I had heard tell of this, but did not make anything of it until I read it on my twin’s blog. Damn it, I always start these blogs off in the middle the story. What I am referring to is the fact that hip-hopper, Nas, has chosen to entitle his most recent CD, “NIGGER” (I refuse to refer to it as the “N” word. Call a spade a spade, I say-which is a saying with racial connotations in its own right). And he uses the word NIGGER in all its glory. None of that sissified “Niggah” mess for Nas. No, sir. If you gonna go you gotta go hard, Damn it!
Of course, people like the Rev. Jesse Jackson and my twin, Ivent…are extremely pissed and put off by the use of the word, but I want to reserve judgment until I hear the CD. I want to know the method behind the man’s madness. After all, look at the title of my blog and it is in no way meant to offend, but to enlighten, poke fun at and possibly even empower (maybe a little?).
Okay, who am I kidding? I am totally old school and don’t really get into this artist, such as Nas and the rest, so I will by no means ever listen to this nigger’s CD, but I say if the man has good intentions behind naming his album what he has named it, and he says he is doing it to take back the word, then more power to him. I personally don’t see how you can take back the word nigger. Hell, that word never belonged to us; it was just used against us. But I do understand the concept of trying to take some of the sting out of the word. And if the songs on his CD do that then I say, don’t hate, congratulate. We, especially as black people, are so quick to pass judgment on our own folks. Give the nigger…I mean brother, a chance before you start casting your stones. Damn!
The word nigger does not offend me. I think we give the word too much power and because of the power we give it, people are still able to use it against us in a hurtful manner. Don’t get me wrong, I know that the word, itself, is shrouded in racism, hated and a whole shrew of other adjectives. Hell, I am trying to get my family not to pass it on to another generation, i.e., my little two year old nephew, but alas, I am too late.
I’ll admit that when I hear a group of youngsters using the word to express themselves, especially when those youngsters don’t look like me, I have a tendency to cringe. But I am so over allowing that word to have power over me. Well, not completely. This white man, so I am told, called me a nigger a couple of weeks back when I yelled at him for almost hitting my squad car with his eighteen wheeler (dumb ass). He didn’t say it until I was out of ear shot, but the young blacks around me made a point of letting me know he had called me the word. I told them that words didn’t hurt me and to leave me alone, but the reality was that I was pissed that the bastard had used the word against me and if he had been man enough to say it to my face, he and I would have had all kinds of issues. But what can I say? I admit to still being a work in progress. But that’s my whole point. People who use that word are just pussies. Why even give them the satisfaction of letting it get to you. If we can take away the power of the word it might just die on its own, but a long as we keep fighting it the more power we give to it. Am I the only one that sees that, or am I just a blubbering old fool? (Don’t you niggers be calling me no blubbering old fool. LOL).
-One Man’s Opinion. Peace into the New Year and beyond.
Who the hell is Nas anyway?
