Slurs are an extremely sensitive and touchy topic. It is not something that should be discussed lightly, nor is it something that should be discussed without the utmost amount of severity. It is a topic that I feel strongly about, and so it is because of those strong feelings that I sit here and write this article. My intent in writing this article is to tell people just why they shouldn't say certain words, why some people can say those words and why, and finally, why people should be informed about what they are saying and why they are damaging to society.

There are many slurs that exist in the world today. They range from simple curse words used in a derogatory fashion, to words that have been applied to people of certain race, sexual orientation, and what have you. Regardless of how simple the slur may be, a slur is still a slur. They affect people, inflict pain upon them, and damage them emotionally or mentally. To begin, I will discuss the use of the way some men treat women.

There are a lot of men in this world that would "s**t shame" a woman by calling them various curse words, a s**t, a w***e, etc. They treat them differently because they might engage in promiscuous behavior or even, heaven forbid, dress in a certain way that pleases them. First of all, it does not matter how the woman dresses, how she behaves, or what she does, it is not up for a man to decide who a woman should be. Any time that a man demoralizes a woman by s**t shaming her, it can have a negative impact on that woman's life. A woman should be able to dress the way she wants, period.

The same goes for men who call women the b-word. They call them that because they are either too demanding, too "bossy", or too in control of their own lives. Whenever a man calls a woman the b-word for the purpose of demoralizing them, insulting them, or trying to make them inferior to the male sex, it has the possibility to be harmful to that woman's psyche. Again, a man has no right to degrade a woman who is in control of her life, as well as her actions.

Moving on, the next topic is a bit more severe. The use of the f-slur, as well as other slurs of similar type, that are projected onto the LGBQT community are extremely harmful. When a man/woman calls a member of this community any of those slurs, it has the possibility to harm them. They are not words that should be uttered, regardless of whether or not there are any people of that community around. It is not okay to say them at all. Members of the LGBQT community have endured enough struggles, gone through too much pain, and have worked too hard to have to deal with those slurs in this day and age. The same goes for the next group of people on this list: black people.

The n-word is perhaps the most controversial of all slurs. It is a word that has been used throughout the course of history to completely and utterly demoralize, harm, and degrade black people. Unfortunately, it is still used today, which is an utter shame. I, personally, know people who use the slur today and it is, honestly, completely disgusting. I, for one, cannot believe that it is a word that people who aren't of the black community would even consider using, let alone actually use it. People who use the word have no idea what the word means. They have no idea the amount of hardships the black community has suffered. If they do know, then they are extremely hateful and hurtful and are the most despicable kind of people. Black people have suffered for so many years... they shouldn't have to deal with people of another race insulting them by using a word that has caused so much harm to their people. They are a strong, proud race. They shouldn't be forced to deal with the ignorance that comes with people wanting to use the word because they think it's cool/trendy and people who use it because they are too foolish and ignorant to realize that what they are saying is wrong.

Now, a lot of people, almost always people who don't belong to those communities, ask the simple question: "Well, if they can say that word, then why can't I?" This brings me to my next point: who can say the slurs. Well, honestly, it's quite simple. People who aren't the same sexuality, race, or identify as the same gender, should not be able to use the slurs that are associated with that community. For example, if you are a straight person, in no way should you ever consider using a homophobic slur. If you are not black, you should never use the racist slur. It's just that simple. If you aren't part of that community, it is not your word, it will never be your word, and you should never, ever, say it. People within those communities don't use those words because they just feel like it. Members of those communities take those words that have been used to degrade them in the past and apply it to themselves for empowerment purposes. They are taking the words that were used to hurt them and making them their own. It's that simple.

I'm going to end this article by saying that the use of any of these slurs is completely and utterly wrong. If you are a person who uses any of these slurs, I beseech you to please think about what you are doing. Is it really worth it to be using these words? Is it really worth using words that have been associated with so much pain and suffering? The answer is, and always will be, no.