Mario Garza
Mr. Izzy
Nigger101
5 July 2015
Why Blacks Want to be Niggers For many years now, Africans have referred to themselves as Niggers, or as they pronounce it, ‘Niggas’. For many years it has been a derogatory term used to refer to the Africans, so why would you want to use this slur to refer to yourself and friends? The original definition for this word is a person who is ignorant, now it is used to describe an African American. While the original definition was in effect, many people still address each other as their ‘Nigga/Nigger’, but why? Nigger is a noun in the English language. It had originally come from the Spanish/ Portuguese variation of Negro, which originated from the Latin adjective Niger. It was first used by John Rolfe to explain the first African slave ships in Virginia during 1619. In
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Now it has a positive meaning behind it, such as many colored people calling a close friend there nigga, now it is equivalent to calling them a brother. Another reason it is so popular in today’s music is because of the rhythmic presentation as well as the history that falls behind the word itself. Saying the word for an African American today is like taking away all of the power from everyone else as opposed to allowing to still mean a racist term and affect them negatively. In conclusion, I believe this word that was once used to undermine and degrade many races, has now been empowered. During the Civil Rights Movement it was used in R&B, rap, and rock songs played by African Americans to take out the negativity and portray the emotions they felt about being suppressed and impairer. So, with that being said, and the amount of times the definition and spelling has changed in this word, we have made it into something new and great. We have brought some light to a dark and scary time period in the history of the United States by giving it a new
According to Lemon, African American should stop using the n-word especially if it does not pertain to the conversation. “By promoting the use of that word when it 's not germane to the conversation, have you ever considered that you may be just perpetuating the stereotype the master intended acting like a nigger?” This claim is strong because it causes the reader to think about how saying that word may really be feeding into the stereotype. Also, he includes a scenario that gives the reader an example of how the word is used so casually. “…on my way home when I exited the subway in 125th Street in Harlem.
During the 1840s in Missouri, a young boy name Huckleberry Finn runs away from home. At his first destination, he meets Jim, a run away slaves. The story goes along with the adventure of Huck and Jim. Along the way floating in Mississippi river, Huck and Jim meet many people. The most significant character they met was the King and Duck, the con artists, who help to show the growth in Huck 's moral while creating sorts of problems.
Why is being called a “Nigger” so hurtful for African Americans currently to date? Being called a, “Nigger” means to be called ignorant, dark-skinned, or of African descent. To this day, we’re still being called that awful word although it is not to be used anymore. It is a racial slur that should never be used and if it is used should be high consequences. This is the biggest insult to Black people everywhere.
The history of the “n-word” is that it was used for political protest at first. It also became a slur during the 1820s which made African Americans inferior and unfavorable in all of humanity. During her video, one thing that stood out to me was how she talked about how, as a historian, schools had teachers in modern history that called African Americans the “n-word” to make them feel shameful. I believe that schools should teach students about the “n-word” but in the correct way so that we can be aware of the dangers of the word and so that we know never to say it. A counter argument to this could be that not every school will be teaching students the “n-word” in the proper way.
Black people were also called harsh names, such as the "n" word. Black people must have felt left out, only having what white people weren’t using.
However, people who hasn’t grew up in that time frame such as myself doesn’t necessarily relate the “nigger” to those understandings. Not all, but a lot of people in today’s society use the term “nigger” loosely. We use it on a daily in a friendly manner and not all blacks that offense when someone of the Caucasian race refer to them as a “nigger” or even use “nigger” to refer to themselves. This generation has also changed the term to “nigga” and although the “er” is taking off some people still gets offended by it. For me personally it depends in what content the word is used.
“A Talk to Teachers” Questions 1-12 1. Baldwin establishes with his audience that he is not a teacher and like all of them lives in a dangerous time. He establishes his ethos by telling his audience that he is not (a teacher) and that he is (a fellow citizen who like them lives in a dangerous time). 2.
According to Matt Seitz, the word “Negro” started to fall out forty years ago. He mentions that “the word negro was easier for people
Over the course of many years, African Americans have influenced communities in many ways. African Americans have been used as slaves and segregated. After overcoming these struggles, they later were granted freedoms and rights. Many African American individuals have overcome these hard times and worked hard to achieve their dreams. Misty Copeland, Patricia Bath, and Madam C.J. Walker are courageous African-American women who have overcome racial stereotypes because of their determination to pursue what they love; Misty Copeland’s determination led her to pursue dance, and Patricia Bath and Madam C.J. Walker were strong, African American entrepreneurs.
The oxford dictionary had much to say about the word “nigger.” The oxford dictionary said, slave masters got the name “nigger” from the Latin word “Niger” meaning black. They also got the word “Negro” from the meaning of the Spanish diction meaning “black” also. They used the word “black” to describe African American’s instead of letting them have their names or giving them an actual name. It wouldn’t be so bad
Discussion Questions Part two The Concept of Double Consciousness as Described by Du Bois For many years until only about a few years ago, African Americans have had many difficult experiences as they have searched for their true cultural identity in the American society. The common method of identification of African Americans was their black skin color, hence the name Negros, blacks, and colored people. The African Americans were poor, and discriminated by the rich white people that forced them to adopt a new cultural identity and to be assimilated by the dominant culture while at the same time struggling to maintain their original cultural identity.
The original interpretation of the word, dating back numerous decades, was a way to belittle and remove the self-worth of black Americans who were supposedly “free”. In an article titled “Mommy, What Does ‘Nigger’ Mean?” By Gloria Naylor, she recalls a time in her childhood when the use of the N-word was switched continuously from a positive to a negative, and back again. She says that “the word nigger was used in my presence, but it was set within contexts and inflections that caused it to register my mind as something else.” The N-word is currently being used in two or more different ways, one of which being the “standard” negative undertone, and the other being a way to acknowledge a close friend.
Although he wrote the novel in the 1880s, Mark Twain’s novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, still remains a controversy today because of Twain’s use of the “N-word.” Why does Twain use the word “nigger” over 100 times in his novel? What impact is he trying to create by using this derogatory term? Although a multitude number of schools banned Twain’s novel because of the use of the derogatory “term,” Mark Twain’s utilization of the “n-word” satirizes the white American society in the 1880s by reminding his readers that racism was considered a social norm and illustrates how much society attained in terms of racism and discrimination from when slavery was prominent. Furthermore, Twain utilizes the “n-word” because it is his work of literature and changing his words deprives the reader of its purpose and is considered to be a form of censorship.
In the dictionary nigger is defined as a contemptuous term for a black or dark-skinned person. During slavery it was used as a way for white people to oppress slaves, and after slavery was ended it was still used to oppress and demean black people. This is why the word nigger is such a loaded word. After the civil rights movement, the black community reclaimed the n-word.
The n-word is unique in the English language and is an example of oppressive slang that is still being used today.