Absolutely not. Someone might say “The guy with the dreads” but more likely “The guy with the blue shirt” or “The short one”, or (most likely, in a auto-related industry) "the Civic’, sure. And though I worked several (around ten-15 years) on the gory front lines of public service and encountered people of every race and nationality, I’ve never ever had someone accuse me of discrimination by race, nor hassled me by mine. But have been in several tense situations where it would’ve been easy (for both parties) to take a racial jab at someone, and it didn’t occur.
I DO remember once when I went through a marathon interviewing session of several applicants at a theater where I worked and I singled out several people who looked promising to the mgr. For one of them I ranked especially highly he said “Oh, was that the black guy?” And I blinked and said “I honestly don’t remember.” (true) And he said, “Oh! Very good! You’re colorblind!'” I really didn’t know how to take that.
Just so you know I’m not trying to paint myself as a saint or something, there were two Asian guys of the same age who worked there who I literally could not tell apart at first. After a week or so they were 100% recognizable and blatantly different, and I felt like a fool for even confusing them. That really really surprised me.
I answered fifty percent, but it’s a rough fifty. Among my family and friends, maybe a quarter of them pointedly censor themselves around me; that is quite a few of them freely us the word but don’t want the hassle I’ll give them so instead they’ll pointedly exaggerate African-American.
I work in a blue collar industry and most of the men there freely use the term, black or white. And of course many of the non-black men saying it are quick to point out that if black people can use it, so can they, otherwise it’s racist to discriminate against them, yadda yadda. :rolleyes:
I voted “none”, and honestly I don’t know any. My FIL does have a tendency to use the word “darkies” but from context and tone I think he does it to wind us up. Certainly I’ve never seen him be anything but fair to individuals of any race.
Really funny story… About three years ago I ended up having to arrest this white guy… he was running half naked across the street drunk. I talked to the guy like twice… (he had just got back from a skynryd concert and was stunned that i knew them or their songs) The Third time he’s out in the middle of the roadway raising hell i had to run his ass in…
So he’s raising hell in the back of the squad going the hell off… it was really quite funny.
We get to court months and months later… he’s dressed like sunday school and starts insinuating that i had it in for him or something. This is a pissant county disorderly conduct charge and we start acting like this shit is Leopold and Loeb. So he turns to me and asks me “Officer why didn’t you try and help me that night?” I answered. Well sir about the fourth time you called me a “Nigger bastard” I felt that no positive conversation could really occur.
He quickly pled guilty. The judge let him have it… FUnny FUNNY FUNNY…
Another “don’t know anyone like that” vote; or at least if they do they don’t do it where I can hear it.
I’m male, I voted.
Human nature. The facial recognition system of your brain over the years has learned to recognize faces by ignoring facial features that don’t vary much between individuals, while paying attention to the parts of the face that do tend to differ between individuals. When you run into an ethnic group that has a distinctive look different than what you are used to, until it retrains itself your facial recognition system may end up doing the opposite of what it is supposed to be doing; paying attention to parts of the face that don’t vary much among individuals of that group, while ignoring the parts that do. Thereby producing the “they all look alike” effect, since it is only paying attention to the parts that are alike.
Me too. Outside of the occasional classroom-type discussion, I’m not sure I’ve ever heard it used IRL. Maybe by a couple of rapper-wannabes in the 90’s?
I can quite clearly remember knowing (from other kids) by about 1st grade that to be prejudiced was the worst thing possible.
Shitloads. I chose 40%. I hear it used plenty as a pointed racial slur, but also by younger white/Asian/etc guys with black friends who listen to hip hop and feel comfortable using it as slang, often in a friendly way. I live right outside Philadelphia, so there are lots of black people in the immediate area and lots of non-black people talking about them. And most people I know in this immediate area (most especially the significant Korean and Guatemalan immigrant populations) are racist towards black people, whether or not they use racial slurs. Many are thankfully PC, but still say things I consider inappropriately racist.
I’m black and not quite 30 and have only heard a handful of people use it as a slur. The occasional person will attempt to test me and use it casually but they only get that first one out before I let them know that it will not be a habit around me. However, that hasn’t happened since college.
Interestingly enough, this has been the first year since I was a kid that I haven’t heard a non-black say “nigger” and it’s the only year of my life that I have lived in the south. Having been raised in New Jersey, folks my age seemed to have the misconception that people dropped n-bombs constantly down here.
I live in the South but I’ve never heard it used as a slur in casual (or formal!) conversation. I guess I just hang out with the right people. Those of you who hear it more often should re-consider your acquaintances, maybe :).
I would say about half and almost always in anger. And more than half of that 50% have used it to refer to another white person. It seems to be one of those “cuss words” that just comes out when someone gets angry enough.
I’m not sure if I would vote 10% or “none.” When I was younger, some friends and I told a few racist jokes amongst ourselves, which featured that ugly word; but we would NEVER in a million years think to refer to a black person as a “nigger” in casual conversation (as in, “look at that nigger over there”) or, even worse, directly to a black person. We would use “black” or “african american” for that purpose. Born and raised in California, for what it’s worth.
