the N word

Average Poster Joined: Jun 28, 2007 Posts: 54

Cyber friends, this is one of my 'serious' poems. Do tell me what you think of it. Merci.

Back in the day when my ancestors were slaves
The oppressor sought to break our bodies and spirits
It was not enough that we were whipped and tortured in so many ways
We were declared properties of man, subjects within states
It was not enough that our identities were changed
We were bought, sold, branded and exchanged
The color of skin was the deciding factor that we should suffer
Now our race has a new name. They call us Nigga

Back in the day when we fought for freedom
Fighting for the right to live free as our lighter skinned brethren
And boldly we progressed- we shall overcome
We called ourselves ‘brother’ and ‘sister’ and made some gains
We were militant like X and docile like King
It was time to stand up to the day of reckoning
We were the ‘cool cats’, ‘the man’. No longer were we less than zero
They don’t call us ‘colored’ anymore. We’re now Negros

Back in the day we wanted to be identified
To reconnect to our homeland where we were forced from
Append ‘African’ to signify our collective pride
Our men are not your ‘boy’ or your ‘son’
We were getting noticed in everything we touched
Business, sports, music… were will they be without us?
Now it seems our gains have gone to our heads
We no longer remember the struggle we once led

Back to today it’s cool to call oneself a Nigga
It’s supposed to mean a ‘brother’, ‘dude’ or ‘friend’
But only people of ‘color’ can use it and no other
Otherwise it might seen as a deliberate attempt to offend
Some say we want to use this weapon as a tool to unite
Others forget the use of the word, its history is not right
It has spread outside its shores, other cultures use it too
My question now is: what’s the word ‘Nigga’ to you?

Forums Moderator Joined: May 18, 2005 Posts: 1023

bpudding...............this is deep. Ever thought of publishing your work?

Average Poster Joined: Jun 28, 2007 Posts: 54

am working on it. wish me luck. Very Happy

Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 7:01 pm

Interesting thought Bpudding.
I personnally do not like the word "nigger" because of its connotations and the way it came into being. The same applies to "half-cast".
I find it a bit like stamping your foot over someone.

Average Poster Joined: Jun 28, 2007 Posts: 54

I feel you Miguel.

I can remember years ago when I first heard that word uttered. If was so depressing and funny at the same time. The dude who said it was blacker than dirt and he was calling my boyfriend at the time (of mixed race) n**r. I'm in Africa so it's even more disheartening seeing and hearing the youth blatantly using the terms n**r and b**es obviously with no clue on what these words mean historically and literally. Sad.

Posted: Wed Aug 15, 2007 9:26 pm

When you look at the derogatory names we have
been given ove the years, it makes you realise that
still they think we are sub-human.

Has anyone noticed..the white man keeps telling us
what is politically correct to call ourselves?
At the end of the day I am me. Not OTHER as is
stated in some forms.

Posted: Wed Aug 15, 2007 11:12 pm

I'm not sure the politically correct brigade is trying to tell black people what to call themselves. I think they are just trying to avoid situations were black people (or any other race / group of people) are referred to in terms they themselves may find offensive.