A Rant about the N-word!

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Comedy Central's "Jeff Ross the Burn" aired an episode last night that didn't sit well with me. In a discussion about Kanye West's tweets regarding his "Perfect Bitch" song he compares bitch with using ni*&a. The DJ that reports current events dropped the n-bomb, causing the crowd and even the host to laugh awkwardly in shock. So of course, I couldn't let this event go un-ranted about! 

 What’s in a name? You say nigger, say nigga. It all stems from a very dark place in US history. One that you would think would be covered up. Leaving no reminisce of it anywhere. And yet, here we are in 2012 still suffering from the effects of generations of our ancestors having to live in chains. How do I feel about the comment? I’m down right disgusted. I myself refrain from using it in public spaces. I just don’t understand why was it necessary to say it? Was it shock value? Maybe, well I’m really shocked so job well done. Some may argue, well if he was black…would it have been a problem? Huh? Why the double standards? Huh? And I’ll respond. Honestly, we as black people whether we want to admit it or not are still hurting psychologically from slavery and years of discrimination. There, I said it! Not to stand up on a high horse and preach because I myself am a black girl, hurting from slavery and discrimination. Awwwwww well it happened so long ago! You don’t hear the Jews complaining about the holocaust do ya? Its just a word! Fact: Slaves were feed extremely greasy and salty food. They needed the grease and salt because they would pretty much sweat buckets during the course of their workday. Today, soul food consists of mainly greasy and fried foods…not a coincidence. Not at all. I bring this up to emphasize that America has operated under a slave economy longer than it has a “free” one. Everybody, blacks and whites included are still affected by the legacy of slavery. Slavery is like your rearview mirror, psychological, economic and emotional damage are closer than it appears. And as far as the holocaust goes, it was a devastating time. A lot of people lost their lives for no reason other than they weren’t German. The holocaust is recognized as such, a holocaust. I don’t usually like to compare tragic events but this is always an argument brought up when people are too uncomfortable to talk about the s-word. But I’ll go ahead and say it, slavery was an African holocaust. Until we can truly grasp what this means, we will never be able to fully understand just how deep this slavery thing goes. But back to the topic at hand…..Jeff Ross the Burn. I don’t see this as comedy. I honestly felt like he just crossed a line and opened up a can of shit that he doesn’t even understand. Yes, I use the word! In fact I use it more often than I would like too, but there has got to be some understanding to it. No, I’m not trying to spark up a debate about the n-word. It’s just too complicated. I’m simply stating how I see the usage of it. My parents were born during segregation. A time when the usage of that word was a double-edged sword. It can be endearment from a friend, or the bitter cries of a Klansman, eyes covered in a white sheet, ready to take your life. I see the usage of ‘nigga’ by blacks as something that has developed into a ‘laugh to keep from crying’ phenomenon. Blacks were/are enslaved, lynched, shot at, and slaughtered in the streets for simply putting on a hoody with an ice tea and skittles in hand. This tricky little 5 (or sometimes 6 when you really getting vulgar) word carries heavy connotations behind it. Connotations that I, myself don’t fully understand. I’ll admit, had that DJ been black, the cringe would’ve have been so hard, but a cringe non-the-less (I refrain from using it around people who I don’t want to say it back). There is a lot to say about that too but that’s for another rant. There are a lot of things about black/African history that just aren’t told. To use this word as if you understand the pain it can evoke in the chest of the descendants of the victims of these atrocities is downright careless. Especially, when I’m sure this DJ couldn’t possible understand it. If he does, more power to him but its clear that he doesn’t. Like my mama says, if he knew better the ni**a would do better.