There has been recent uproar over Present Barack using the word nigger while being interviewed by comedian Marc Maron. Folk from various radio stations, social media and news outlets including, Twitter, FB, Time Magazine, The Root, TJMS, ABC News & Politico took to the stage to discuss Mr. Obama and his use of the word. The President informed Marc that though during his life time he has seen race relations improve the United States is not cured of racism. While discussing race relations President Obama made the following statement: “It’s not just a matter of it not being polite to say nigger in public.” I personally took no issue with him using it in the context that he did. However there were some folks enraged. Sigh….. You can’t please em all Mr. President!

The use of the word nigger has been a long standing debate in this country and will probably not end in the near future.  The big debate is over who shouldn’t or should use the word, when is it (if ever) politically correct to use it and should the use of the word nigger be banned from rap music as well as the English language altogether (that won’t happen). It appears many of our young folk (and some not so young) feel a little well….. Meh about the whole debate. After all It’s just a word right?   Some argue it’s a term of endearment and say it all depends on who uses the word how the word is pronounced and the context in which it’s being used. There are some who say the word nigga is not the same as nigger and they hold two separate meanings. The word nigga is referred to as one’s close friend can be male or female and applies to any race. However, if you use the word nigger it takes on a whole different meaning – I don’t think I need to explain this one!

I remember talking to a dear friend and I was going on and on about my hips and how I wished to God that I wasn’t cursed with them. My friend looked at me and said “Veronica you have hips so just own it! I look like a teenage boy by the chest but hey I have accepted the fact that I have tiny breast and I own that!” You may have encountered a co-worker saying something similar to the following: hey it was my mistake so I am going to own it and fix it.

Now when you think about it the concept of “owning it” there is something to be said of the opposite concept “disowning it”. Have you ever heard someone reject criticism that they received but did not agree with? They’ll say something to the tune of “I don’t receive that” or as many of our church counterparts would say “I rebuke that” some of may even say nope, I don’t own that! However it is said simply put they are saying I DON’T OWN IT because it’s not an adequate critique of me that is not who I am and therefore what you say has no power over me.  I believe the same concept can be applied to the word nigger. We need to stop owning it hence removing all power from that one ity bitty word.

There are so many videos circulating on social media where we witness Caucasians calling African-Americans nigger. All too many times the videos that I have watched have a commonality when we are referred to as a nigger – we own it. We inform the Caucasian person that they are racist. We may get a few digs in, say you’re a racist SOB; or ask why are you so racist? We never seem to say I am not a nigger; you’re a nigger therefore saying I don’t receive it so you can just take that right back! I watched the below video on FB a while back and this video struck a nerve with me. The title of the video is “Hungry White Man Calls Black Woman a Nigger:” I don’t know the names of the individuals in the video so I will call the man Billy Jo, his woman Billie Jo, and the African-American woman Bertha! Billy Jo and his woman had a verbal altercation with Bertha over the condition of her car because she believed they may have hit it. Six seconds into the video Billy Jo said “you ain’t nothing but a stupid ass F*%&*** nigger that’s just trying to get some money!” Bertha was clearly upset she told him if she was anything like she used to be she would kick him where it really hurt (wink) I sat there watching this video all the while screaming CALL HIM A nigger BACK! I thought to myself she should have told him he is a nigger and a morbidly obese one at that!

I was of course angered by this video but I was also saddened by Bertha’s reaction. I was angry for obvious reasons and I was saddened because I felt as if her reaction to him calling her nigger was to call him derogatory words and of course she pointed out the obvious fact she told him “you’re a prejudice racist mother f&%$#@ – he replied so are you; he owned being a racist but also handed it right back to her even though she said nothing remotely racist to him. Bertha owned being a nigger but she did not hand it right back to Billy Jo.   She called him every hurtful word she could think of except nigger.   She treated that word as if it was hers to own and she couldn’t give it back to him. She didn’t rebuke it, didn’t cancel it she just accepted it from Billy Jo and I wonder if it is because he is Caucasian. Now, she did get at him but I wonder how that conversation would have been if Billy Jo and Billie Jo were African-American.   I believe Bertha would have turned around and called him a nigger right back.

Unfortunately, this word holds a lot of power, hurt, hate & shame. We all know what that word means to a white racist when they are using it- It’s meant to tear us down and refers to us as being ignorant, uneducated, shiftless, and inferior.

I believe we have the power to break the cycle of pain & turmoil this word inflicts on us if we would simply STOP owning it. I also believe WE would not have been so upset when the president used the word during his interview with Marc had we applied this concept; yes there were many of us in an uproar. We have a beautiful heritage rich in spiritual and outward beauty, moral boundaries, love and pride.  So own what’s yours and disown what is not. NIGGER we didn’t Americanize it, we didn’t assign it to ourselves and it’s time to give it back to its rightful owner. They own that WE DON’T!

#ItsNotOursToOwn #GiveItBack

#IAmMySistersMirror