Pac using the word nigga

[bigCASH]

This really didn't come to my mind until recently...because i haven't given it that much thought...but it's kind of interesting when you think about it. Pac was always a deep thinker...he always had his own mind and didn't follow the crowd. When he was here he was taught a lot, studied a lot and talked a lot about his black/African-American heritage. He knew a lot about the Black Panther party and what they went through during the civil rights movement and what our ancestors had to go through during slavery. He knew that us as black people in America have come along way...but the war was still far from over cause we still face prejudice people and racisim everyday..and with all that knowledge he had of how white people treated/treat black people and how much time he spent trying to uplift the black community...why would he still continue to use the word or the word that originated from the word that was made up by white people to demolish the pride, confidence and self esteem any black person had and was used to degrade a whole race to make them feel like they were less than human. I know Pac took the word Nigga and gave it his own meaning...Never Ignorant Getting Goals Accomplished...but isn't there a better word that we can use and call each other to show brotherhood and friendship other than the word white people used for us to classify us all as stupid and ignorant...and this whole subject goes way deeper than Pac...but i chose to use him as an example to show how smart he was and how easy it is to fall into the same trap that most of us fall into. Because we are the only race i ever seen calling each other a racist insult and still accepting it as a way of life...you don't hear Asians calling each other "chincs" or Hispanic people calling each other "spics" but we call each other nigga...and since we do that...we are basically telling the rest of the world that it's okay...now everbody is calling us niggas..they're even calling each other niggas...and i feel wether or not if you say it with the "er" or the "a" it still isn't right...and i think that it's ironic that as smart as Pac was and how much he knew about black culture and the origin of the word nigga...he would still use it.

what are your thoughts?

 

[EriMakaveli]

"You Ignorant Nigga. Thats What You Is." -- Pac Says That To You.

 

[Dante]

pac's not the first black guy to use the word, and he won't be the last. you're really looking too hard into this... black americans began using a term that was formerly a definition of slavery and oppression as a term of endearment to destroy the power of the word. while black folks are not united in electing to employ it as "brother" or as the black version of white trash, either way it is 180 degrees from when white people choose to use the term. yes, that includes you fubu wearing, wannabe down, saggy pants, asscrack showing "cool" white kids.

 

[team66]

Nigga, nergo, all stupid if you ask me. Moving on....

 

[bigCASH]

i know that's why i said that this goes way deeper than Pac

 

[Rukas]

To me the adoption of the word can be symbolized by that famous seen in Juice where Bishop gets called crazy. "You know what, I am crazy, but guess what, I dont give a fuck!"

It was the same with African Americans, "you know what, we are niggas, but guess what, we dont give a fuck!" When the word stopped having a negative impact and was adopted by black people, it lost most of its power.

Really it should have been taken a step further. If it became a normal word, it would lose ALL of its power. If you're going to say that nigga is alright to use, and you allowed everyone to say it, it would lose all of its negative power. Because if you continue to take offense when white people say it, you are giving power to white racists who will still use it just because it offends you. If the word didnt offed at all, no one would use it to try to do harm to African Americans.

So I understand the mentality behind using it, but its sort of a half assed solution.

Personally I dont think anyone should use it, blacks or whites. But at the same time, i respect why blacks choose to use it, and also think if everyone used it (i dont mean white kids calling themselves nigga), then it would loose all of its power because it wouldnt be offensive anymore.

 

[Kevsta2004]

Nigga > Nigger
Totaly different words don't get confused.

 

[Dante]

Nigga > Nigger
Totaly different words don't get confused.

but still, white folks should ever, ever, ever use it unless for an intellectual discussion. the cultural connotation is inherent regardless of the situation in which it is employed. simply put, white folks enslaved africans, brought them to america, raped and persecuted them for 400 years, and a half a century later some "down ass" white kid wants to use it in his everyday slang? no dice. it would be analagous for germans to call their friends "heebs" or "what's up my kike." you can see that just doesn't work.

even though slavery doesn't exist, the scars still do. because of that, white kids have no business trying to say it. ever. consider it a tradeoff for being able to trace your lineage and not having great-grandparents who were slaves. seems like a good deal now, huh?

what i think is fucked up are non-black minorities like fat joe saying nigga this and nigga that. yeah, you're a minority, but does that make you a "nigga?' sorry mr. cholesterol, it doesn't.

 

[Kevsta2004]

I agree with what you said cos if you walk up to a black person an call them a nigga they probably thinking you called them a nigger so your likely to get knocked the fuck out anyway unless their uneducated.
I don't think white people should use it at all seen as it has nothing to do with their way of life.

