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Fredric is a web developer based in Chicago who hopes to one day start a foundation to support young, Black males in programming and computer science.

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nigger and the ybp

June 7th, 2007 • Related • Filed Under

blackface greek party Young Black Professional Guide

chris rock said it best.

There’s like a civil war going on with black people. And there’s two sides: there’s black people and there’s niggers. The niggers have got to go.

every young black professional is familiar with this battle and it continues to be fought in the trenches. in fact, the very purpose of this blog, the afrospear commmunity, and the rsspect.org syndications is to counterbalance this historical presence that seems to be almost as american as apple pie.

the term nigger has a deep-rooted history. it is hurtful. it represents ignorance. it also is laced within black culture as a term of endearment, an expression in music, or a baseless argument by some to differentiate from the term ‘nigga’. well, none of this is really new, right? so what is the point?

several, actually.

big brother emily parr Young Black Professional Guidethe first is a proof of concept revealed by the 2.0 age of internet and reality tv. no longer does the discussion of ‘who says it’ and ‘when do they say it’ live in the convoluted rantings of high society. the liquidity of the word in today’s society, especially within white america, is showcased through comments on blogs to black issues (read: cbs moderating blog posts about obama) to scores of facebook albums showing greek ‘themed’ parties to today’s incident on uk big brother. the transcript below (via thelondonpaper):

Emily told Charley: “You pushing it out, you nigger.”
Accounts executive Nicky, who was born in India, replied with shocked laughter: “Em, I can’t believe you said that.”
Charley told Emily: “You are in trouble.”
Emily said: “Don’t make a big thing out of it then. I was joking.”
Charley responded: “I know you were… but that’s some serious shit, sorry.”
Emily asked: “Why?”
Charley told her: “Oh my god. I’m not even saying it.”
Nicky responded: “Just don’t talk about it any more.”
Emily then told her: “I was joking”
Charley said: “Do you know how many viewers would watch that?”
Nicky said: “OK, don’t make a big deal out of it.”
Charley said: “Fancy you saying that. I can’t believe you said that.”
Emily said: “Somebody has already used that word in this house.”
Charley said “No way” before she paused and said: “Yeah, me. I’m a nigger.”
Nicky laughed and the conversation continued:
Charley told her: “I am one. Fancy you saying it. I know maybe you see it in a rap song. Maybe you and your friends sit there saying it.”
Emily told her: “I’m friendly with plenty of black people.”
Nicky said: “And you call them niggers?”
Emily responded: “Yeah and they call me niggers. They call me wiggers as well.”
Nicky said: “I’m quite shocked.”

i wonder if the black constituency in london will raise as much hell about this issue as the indian population did regarding a milder incident with bollywood star shilpa shetty in last year’s uk big brother.

the second point is to reflect upon the history of the use of the word in recent media as a means to explain the effects of it today. one could argue that the complacency in its use and mis-character of its meaning directly result in young people who never desire to be a proud ybp. reality shows like ‘flavor of love’ and ‘charm school’ reinforce this idea. the huffingtonpost has an interesting article about ‘the nigger top ten‘ that are worth a read. it ultimately sheds light on the complexity and power of the word that can eventually be harvested into defining moments in time.

so the question i ask our readers is what can the ybp do? we talk about empowering each other here all the time through life hacks and top ten articles, but the stigma of being niggerish will attach itself to our proud culture for as long as we let it. even worse, many people (black and white) will continue to gloss over its devastating effects the more silent we are. i do my best to not use the word and pull aside my loved ones who do.

what is the answer? is the answer to proclaim our embarrassment? how else can the ybp combat this persistence?

Viewing 25 Comments

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    THEY won't stop using it until WE stop using it. PERIOD.

    That "do as I say, not as I do" bit is not cool .... and is clearly ineffective.
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    • v
    why does it matter?

    here's another way to think about it.

    let's call the n*gga percentage X/Y.

    Y=the number of non-blacks as a whole.
    X=the number of non-blacks who use racial epithets about black people (including "nigger").

    what was this ratio before Efil4zaggin? before 1970? what is it now?

    how does this ratio correlate with black life outcomes?
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    Re: Big Brother Black vs. Bollywood. Nope, not gonna win that one. For some reason London is a lost cause when it comes to Black people standing up for each other as one united race. Trying to figure out why is hopeless. It's a shame though.
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    it matters, dr. spence, because the effects of its careless use, whether black or white, but especially white, ultimately affect the psyche and reflection of youth who are trying to find their identity.

    as a ybp, i can immediately identify with the struggle of weighing 'whats cool', 'what matters', and 'what is just plain ignorant'.

    i feel a responsibility as an 'almost grownup' to help out the high school and college kids who may find this form of expression 'ok' because i don't want them getting confused by its power, its history, or its negativity.

    adults who are been and gone may think it doesn't matter, but when the kid i babysat is now 17 years-old and constantly referring to himself and his friends as niggers (or niggas), it reflects poorly upon the community of which he was raised....namely myself.

    black men, especially, already have a lot stacked against them. psychological confusion from people trivializing the word creates a soft defense in an already merciless battle.

    these young cats need to come correct, educated, three times as good, and technologically savvy.
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    it matters, dr. spence, because the effects of its careless use, whether black or white, but especially white, ultimately affect the psyche and reflection of youth who are trying to find their identity.

