Why is it ethically wrong to call yourself or someone n-e-g-r-o?

Question

Of course there is the other derivative which is purely offensive. However n-e-g-r-o would be a direct representation and honor of our ancestors taken over from Nigeria! While it is good to discourage offensive words it is equally got silly where we cannot express what we really are. We have to talk like we are all CLONES now! Its great we are all so different, diversity is the great gift of being human! That is what makes the U.S and U.K so great, centers of innovation, culture, education, excellence! By capping certain words in fact we often remove the essence of ethnic acceptance. Agree?

Answer 1

I would have to say the reason is because of society. Just like the term ***** which once was used only for a female dog, now is a derogatory name for a women. And also g*y which once meant happy. As society progresses people change the meaning of words, life and everything. ***** to you may mean honor, but to others it is a thing of race, and traced back to slavery, when white males and females called slaves racist words such as ****** and Nergo. The word just like many has different meanings, but it is about which way it was used most. People always refer to the negative opposed to the positive.

I agree that you and other should be able to use it honorably, but it is society who has made it wrong.

Answer 2

I just can't resist starting my answer to your question with a question of my own.  Do you consider yourself to be a n-e-g-r-o? (And congratulations for being able to circumvent the automatic bleeping [*****] done by Yahoo! Answers of the officially spelled racial noun for the noble race of the people native to Africa, as found in World-wide publications of Encyclopedias and Dictionaries. -- It's RIDICULOUS!)

Yes, my black friend, I agree with you wholeheartedly that for a civil peoples to bend over so far backwards in fear of "offending" some special group of citizens who might actually be OFFENDED by the special attention it is *NOT GOOD*!

Answer 3

I agree. At one point in time I seriously thought about naming my son's middle name N-e-g-r-o, but only it would be prenounced like it is in Spanish with the pronounced "e" and the rolling "r". Why, because I am proud of my African 'American heritage and I personally don't see anything wrong with it. But unfortunately, others will depict it as "racially offensive" becuase of how the term was abused for derogtory means down throughout the centuries. And just think of the grief it would cause him at school!

Answer 4

n-e-g-r-o means the color black in Spanish. So no, not for me. I'm allowed to say 'el perro es n-e-g-r-o'. (the dog is black.)

What else I'm a gonna use to describe it?

Answer 5

Actually, The identifying noun that is used colloquially, to define members of our global population is totally superficial.  What I've never understood is why children that are the product of mixed cultures are identified as the lesser of the two parents.  My take on language is that there are many definitions that exist in ALL ethnic, and cultural situations.  Labels are used as a tool that provides positive, and negative concepts of less "sophisticated" members of our global population.Ya know, My experiences have demonstrated to me, the need for everyone to be accepted as a contributing member of global population.  That's what it's all about anyway.  So, no I do not agree with your premise.  First of all, it is important to understand that nature wastes nothing.  No one is better than anyone else.  I understand that there is a "pecking" order, that is comprised of "successes".  Sigh.

The conundrum to me is how success is defined. Currently, it is being defined by income, prestige, and values that reinforce capitilism, and profit making.  While not being selfless,  my profession requires sensitive perception.  I do admit to having a few prejudices.  I'm prejudiced against prejudice. It is such a waste of energy. However, I accept the concept that we are all equal. My suggestion  is for folks to leave their ego at the door.  Comprende vous?

Answer 6

I don't think it is ETHICALLY wrong to call yourself or someone n-e-g-r-o.  The term is archaic and technically neutral.  The problem, at least in the United States, is the historical baggage that comes with the word.

In one sense, I believe the use of the word should follow similar rules applicable to nicknames.  You may choose a nickname for yourself and refer to yourself by that name, no matter what other people think of that name.  Others may or may not feel comfortable calling you by that nickname.  It would be rude, however, to insist on calling someone else by a nickname if you know, or have good reason to believe, that the other person may not want to be addressed by that nickname -- even if the nickname itself is technically neutral.

For example, my first name is Barbara.  I prefer to be called Barbara, and not any dimunitive forms of the name, such as Babs, Barbie, Barb, and etc.  I am particularly sensitive to being called Barb, because that was the name of an old roommate (of three years) and mother-figure, with whom I had lost touch and who died of cancer without my having the chance to say goodbye.  When someone calls me Barb, it often makes me feel sad, guilty, and etc.  Is there anything wrong with the nickname?  No.  Do most people who call me by that name know how I feel about it?  No, at least not until I ask them not to call me by that name.  Are they MORALLY wrong in calling me that after I tell them not to call me by that name because it hurts me?  Yes.