# Is it possible for a white person to use the n-word and not be a racist? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [April 19, 2011, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919 "2011-04-19T02:31:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![mac\_bolan00](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b3f665/32.png) [@mac\_bolan00](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mac_bolan00)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/161 "2011-06-14T01:10:16Z")
no, and to avoid using it makes him a racist. ---
**Author:** ![What\_the](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f4b2a3/32.png) [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/162 "2011-06-14T12:02:48Z")
> [@you\_with\_the\_face](#): > > To “earn” the title of racist, all you have to do is think one race is better than another race. There’s no requirement that you hate anyone. Define “better” … How about if someone thinks blacks are better at basketball and whites are better at swimming? ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/163 "2011-06-14T17:19:25Z")
> [@What\_the](#): > > Define “better” … > > How about if someone thinks blacks are better at basketball and whites are better at swimming? According to [Webster’s](http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/racism) or any other dictionary that I know of, yeah it’s racist to believe something like this. If someone thinks blacks are better dancers and whites are better thinkers, would you be reluctant to call that racist? What if I said that blacks are more emotional and whites are more rational? Still not racist? “Blacks are better at basketball and whites are better at swimming” may seem like a non-racist sentiment to you because you somehow you think that the two “superiorities” cancel themselves out, leaving both racial groups equal on the totem pole. But this is pure rationalization. Does superior dancing skills cancel out superior thinking skills? No, but the reality is is that this is the wrong question to be asking. If you’re saying that a race is better than another race at X, then you’re holding that race as being superior _to others with respect to X_. That’s all that racism means. ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/164 "2011-06-14T17:52:39Z")
> [@What\_the](#): > > Define “better” … > > How about if someone thinks blacks are better at basketball and whites are better at swimming? The problem with this is basing the difference on racial differences. A particular population seems to gravitate to a particular activity or seems to be “better” at it than other populations, but the reasons for that are usually far more complex that just some sort of physiological difference between them. It could be cultural, it could be situational, it could be combinations of things. To observe that there is a disproportionate number of Blacks in the NBA, for example, is entirely different than extrapolating that to say that Blacks are somehow inherently better at that sport. The observation is a matter of objective fact…there either is a disproportionate number of Blacks, or there isn’t. Attributing that objective fact solely to racial differences is what makes it racist. ---
**Author:** ![mil0](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@mil0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mil0)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/165 "2011-06-14T20:58:13Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > The worst part is that the best guilds have more mature people. In the spirit of SDMB, you got a cite for that? > [@](#): > > The best guilds do not rely on the incredible twitch reflex of 12 year olds. You need discipline and focus. Sure you need reasonably good reflexes for some of the interrupt positions (I haven’t played in a while but crazy cat lady comes to mind), but it was never twitch reflex. You had a good second or two to execute that interrupt. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/166 "2011-06-14T21:40:04Z")
Well said\*\* Sarahfeena\*\*. ---
**Author:** ![Blackhawk441](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/76d3ee/32.png) [@Blackhawk441](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackhawk441)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/167 "2011-06-15T00:55:37Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > So to you “I don’t really think you can be racist without realizing it. Especially in this context.” means you can’t be ideologically racist without realizing it? OK well then in that context i agree with you. But it think you can be an ignorant racist without realizing you are a racist. Which kind do you think is more common? Racism that springs from ideology or racism taht springs from ignorance? Yes, I mean to be ideologically racist. What do you mean by an “ignorant racist”? I would consider all (ideological) racists ignorant. > [@Miller](#): > > The issue here, however, is not a situation where you’re hanging out with a bunch of friends. It’s in a public (if virtual) space - no different from a street corner. There is _a_ gaming culture that feels that these terms are acceptable. It is not, however, _the only_ gaming culture, far less the only culture that you’ll encounter in an online game. The video game market is huge, and getting huger. Not everyone you encounter in a game is going to be part of your teenage/college age Dane Cook brat pack. Not even _most_ people, particularly in a game with as broad appeal as World of _Warcraft._ > > If you want to set up a private server where you and a dozen or so of your white, straight friends can sit around and scream “nigger” and “faggot” at each other while playing _Counter Strike_, go nuts. But when you start doing that in a public arena (like, say, the most successful massively multiplayer game of all time), then don’t be surprised when people start mistaking you for a racist asshole, because that’s precisely what you’re acting like. 1. I never said I act like that. I do, however, interact with people like that. 2. It is the _dominant_ gaming culture. May be losing ground these days, with more and more people playing games, but I would not go into a public server and expect any better. If you would like to interact in a more civilized gaming environment, I would try to find a clan that is more of a culture