The Death of the N-Word?

NAACP symbolically buries N-word By COREY WILLIAMS, Associated Press Writer
Mon Jul 9, 5:34 PM ET



DETROIT - There was no mourning at this funeral. Hundreds of onlookers cheered Monday afternoon as the NAACP put to rest a long-standing expression of racism by holding a public burial for the N-word during its annual convention.

Delegates from across the country marched from downtown Detroit's Cobo Center to Hart Plaza. Two Percheron horses pulled a pine box adorned with a bouquet of fake black roses and a black ribbon printed with a derivation of the word.

The coffin is to be placed at historically black Detroit Memorial Park Cemetery and will have a headstone.

"Today we're not just burying the N-word, we're taking it out of our spirit," said Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick. "We gather burying all the things that go with the N-word. We have to bury the 'pimps' and the 'hos' that go with it."

He continued: "Die N-word, and we don't want to see you 'round here no more."

The N-word has been used as a slur against blacks for more than a century. It remains a symbol of racism, but also is used by blacks when referring to other blacks, especially in comedy routines and rap and hip-hop music.

"This was the greatest child that racism ever birthed," the Rev. Otis Moss III, assistant pastor at Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, said in his eulogy.

Public discussion on the word's use increased last year following a tirade by "Seinfeld" actor Michael Richards, who used it repeatedly during a Los Angeles comedy routine and later issued a public apology.

The issue about racially insensitive remarks heated up earlier this year after talk show host Don Imus described black members of the Rutgers University women's basketball team as "nappy-headed hos" on April 4.

Black leaders, including the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, have challenged the entertainment industry and the American public to stop using the N-word and other racial slurs.

Minister and rap icon Kurtis Blow called for people, especially young people, to stop buying music by artists who use offensive language.

"They wouldn't make rap songs if you didn't buy them. Stop supporting the stuff you don't want to hear," said Blow, who is credited with helping create the genre's popularity in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

"I've never used the N-word and I've recorded over 150 rap songs. I've never used profanity. It's possible you can use hip-hop and not offend anyone."

The Rev. Wendell Anthony, pastor of Detroit's Fellowship Chapel and member of the NAACP national board of directors, said the efforts were not an attack on young people or hip-hop.

He said they were a commentary on the culture the genre has produced.

"We're not thugs. We're not gangstas," Anthony told the crowd. "All of us has been guilty of this word. It's upon all of us to now kill this word."

The NAACP has been criticized with being out of touch with young blacks, but Tiffany Tilley said the organization is moving in the right direction.

"This is a great start," the 30-year-old Detroit resident said. "We need to continue to change the mentality of our people. It may take a generation, but it's definitely the movement we have to take."

The NAACP held a symbolic funeral in Detroit in 1944 for Jim Crow, the systematic, mostly Southern practice of discrimination against and segregation of blacks from the end of post-Civil War Reconstruction into the mid-20th century.

The organization's 98th annual national convention ends Thursday.

 

I personally don't like hearing the word come out of my own mouth, not even saying it to other black people, but i have to admit that when a comedian uses it in one of their jokes, i still laugh at it. But, i do think if the word was done away with altogether, that would be a good thing. Heck, all the other racial slurs can go along with it. What do you guys think. Do you think society will ever be able to do away with the N-word? I mean, realistically it's probably not possible now, but in a few generations maybe?

 

All I can say Bryant is that I will be whippin' some beehind if my kids think to say that word around me.....and I don't care HOW old they are....but hopefully it would never come to that and I will have raised them right in the first place!

Not sure if it will ever go away especially since it is so entrenched in popular culture, I'll never forget my shock at hearing this indian kid refer to his n***as!! I was like WTF, does he even know how that sounds? But then again it sounds faintly fukked when blacks say it too, to me.

 

It takes at least 5 generations of not saying it by everybody for it to go away - Won't happen

Even if Black people stop saying it, too many other people are comfortable saying it, even in a jovial manner.

And as I always say -

The west and east coast are by far the most progressive parts of the country and its the MIDDLE AND DEEP SOUTH that keep us from progressing forward as a nation...

If you live in the middle and deep south and don't see that, there's something wrong with you.

 

You got that right the Middle and Deep South will not give up that n-word. And a White person knows without any Blacks around in their group it will always come up.

 

Conversations.The Death of the "N" word.

:? I don't use it any of my lyrics, I realize it has a place in pop culture, and I recognize it can be ugly, and I realize it can powerful. Many things have been written about it by many people from Dick Gregory to nearly all black sociologists trying to ascertain its meaning.
Hiphop culture is inundated with its use, and I don't see an end to its use because it's a part of our language.I like the ritual because it shows at least symbolically that we're trying to get past putting each other down as black people.
Is it always an invective? I don't know.When John Amos said it on "Good Times"(Created by Norman Lear, a white man)it seemed to be in context. It's like the old joke where a white man walks into a black church and says to the congregation that he needs to speak to the "Head Nigger In Charge," the congregation is thoroughly shocked, but the man insisted on seeing the "Head Nigger in Charge."Finally the minister acknowledged he was indeed the head of the church.
"I need to see the Head Nigger In Charge because I was told by God to donate $1000.00 to the building fund." He explained.
"Well then, brother,"the minister answered," I AM indeed the Head Nigger in Charge."
Thanks.

