Norm Olsen
English 1010
Period 3B
March 26, 2014
Violence and Vehemence Response Paper
The "N" word is one of the most influential and offensive words in American history. It
has been at the forefront of black history, from the slave trade, to the creation of our country, the
civil war, and the civil rights movement. It is a central part of racism in our society. It has been
adopted into several other meanings over the year but still retains it's highly offensive nature.
In his book, “The 'N' Word: Who can say it, Who can’t and Why,” Jabari Asim addresses
those who may use the "N" word in a chapter titled “Violence and Vehemence.” He begins with
the murder and mutilation of Emmett Till, who is described as a “bad nigger.” Then he
introduces the story of four black reporters which came to observe the black integration at
Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, and how they were beaten by a white mob that
referred to them as “niggers,” believing they were the black students entering the school. Asim
continued to introduce similar stories, and demonstrated that by the late 1960’s, the "N" word
was used in place of violence and gained a new level of hatred. Additionally, through the
example of Senator Robert C. Byrd, who used the "N" word in Congress, Asim showed that high
level individuals have also used this word. Finally, Asim covers the history of black interest
groups, such as National Black Family Empowerment Agenda Network, which have sought to
omit the "N" word from the dictionary and verbal use. Although I agree that the "N" word is
highly offensive, I disagree with Asim about deleting the "N" word permanently from our
society, or that by doing so racial problems will end. There will always be problems that the
eradication of a word cannot mend.
Asim wrote this chapter to convince people to stop using the "N" word. His audience,
though perhaps intended for the common public, is limited to educators and students, most of
which through their education realize that racism is wrong and rarely use the N word. The genre
is informative literature, and the writing style is educated but opinionated to the extreme. Using a
personal but educated writing style, with long sentences and fairly comprehensive word choice.
Asim strongly relies on pathos throughout the essay through his telling of various stories.
Asim goes too far by suggesting that the "N" word should be deleted from the dictionary
and speech. He endorses various black special interests groups such as the National Black
Family Empowerment Agenda Network, The National Black Leadership Roundtable, and the
Association of Black Psychologists, which have collaborated together in a quest to eradicate the
"N" word. The intentions of these groups are noble but short sighted. Asim disregards throughout
the entirety of his essay the use of the "N" word in the black community today. In my life the
most prominent use of the "N" word has been in my exposure to underprivileged black
communities, most from black rap artists. For example, arguably one of the most prominent and
influential rap groups in history is titled "Niggas wit Attitude." In accordance with their title
most of NWA’ songs almost always refer to themselves or other black people as the "N" word.
They even refer to a white person as such on occasion. I have grown up with this social norm I
have come to the conclusion, that the "N" word has become a word frequently used, even as
friendly, by a black individual but is never to be used by a white individual because of its greatly
derogatory appeal. Although I dislike the "N" word and do not include in it my own vocabulary,
I believe more harm will come from the destruction of the word. A word is just a avenue to
convey an idea, and it is impossible to eradicate an idea. If an individual has a true distaste for
another individual, their distaste will be deeper than language.
Furthermore, Asim insinuates that by eradicating this word racial problems will be
significantly lower. This ideal is folly, practically any word could substitute the idea of the "N"
word. The N word in its ugliest meaning represents an intense racial hatred towards blacks, as
demonstrated by Asim in the story of the three black activists Andrew Goodman, Mickey
Schwerner, and James Chaney, which were referred to as “nigger lovers” before they died. What
Asim fails to realize is that as long as hatred exists, it will be expressed, so if the "N" word
somehow managed to be removed from use, another word of equal meaning would take its place.
In conclusion, Jabari Asim gave good ideas and examples as to the severity of the word
and it's history. I find that the permanent omitting of the word from daily society will cause more
harm than good. I see the “N” word as a word that only African Americans have the right to use.
As Patrick Henry said, "to know your future, you must first know your past." To forget the past
because one is ashamed of it is how one will repeat it. The “N” word carries a long history with
it, a history that should never be repeated, but never forgotten.