This is a letter to America. Black, Brown. Caucasian or Asian this message applies to you.
Within 24 hours I have seen witnessed and heard a specific concept spoken on written on and televised. See for some reason I find people justifying a nigga, or rather the term they represent. But before we deconstruct the confines of these justified and unjustified arguments, let's retrace the roots of this word and go back in its past. See, Negus is Black Royalty, Negus is a term that Nigga is derived from. A Nigga is a derogatory term marking ignorance, marking a downfall, marking torture, slavery, and the humiliation of a complete people. See, I feel like we all forget the history behind words. It is as if while time goes on, history is being forgotten. When history is forgotten the past is repeated. I'm not sure about everyone so I speak for myself when I say, "Time is a forward moving entity and so am I. I will not go backwards and only look forwards learning from my past."
I Point this out and say this with such magnanimity because we as people need to understand the strength words have. See words are living. Our words are another creature born by us. Our words form, sculpt and shape our universe. A word lives as all living things do. Words age with time. They gain a history; they wear the scars of their past, hard and true.
An old man head low, beaten down abused and overused. This is Nigga. Nigga has lived a long life, born in light and torn from his throne. Nigga has become delusional and confused. See time moves on and Nigga does age but the weight of his pains can never be erased. We parade Nigga around media, and laugh at his face, bed ridden. We prop Nigga up for master to see and play games and tell jokes so that master is pleased. This is Nigga head hung down askew, slayed by the memories tortured by the truth. Nigga will smile, nigga will laugh, nigga will be paraded for mista to see but in the back of Nigga's mind will always be the memory of Negus. By definition Royalty a God through and through.
Understand what I am saying right now. I have to call out mother Tuskegee and all of its fine eurydite people. Recently there was a debate about a Caucasian male saying nigga in a chant. He stated his opinion and his fellow fraternity members backed him up. Initially, I was enraged. I threw every type of negative thought at the issue. But then I thought ignorance is not a predator but rather prey. So I seek to teach to my ignorant brothers and sisters in hopes of devouring their ignorance.
STOP SAYING NIGGAS AND REPLACE IT WITH NEGUS. That is what should happen, but it probably won't, not now anyway, but soon. So instead we must regulate. This may sound somewhat derogatory, but the social reality that everyone needs to understand is this: Some people are comfortable with things that others are not. If there are those who aren't comfortable, human decency is to respect that.
You may see the issue as "oh my friends are cool with it"; I see it as "why are you so eager to disrespect me". I am verbally communicating what you're doing, what you're saying is like spitting in my face. You don't have to do it, but you choose to.
For those who say that it isn't that serious, I respond asking why not? Why do you not care that he is turning you into another nigga?
We do it to each other, why does it matter? Was the house nigga better than the field nigga because he got to call him a nigga?
See we wanna say we won't go backwards, but watch as it happens, watch as the ignorant go in reverse, not learning from mistakes. Let me leave you with two questions and see what you think.
Why is this a debate?
Why do you choose to argue?
A'shay
Sheetal Tadiparty
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