you find acceptable. ---
**Author:** ![What\_the](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f4b2a3/32.png) [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/168 "2011-06-15T11:48:26Z")
> [@Sarahfeena](#): > > The problem with this is basing the difference on racial differences. A particular population seems to gravitate to a particular activity or seems to be “better” at it than other populations, but the reasons for that are usually far more complex that just some sort of physiological difference between them. It could be cultural, it could be situational, it could be combinations of things. To observe that there is a disproportionate number of Blacks in the NBA, for example, is entirely different than extrapolating that to say that Blacks are somehow inherently better at that sport. The observation is a matter of objective fact…there either is a disproportionate number of Blacks, or there isn’t. Attributing that objective fact solely to racial differences is what makes it racist. That’s a very long definition of “better” … I stand by the objective truth of those two statements and didn’t mean to suggest that one was required to cancel the other out. ---
**Author:** ![rockn\_roller](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/fbc32d/32.png) [@rockn\_roller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rockn_roller)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/169 "2013-06-03T23:42:28Z")
It’s all about the context. Words on their own aren’t fundamentally good or bad, it’s how they’re used. For instance, the British (white) rock musician Elivs Costello used the word in his song “Oliver’s Army” whose message was a condemnation of racism. Similarly, Abraham Joshua Heschel, the rabbi most famous for his collaboration with Martin Luther King in the civil rights movement, claimed that the first word he heard upon emigrating to America was “nigger” to point out his sense of obligation to support his efforts. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/170 "2013-06-03T23:51:09Z")
According to my black boyfriend, it is possible, and he has white friends who use it the same way black people do with each other, around black friends, without getting their asses kicked. I have not personally witnessed this, nor do I wish to experiment. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/171 "2013-06-03T23:59:17Z")
This thread is nearly two years old. Why was this bumped? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/172 "2013-06-04T01:13:22Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > This thread is nearly two years old. Why was this bumped? I’m tempted to say rockn’roller must be on Colored People’s Time, but that might seem, y’know… racist. ---
**Author:** ![2sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/e47774/32.png) [@2sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2sense)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/173 "2013-06-04T07:57:45Z")
That is just wrong, **Bryan Ekers**! Like Leroy Jenkins wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 8:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/174 "2013-06-04T08:39:38Z")
> [@Rachellelogram](#): > > Is there a way that a white kid can use the n-word–directed at another white kid–without being racist? Since the thread has been resurrected, I can give an answer. Nigg is an outer area of Aberdeen. Its residents, can, of course, be called “Niggers”. But we don’t. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/175 "2013-06-04T17:16:36Z")
> [@What\_the](#): > > Define “better” … > > How about if someone thinks blacks are better at basketball and whites are better at swimming? Black people from Brasil aren’t any good at Basketball, neither are black people from Cuba or black people from Kenya. They are good at soccer, baseball and running, because that is what their CULTURES are into. Basketball is an urban sport, it requires very little equipment and is played on a hard surface, that is why African Americans are good at it. It has zero to do with the amount of pigmentation on their skin. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/176 "2013-06-04T17:25:53Z")
Wait, what? African-Americans are better at things involving hard surfaces? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/177 "2013-06-04T17:31:21Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Wait, what? African-Americans are better at things involving hard surfaces? 😕 Yes, they all live in the urban jungle where softness is illegal. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2013, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/178 "2013-06-04T17:36:13Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Wait, what? African-Americans are better at things involving hard surfaces? 😕 The more urban ones yes. ---
**Author:** ![AlmostPerfect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/74df32/32.png) [@AlmostPerfect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlmostPerfect)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2013, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/179 "2013-06-12T20:10:03Z")
As a black male, early 20’s. I think yes it is possible. My friends, of all races, throw the word around and nothing bad has ever happened to them. They are not racists, they do not think any less or differently of any other race. We are quite a multicultural group, if it matters. We are all (fairly) intelligent, and go to the big public university in the area. I do think it could be dangerous to use the word around someone who takes it the wrong way, but I myself could never construe what they say as racist. “Nigga”, it’s a term of endearment. It is just a word. A friendly word, actually. Our culture (upper middle class multicultural) uses it frequently. It’s literally used in the same context as “bro” or “dude”. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2013, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919/180 "2013-06-12T20:34:58Z")
If I am confronted by a blackman in a particularly threatening manner I will use the N word in a very hostile tone to let them know I have no fear and make them think I would welcome a confrontation. I would never use it in any other situation I can think of. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-for-a-white-person-to-use-the-n-word-and-not-be-a-racist/578919.md?page=10)