 

[DidUThinkIdFall]

Pac, in a way, took the adaptation of the word "NIGGER", which is 'nigga', and defined it as "Never Ignorant Getting Goals Accomplished"

I think thats a remarkable feat in itself, seeing as how no other black person with as much notoriety as Pac has done so much as even give that much thought to its useage.

Just cuz blacks say it doesnt make it right/ok for whites and non blacks to say.

 

[Rukas]

what i think is fucked up are non-black minorities like fat joe saying nigga this and nigga that. yeah, you're a minority, but does that make you a "nigga?' sorry mr. cholesterol, it doesn't.

I totally agree with that. If Blacks want to keep it an African American thing, then they shouldnt allow Hispanics to use it either. Just because you're a minority doesnt give you the right to use it.

Im a minority, Im also white, as a minority, using Fat Joe's reasoning, should I be able to say it? Joe is probably whiter than me too.

 

[DidUThinkIdFall]

To me the adoption of the word can be symbolized by that famous seen in Juice where Bishop gets called crazy. "You know what, I am crazy, but guess what, I dont give a fuck!"

It was the same with African Americans, "you know what, we are niggas, but guess what, we dont give a fuck!" When the word stopped having a negative impact and was adopted by black people, it lost most of its power.

Im not sure i agree with this. No black person ever said "Hey well I guess I am a nigger".

 

[Rukas]

Im not sure i agree with this. No black person ever said "Hey well I guess I am a nigger".

Really? You've never heard an African American call himself a nigga before? When the word was accepted and used then it just became a word that represents black people.

 

[DidUThinkIdFall]

The fact that blacks still use the word today doesnt necessarily mean it has lost all of its connotation.
Some blacks ignorantly use the word to describe there peers, while other blacks blatantly reject the word.
I dont see why a white person would want to use the word.
Can anyone give me a scenario when a white person would use it, outside of deliberately disrespecting a black person?

 

[DidUThinkIdFall]

Really? You've never heard an African American call himself a nigga before? When the word was accepted and used then it just became a word that represents black people.

Yes. African Americans do refer to themselves as niggas.
Never will an African American admit that the word "nigga" represents black people however.
It is fair to say though this is a commonly held misconception across the world over however.

 

[Rukas]

Yes. African Americans do refer to themselves as niggas.
Never will an African American admit that the word "nigga" represents black people however.
It is fair to say though this is a commonly held misconception across the world over however.

I dont mean it represents black people on a large scale. I mean, in the case of one African American calling another African American a nigga, he is saying that because they are black, and to him that represents himself and whoever he is calling a nigga.

 

[bigmack]

if you're not black and you call a black person a nigga, it's offensive.

same thing if you're not gay, and you call a gay person a queer,that's offensive, yet gay people always call themselves queer.

it's like, to your own kind, the word doesnt have a negative meaning. i mean, if i was chinese and a chinese person called me a chink, i wouldnt be offended,no matter how much i hated that person. but a white person calls me a chink, i'd raise hell.



one more thing, black people also call other people niggas who arent black

 

[Kevsta2004]

if you're not black and you call a black person a nigga, it's offensive.

same thing if you're not gay, and you call a gay person a queer,that's offensive, yet gay people always call themselves queer.

it's like, to your own kind, the word doesnt have a negative meaning. i mean, if i was chinese and a chinese person called me a chink, i wouldnt be offended,no matter how much i hated that person. but a white person calls me a chink, i'd raise hell.



one more thing, black people also call other people niggas who arent black

I think not.

 

[bigCASH]

I dont mean it represents black people on a large scale. I mean, in the case of one African American calling another African American a nigga, he is saying that because they are black, and to him that represents himself and whoever he is calling a nigga.

then why should it be okay for everyone else to use the word if it mainly used for a black person calling another black person that because he is black

Can anyone give me a scenario when a white person would use it, outside of deliberately disrespecting a black person?

there is non except for situation like this

Pac, in a way, took the adaptation of the word "NIGGER", which is 'nigga', and defined it as "Never Ignorant Getting Goals Accomplished"

yeah i said that in the first post

Just cuz blacks say it doesnt make it right/ok for whites and non blacks to say.

doesn't make it right for us either

what i think is fucked up are non-black minorities like fat joe saying nigga this and nigga that. yeah, you're a minority, but does that make you a "nigga?' sorry mr. cholesterol, it doesn't.

thanks for pointing that out...that's what i meant when i said now even the non blacks are calling each other niggaz in my original post

Nigga > Nigger
Totaly different words don't get confused.

i used to believe that...but really they're the same word just pronounced differently

 

[bigmack]

I think not.

well, i've seen it so many times,im not just typing to fill space