Jesse Jackson wants to ban "N-word"
Wilson Gray
hwgray at GMAIL.COM
Thu Nov 30 03:12:26 UTC 2006
That's just me, dInIs. My birth certificate tells me that I'm colored.
My Army ID states that I'm NEG[RO]. Formerly-Negro civil-rights
activists told me that I was black. By the time that
"African-American" made the scene, I had simply become tired of the
whole game, especially given that the congruency being sought does not
and can not exist between "African-American" and, e.g.
"Irish-American." So, I've made up my mind to stick with "black,"
leavened with an occasional "colored," just for old times' sake. To
paraphrase a white GI who explained to me his preference for "nigger,"
I'm sorry, [dInIs], but that's the way that I feel about it.
I met Geneva back in 1972. We didn't hit it off. There was a
personality conflict. She was and still is only the second person that
I've ever met named "Geneva" and the only person that I've ever met so
named outside of Marshall, Texas.
Back when the Reverend Jackson was first advocating the use of
"African-American," a woman from South Africa wrote a letter to the
editor of the local broadsheet asking what, given his intention to
restrict the use of "African-American" to black Americans, what was it
that he would say about her? The reverend didn't condescend to reply,
since the answer to her question was totally, glaringly obvious. He
would have said that she was white.
-Wilson
On 11/29/06, Dennis R. Preston <preston at msu.edu> wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster: "Dennis R. Preston" <preston at MSU.EDU>
> Subject: Re: Jesse Jackson wants to ban "N-word"
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Wilson,
>
> This is a little surprising to me. As I have listened to these
> various presentations, I have learned a great deal about how
> nonlinguists think about how it is that words mean, their
> attributions of historical consistency to their meaning, and how they
> confuse connotation and denotation - all worth giving a fuck about in
> my opinion.
>
> dInIs
>
> PS: Let's not forget that Geneva Smitherman has a nice old piece in
> AS "What is Africa to Me") that explores (empirically) preferences
> among African Americans for just such labels. Probably needs redoing.
>
> >---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >-----------------------
> >Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >Poster: Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
> >Subject: Re: Jesse Jackson wants to ban "N-word"
> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> >The Reverend Jesse Jackson is the first and only person, except for a
> >few members of this list, that I know of to argue for the replacement
> >of "black" by "African-American." Well, I do know that the idea
> >replacing "black" with "African-African didn't spring full-blown from
> >the Reverend Jackson's forrid. Rather, he merely jumped upon the
> >bandwagon and made the concept his own. And I'm aware that there exist
> >other spokesmen for Black, uh, African-American America who have also
> >argued in favor of "African-American." However, given that, as Chester
> >A. Riley would say, "My head is made up," I have no idea who they are
> >nor do I have any idea of what their arguments are. Indeed, I'm
> >totally unaware even of the Reverend Jackson's arguments in favor of
> >"African-American," given that ignoring his and anyone else's
> >arguments, to quote Ike Turner, "was my plan from the ve'y beginnin'."
> >
> >However, let me ask a question: In what way are the Reverend Jackson's
> >arguments against "nigger" inferior to his arguments in favor of
> >"African-American"? And why does anyone here give a fuck? I don't.
> >
> >-Wilson
> >
> >On 11/28/06, Bapopik at aol.com <Bapopik at aol.com> wrote:
> >> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >>-----------------------
> >> Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >> Poster: Bapopik at AOL.COM
> >> Subject: Jesse Jackson wants to ban "N-word"
> >>
> >>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >>
> >> Banning words? So much for Mark Twain's "Huckleberry Finn." I'm burning my
> >> Historical Dictionary of American Slang, H-O right now...Maybe
> >>Jesse Jackson
> >> can ban "ain't" and y'all," and "fuck" of course has to go, and then...
> >> ...
> >> ...
> >>
> >>_http://www.playfuls.com/news_0003530_Jesse_Jackson_Others_Seek_N_word_Ban_in_
> >> Entertainment.html_
> >>
> >>(http://www.playfuls.com/news_0003530_Jesse_Jackson_Others_Seek_N_word_Ban_in_Entertainment.html)
> >> ...
> >> Jesse Jackson & Others Seek "N-word" Ban in Entertainment
> >> 05:15 PM, November 28th 2006
> >>
> >>
> >> Rev. Jesse Jackson will meet with TV and _film_
> >>
> >>(http://www.playfuls.com/news_0003530_Jesse_Jackson_Others_Seek_N_word_Ban_in_Entertainment.html#)
> >> executives to discuss banning the use of derogatory expressions
> >>in the entertainment
> >> industry. "We want to give our ancestors a Christmas present," he said.
> >> Asked about free-speech issues, Jackson said the word is "unprotected."
> >>
> >> The Rev. Jesse Jackson and others said they will meet with TV
> >>networks, film
> >> companies and musicians to discuss the "n-word." They also sought an effort
> >> by the public to stop using the term. "We want to give our ancestors a
> >> Christmas present," Jackson said at a news conference. "Dignity
> >>over degradation."
> >> Jackson also asked the public to not buy a _DVD_
> >>
> >>(http://www.playfuls.com/news_0003530_Jesse_Jackson_Others_Seek_N_word_Ban_in_Entertainment.html#)
> >>box
> >> set of the seventh season of the TV show "Seinfeld" that was
> >>released last week.
> >>
> >> "This is not simply about whether or not the black community forgives or
> > > forgets, this is about understanding that this is pervasive,
> >that this happens
> >> in all of our institutions, one way or the other," U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters,
> >> D-California, said.
> >>
> >> ------------------------------------------------------------
> >> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >>
> >
> >
> >--
> >All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
> >come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
> >-----
> >-Sam Clemens
> >
> >------------------------------------------------------------
> >The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
>
> --
> It should be the chief aim of a university professor to exhibit
> himself [sic] in his own true character - that is, as an ignorant man
> thinking, actively utilizing his small share of knowledge. Alfred
> North Whitehead
>
> Dennis R. Preston
> University Distinguished Professor
> Department of English
> Morrill Hall 15-C
> Michigan State University
> East Lansing, MI 48824-1036 USA
> Office: (517) 353-4736
> Fax: (517) 353-3755
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
--
All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
-----
-Sam Clemens
------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
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