The word nigger.
The word nigger.
I am not sure why the word nigger is so offensive. It really stems from a scientific description of black skinned men and women. I do not think that it was really intended to be much more than a description of blacks by white scientists, and non-black scientists. What probably happened, to alter it to include ignorance, is whites engaged with blacks, and blacks were not always agreeable and therefore some of the whites assessed the niggers to be ignorant, thus developing a secondary connotation that indicates ignorant. Even that in itself is not a reason to not use the word nigger. Nigger is much more specific to black men and women, than is even the word black. Black is merely a color, where as nigger describes a individual or population of black skinned humans or hominids. So I am not sure why it is thought to be so negative, when in fact the word is quite neutral.
Sure it was used a lot during slavery as whites interacted more with blacks then. And sure there were other oppressive acts, but set alone, the word nigger really is just another english word that has been well defined, and it's primary definition is a black skinned person.
I think we should use the word nigger and I do not forsee much of a reason for depicting it as a horrible word.
I am not sure why the word nigger is so offensive. It really stems from a scientific description of black skinned men and women. I do not think that it was really intended to be much more than a description of blacks by white scientists, and non-black scientists. What probably happened, to alter it to include ignorance, is whites engaged with blacks, and blacks were not always agreeable and therefore some of the whites assessed the niggers to be ignorant, thus developing a secondary connotation that indicates ignorant. Even that in itself is not a reason to not use the word nigger. Nigger is much more specific to black men and women, than is even the word black. Black is merely a color, where as nigger describes a individual or population of black skinned humans or hominids. So I am not sure why it is thought to be so negative, when in fact the word is quite neutral.
Sure it was used a lot during slavery as whites interacted more with blacks then. And sure there were other oppressive acts, but set alone, the word nigger really is just another english word that has been well defined, and it's primary definition is a black skinned person.
I think we should use the word nigger and I do not forsee much of a reason for depicting it as a horrible word.
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