    I do not believe you. You're a scientist...prove it. Show me some data that indicates that kids who use the word "nigger" to refer to themselves are more likely to have self esteem issues.

    I think the more likely issue is here:

    adults who are been and gone may think it doesn’t matter, but when the kid i babysat is now 17 years-old and constantly referring to himself and his friends as niggers (or niggas), it reflects poorly upon the community of which he was raised….namely myself.

    So on the one hand you argue that saying the word affects the psyche of those who use it. But then on the other you say that it really affects YOU. Which means that it isn't really about them at all, but about you and how you feel. I can't tell you what to do about that, but I can say that this reflects the tension between professional and working class African Americans more than some type of psychological malaise.
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    lol. it's actually pretty evident in the transcript of the quote above.
    Nicky said: “OK, don’t make a big deal out of it.”
    Charley said: “Fancy you saying that. I can’t believe you said that.”
    Emily said: “Somebody has already used that word in this house.”
    Charley said “No way” before she paused and said: “Yeah, me. I’m a nigger.”
    i put this transcript in this post for that very purpose. although my profession isn't data mining or statistical analysis, my point was to show that 'reality tv' is just that....reality. this incident is not isolated. if it requires me finding a few young people to sign a petition and identify themselves as 'niggers', then i relent that point, but i think we can at least agree that this confused psyche is evident when young cats actually try to flip the word and start believing it's a term of endearment. that's like that b.s. when they tried to convince the world ebonics was a second-language.

    as for the second point, i think you may have mis-read. i wasn't saying that i'm concerned with it affecting me. i was saying that if i'm part of the community that helped raise this young cat, and he slides through untapped, i've done a bad a job for my community. part of my pride as a black man is the history i encompass and the family i'm not trying to embarass. if a youngin' goes through my neighborhood without that same sense of pride for his community and family, then we all will lose who we are and what we are about. the moment we believe 'its just me in this world' without a feeling of indebtedness, we doom to repeat our forefather's mistakes.
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    The word...
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    Lester -
    Why is there any doubt that racist language matters?
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    Kim -
    Does nigger carry the same "sting" in the UK as it does in the States? I don't know much about the history of the word, but I thought it was birthed in the American South, no?
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    ETS- I think it's probably true that white southerners mispronounced "negro" thus giving us "nigger", but it definitely was used before in France in Spain. A brief stint of research in the area tells me that, no matter the origin, people all over the world are aware of the negative connotation of the word nigger and the UK is no exception. So the word means the same, but perhaps the reason it has less sting for Black people in the UK is because they are "over" letting it get to them and have no camaraderie as a race to call up television networks in outrage. Just my observant opinion, if David McQueen is out there maybe he can shed some more light.

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    Fred perhaps I misunderstood. I was under the assumption that the "young cat" you referred to was black...scratch that. Was African American. Unlike Emily above.

    Which means that in hindsight I should have talked about "nigga" rather than "nigger." If the young cat you're talking about isn't black...then the nature of the conversation changes.

    ETS this relates to your comment also. I do believe that racist language matters when it is used by non-blacks as a weapon. But I do NOT believe that the use of "nigga" by black people of any age has any type of influence on their psyche, or even on their general life chances.

    Let me also be clear that I do think there is a problem with using "nigga" in public. But I believe that people should be circumspect in their language choices in general. I wouldn't call someone a b*tch in public either. Nor would I do so in private in front of my children...in front of MOST of my students...or in front of people I did not consider to be in my network.

    Now if this is what Fred is referring to when he talks about embarassment perhaps I can roll with that. But the question then becomes what separates this particular curse word from others?
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    the 'young cat' i'm referring to are young black youth between the ages of zero and younger than me, 24. :-p

    while i think you have to wear multiple hats when you're in business, at home, or with your friends, i don't think you can compare 'nigga' to four-letter curse words. i never saw the words f*ck and shite in a history book next to burned, bloodied, and beaten corpses hanging from a tree with john smith smiling his ass off. i never think of emmitt till or the burning of black walstreet when some little wild butt kid smiles and screams 'got damn it!'

    i know you don't believe it affects kids psyche, and i definitely don't have as many degrees to hold to yours, but i am closer to high school graduation than you are, so i'll use that. :-) i guess my main point is that my personal challenges with identity while i was growing up in high school are shared with every black kid that tries to 'fit in' by showing out with the ignorant crowd. this is the same social pressure i've seen with both of my sisters, my cousins, my friends, my almost in-laws, and my acquaintances.

