In a picture that has gone viral on social media outlets, many are proclaiming that the notion of a post-racial America is just an excuse for some people to say, do, and in this instance, wear whatever they want without any recourse.
A picture has surfaced of a young white woman wearing an “I Love My N*gga” t-shirt while standing next to a young African-American male. The names of the aforementioned people are not circulating with the image, but the image does raise startling questions as to why anyone would be ok with anyone wearing a t-shirt of that nature.
It is not uncommon to pull up into a high school parking lot and hear young white people mouthing along to the lyrics of popular, uncensored hip-hop songs and in turn, using the same verbiage as their favorite stars, including the infamous “N-word.” This is not to defend their behavior, but to acknowledge that in some segments of our society, it has become a normative term used by people from various racial backgrounds.
Perhaps some youth have become so inundated with the term that they are now comfortable using it, and in this case wearing it, without understanding the historical implications of the word.
Just as one must pause and ask what was this young lady thinking, it is equally necessary to inquire as to why the young man would pose so casually with someone wearing such a vile shirt?
As much as some would try to defend the idea that the ending of the word, whether it is “gga” or “er”, somehow dilutes its power, the connotation is still the same. When is the last time that you saw a Japanese-American bragging about internment camps or a Jewish-American proudly displaying a swastika?
Even in the land of the free, where censorship is vilified and freedom of speech is upheld, common sense should tell us that some things are just nonsensical.
Source: Your Black World
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