimes with my ppl and stuff but i'd kill someone if i heard them call me or anyother hispanic that and when i hear someone who isn't african american say the n word i'm all over them giving them wat 4 but ya i guess ur right bc when u think of wat the word means and stuff ya it's totally wrong 2 call anyone even urself the n word like u said it's very degrading and thats wrong

um... i've been calling u guys on here african american and haven't said the word black yet but should i call u guys (on here at least) african americans or r u guys ok with black i use them interchangably it depends who i'm around like my nephew who's molato hates being called black and then there r ppl who'd rather b called black and others who could care less


-Dawn-

Here! Here! First, thanks for inviting me to be a part of Voice of Black People!! I'm glad to be here. To Dawn, I would like to be referred to as Black. That is who I am. I'm also not an American, but a Bahamian. Thanks!

The word was borne out of hatred and created to define us. The word is a box, a tiny box that predetermines that we are good only- for raunchy, pornographic, energetic sex (not love making, just sex), it defines us as stupid, insignificant and incapable of achieving anything worthwhile. That box predetermines that a black life is no more sacred than a rabbit or dog's life.

Yes, slavery is no more, but I think only in the sense that we are no longer bought and sold by mas'er. Every time we call ourselves that name, we are perpetuating slavery, and defecating on the unmarked graves of those who paid with their lives because of that box. Every time we shake our half-naked backsides on BET and define articulate Black people as OREO we are cracking that whip. That is the real tragedy. That we have believed the lies. This word is a curse, a generational curse that will continue to haunt and abuse us until one generation of people decides enough is enough. We can and should NEVER forget the real meaning and power of that word.

As Kevin said, we teach people how to treat us! If we embark on a no tolerance campaign in our everyday lives and as a people, even against the use of the term in the title bar, if we refuse to perpetuate that dynamite, eventually the whole human race will get on board.

For a graphic answer to this question, click here and watch the You Tube Clip Strange Fruit.

ok thanks Anastasia

amen sista

I understand your POV completely. I grew up in an all White neighborhood. I�ve been called N****r and N****r B***h so many times I thought it was my government. Sorry to say I�ve also been spit on, cursed at, and dodged so many rocks that if it was an Olympic event I surely would have copped the gold. One day when I was thirteen I was standing on a bus stop in Mill Basin, Brooklyn. Back then Mill Basin had their own private bus service. Well, the driver slowed down to pick me up, saw I was Black, and sped up again. AND YET...
The beauty of the N Word is the beauty of our people. As slaves we took GARBAGE: pig ears, snouts, intestines, and turned them into delicacies (more or less; at least we made them tolerable). Now our young people have taken White America�s most venomous word and turned it into something beautiful. Isn't that what we do as writers and poets? Turn our pain into something esthetically pleasing?
As a forty-five year-old I realize my generation may not understand, and might even be a little jealous of what young people have done, but I am proud of them. Not only is being �my n***a� the ultimate bond, but that�s one less word for White folks to hurt us with.
My fiction is liberally spiced with N Words. Understand however that I LOVE MY PEOPLE WITH ALL MY HEART, both their strengths and their habits that make me cringe, and that the novel still delivers positive messages about us as Black people. I sincerly hope this doesn't inspire you to revoke the membershipof my N Word-using-behind.