(Trigger warning: Mention of racial slurs)
I remember I had a friend in high school once. This friend was a beautiful, highly intelligent woman of color. High-schoolers often are unaware of social offenses; I know I certainly was. Growing up in a conservative household with unrecognized internal racism led me to believe using certain slurs to look “cool” and “funny” was acceptable. But why? My black friend said it was “okay,” so that’s all the validation I need!
The truth was, however, it wasn’t “okay.” Except in my mind, replacing “-er” with “-a” made it less of a slur. I would sing along to Kanye or Nicki or any other black artist not realizing the problems associated with the word. Rather than expressing my appreciation for the songs as a form of art, I was exercising my white privilege without realizing it.
Trisha Paytas is a popular YouTube video blogger with nearly 2 million subscribers. She recently published a video entitled “White People Problems,” asking why she can’t say the n-word even when she’s singing along to a song and her black friends don’t care if she says it. The video received some backlash as well as support from commenters.
Paytas is often highly regarded for her brand of humor that is borderline ironic and problematic. She’s produced controversial content in the past, but what separates this video is a blurred line between genuine inquiry, and a video published strictly for views to garner a response. Regardless, Paytas is capitalizing on her ignorance of her white privilege, as she makes between $6.00 and $10.00 for every 1,000 views.
The video begins with Paytas rapping a verse containing the n-word. Later, she uses it again because she "has a black friend who doesn't care" about the use of the word.
Three years ago, I probably would have agreed. However, Paytas and I are not to decide what is and isn't offensive to people of color. Being white, we are always going to have an internalized level of racism. It may not always surface, but it will continue to resonate in our minds. In Trisha's case, that one friend may not care, but she makes the statement as if one black person giving an "okay" automatically means any other black person would agree. We as white people need to get out of that mindset.
White privilege is defined as "set of advantages and/or immunities that white people benefit from on a daily basis beyond those common to all others" (Avakian, 2003). Paytas plays into this ideal by believing the consequences of her use of the word are racist towards her.
Paytas's video caught the attention of social justice vlogger Franchesa Ramsey as well. On Twitter, Ramsey responded.
asking someone to not use a slur = “please respect me & the struggles my community have gone through” that’s not racist or unfair to anyone
— Franchesca Ramsey (@chescaleigh)
I wish someone told me this in high school. But as I've grown, I've realized my issues will take priority over people of color. Usually, mine won't be life or death. Paytas is using her privilege and large audience to undermine POC issues. Her defense line will argue that she's "joking," but jokes that puncture the struggles of a group of people that have been institutionalized since the dawn of time is no longer comedy.
"2015 is the year everything offended everyone," many people say. But learning what offends someone is important in creating an accepting culture.