    ignorance is easy. if i'm trying to run with the 'in' crowd and figure out who i think i am, i'm going to do what they do...which is be ignorant, listen to bullshit music about 'poppin it and lockin it', and believe nigger (all forms) is a term of endearment.

    we are educated. ybp's have the luxury of at least knowing a time and place for camaraderie, business, and chillage. that comes from knowing who we are with limited outside influence. these kids don't have that and niggerdom is poisoning their heads. this exchange at celebrity big brother between a young white girl and young black girl prove that.
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    i know you don’t believe it affects kids psyche, and i definitely don’t have as many degrees to hold to yours, but i am closer to high school graduation than you are, so i’ll use that. : )

    How about using the syllabus in the African American Studies class that I TAUGHT YOU. How bout THAT? : )

    We can talk all we want about this particular event...but while I think the white woman (who was removed from the show as a result of her comments) can be used to speak to larger issues, I don't see the black woman in the same way. She responded the way she responded. What she does, what her ideas are, how the word influences or doesn't influence her doesn't have much of anything to do with young black professionals in general.
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    Lester -
    If you don't believe racist language - even used within a group - has an effect on one's psyche, why are you careful about when you use it? If it's okay to say nigga in public and around almost anyone, why don't you?
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    Name calling, rhetoric, propoganda, all tools to shake the cultural foundations and begin breaking a people. Thousands of years ago Persians would call the greeks barbarians; (which back then was pretty much the equivalent of Nigger). The Irish in the later 19th century were considered inferior to Blacks; and they were called Moolies and Micks. Hispanics are called wet backs, Middle easterners are called Sand Monkeys and Camel jockeys. Shiites and Suunis curse each other, Basques and Spaniards have their derogitory remarks.

    EVERYONE has something to say about their neighbor. But the fact of the matter is those names have not fully broken or extinguished those races. So why do we (Blacks) care what people say when we have the same opportunities as everyone else? The Germans; called Krauts did not give up on settling the West in the 1800's, despite the mass murders and being run off of their land they tilled and bled for. Why should Blacks have blinders on about such an insignificant thing when so much is at stake? Call an Irish a Mick and they'll punch you out; but then they will drive to their big house, screw their spouse, and pop open a cold one. Done, end of story; However we Blacks will show our asses and loot and riot and holler like wild jungle animals (as expected) to appease some warped cause. Damn the word, Whites laugh their heads off at us when we argue in the street over a WORD. We should have that same attitude as Whites, Asians and the rest of world when confronted with rascism, cultural intolerance etc. "FUCK YOU, I'm going to get paid and call it a day." Don't be so sensitive Black folk!
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    King Black it isn't "black folk" who are sensitive...it's SOME black folk who are. And in some cases we have reason to be.

    I just don't think that the case of black people referring to each other is one of those cases.

    ETS, the french have two words for "you". "Vous" and "tu". The "tu" is only supposed to be used for people close to you...and you are supposed to ASK someone whether it is appropriate to use it. Words like nigga for black people, bitch and ho for women, jap for jewish women, work in that manner. The reason why it matters whether someone ELSE uses that name towards me is because if I don't give that person explicit permission it is used as a weapon to exclude and subjugate.

    But within my own circle? Doesn't matter.

    Now I DID say that I don't think it's appropriate to curse in public ANYWAY. And that's because there is a presumption of that cursing is "uncivilized" and "coarse." I believe that there are certain forms of language that are appropriate around peers in private, other forms of language that are appropriate around peers in public, and yet other forms of language that are appropriate for people who are NOT peers (the elderly, children) in both spaces.
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    you know what escapes me? the lure to use the word at all. what is attractive about it? if it's just an unconscious, familiar response born of years of colloquial and even congenial use then let's eradicate it because it isn't tied to anything particularly meaningful to us. if it is a conscious, purposeful response, then let's eradicate it because it has been abused and manipulated. what are we holding on to wanting to hold on to this word? even amongst ourselves, how does it lift us up, encourage us or contribute to a greater good? use of this word just feels lazy, common and pedestrian.
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    GIB I'd modify that slightly. I'd say that the use of the word in the majority of cases feels lazy, common, and pedestrian.

    This is one of the reasons why I'm kind of sad that someone like Paul Mooney has decided to stop using it. Curse words ARE often used lazily as shorthand. But I've yet to find a good synonym for something like "rat bastard." One of the reasons why the words "nigga" "faggot" "bitch" and the like have staying power is because they convey a certain force that other like words do not. And in the hands of comedians and others like them they end up conveying emotions and sentiments that other terms just don't hold a candle to. I don't know what we do about that, but in my case what I try to do is talk to younger people about language, public space, private space, and appropriateness.
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    I understand that, and agree. There is a certain resonance and potency that can be achieved quickly with these words. I guess if I bottom line it I just wonder if the benefits outweigh the (potential) harm.