 

RE: N-word must die

This is a very good topic, and of course, offensive lanuage, such as the (N-word) must die. It is ashame many American movie writers are still using this offensive slur in movies and other book edited materials. Personally, in my opinion this maybe the reason why American people can not kill bad politics, because it is kept inside the heart's of men, to keep alive a 1800's tradition. In addition, urban style music has to change, including a "genre", which is rap or hip/hop, that continues to promote discrimination to our inner-city-youth. Curtis Blow is an icon today, because his rap did not use violence or foul lanuage. There are not too many rap-artist that can honestly admit, of never using the N-word in his/her style of rap music. Again, as consumers we can stop advertising the N-word from being used in music by simply not buying into the motivated, high maitenance rap culture, who's purpose is to make big financial gain through greed and ignorance.

 

I wouldn't dream of saying that word. But then again, I don't even like the term "black". I prefer using their nationality if it for some reason seems nessicary to place someone into ther ethnic group. (For people from the US, I use Afro-American if it's nessicary to mention that the person i'm talking about is a black. Otherwise I would just use American.)

 

The word(s) people need to really ban is the words "TOO LATE", because that word been around in the black community meaning homeboy and spelled n-i-g-g-a for decades. It's like when a sports team let another team linger around in the game instead of putting the game away early.
TOO LATE! is the real words that needs to be banned.


Besides toughness, vulgarness, hardcore, and roughness makes the hood'.
The hood has always been that way it is called "product of the white man's DECISION!". We didn't build these hoods, we didn't throw guns and drugs in our neighborhood, we didn't decide to put less money in not only lower class hoods but mainly black hoods, the government DID!

So if anything the NAACP al sharpton, jesse jackson, oprah and all them should turn to the architect not the people living in the buildings and homes.

Better Yet!! words and people's style of living should not be the main objective here it should be the dumb sociopath-like muthafuckers thats killing each other, it should be getting rid of the no snitchin thing and gettin on rappers about that instead of their style. It's seems like or is like no one cares about actions no more they care more about words.
Im sorry but this world is acting like they don't know the meaning of actions speak louder than words.

Bottom Line is:
Only time words should really hurt is when it comes out the mouths
of loved ones, not when it comes out the mouth of a stranger.

 

Ronja had you read about the reasons on why Black-Americans change their classifications? Within the community it was Race-men during the late 19th and mid 20th Century. Other words by the majority were Colored,Negro,and Black-Americans. I like Afro-American myself but in the common classification it is African-American.

 

Really? I had the impression that Afro-American and African-American was being used side by side. Well, what do I know, English isn't my language...

Afro-American is closest to what we'd say here, that's probably why my brain seem to prefer that term. It's faster to say as well

 

Correct.

 

MLK said little black boys and little black girls, that's good enough for me.

African, Afro-American doesn't make any sense and some white dude came up with that or some white woman did in the early stages of Political Correctness.

Huey Newton is BLACK PANTHER, not a African Tiger....

Who comes up with this shiet??

Nobody said it better than "These are the LYRICS of K-R-S-ONE!"

Ring-ding-ding-ding-ding-ding-ding
This a krs with a different something
What, come in a dance and we come down for sing
This a krs me say - come!
Nuff slaveships come from africa
Full of africans, sold in america
Now you want me to call myself american
Even though america kill di african
Check it, white man is european
And blackman is african
White man never say euro-american
So why should the blackman say afro-american?
If the blackman is american with a afro
Then the white man is american with a long nose
It should be long-nose-american for the white man
Jump around and move your behind
What!

 

WHAT, get out, I completely agree with dj.....

kenny_g,

I hear and feel what you are saying but it's gotta start somewhere. And I think teaching our kids not to use that word out of respect for eachother is a good place to start.

 

dj, it was Jesse Jackson that coined the classification of African-American. During the Civil-Rights and Black Power era it was Black-American. As a book reading it is comfusing since the Kenyans,South-Africans, and others from African lands should be called African-Americans.

 

Black American sounds better to me b/c if anyone has the right to claim the label American it would be the Natives to this country and blacks next. This country would not be the capitilist super power it is today without all that free slave labor, a fact swept oh so neatly under the rug and not something you'll ever get taught in history class.

When I hear African-American, it somehow makes me think of something separate from say just plain ole Americans. If someone wanted to distinguish between a white American and someone else it does get confusing. Especially now that there are Hispanics and Asians and Arabs in this country in increasing numbers. What to do. Hyphenate everything? Are we such a fragmented country? It is very divisive. Aren't we all American, yes of course, but those key differences remain, to those that care.

 

I've always hated that word. I'm glad it's being buried.

 

Don't hold your breath. It will be resurrected again by racist and Black clowns.

 

As a "real" African man, i honestly detest that term "African-American". It's vague, obsessively misplaced and in all frankness, mundane.

 

Nope because people keep using it

Words don't die they just fade away. People continue to use it. That's why it wont' fade away.