Kane: Revenge of the N-word

Eugene Kane, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's go-to guy on all things racial, wants to bury the N-word, once and for all.

Kane writes:

It seems, even after Michael Richards and Don Imus, some people just don't learn.

Soon after the disclosure that Rick Gale, president of the Professional Fire Fighters of Wisconsin, used the N-word to describe president-elect Barack Obama during a private conversation on election night, he resigned under pressure from not only his position but a pair of other prestigious board memberships.

...Almost overnight, the career of a longtime Democratic ally of Gov. Jim Doyle blew up in his face due to a single careless moment. Ironically, it appears Gale lent his support to the Obama-Biden presidential bid by his appearance with the VP-elect during a campaign appearance in Wisconsin.

This is a case of the N-word rearing its ugly head once again.

I thought we were done with this after the 2006 flap over comedian Richards of "Seinfeld" fame, who used the N-word repeatedly during a comedy show in California to mostly negative reviews. That incident essentially sent Richards' career into a tailspin - what exactly is he doing these days? It was followed one year later by the backlash radio talk show host Imus experienced after using racial slurs to describe the black female basketball players on Rutgers University.

Considering all that, it seemed reasonable to expect most white males could appreciate the wisdom of not using such derogatory language toward black people at the risk of their careers.

Yup. That one word can end a career when uttered by the wrong person. Pretty powerful.

As Kane acknowledges, who says the N-word is an important factor. He parenthetically notes, "black rappers and comedians are excluded from penalty."

Old, white, ex-Klansmen are also immune. I'm referring to the honorable Robert Byrd, DEMOCRAT.

Michelle Malkin writes:

The ex-Klansman showed his true colors when asked by Fox News Sunday morning talk show host Tony Snow about the state of race relations in America. Sen. Byrd warned: "There are white niggers. I've seen a lot of white niggers in my time. I'm going to use that word. We just need to work together to make our country a better country, and I'd just as soon quit talking about it so much."

The ex-Klansman, famed for Beltway blowhardism, should have quit talking a lot sooner. Why any prominent politician in his right mind would publicly and deliberately use the poisonous epithet "nigger" -- which most daily newspapers refuse to spell out, no matter the context -- is beyond comprehension.

Note that Byrd used the term "white niggers" during the television interview in 2001, hardly ancient history. He wasn't booted out of the Senate. He has the same immunity as black rappers and comedians. Quiet an honor I guess.

Back to Kane--

...I'm not naïve enough to think many people don't make offensive racial comments in private if they feel confident they won't get challenged. African-Americans do it just like everyone else. The difference - and it's a BIG one - is there is no comparable word for white people that has the same dehumanizing effect.

Some of you might disagree and offer up candidates. Sorry; historically, there is simply no comparison.

I disagree.

Believe it or not, historically, there have been oppressed people with white skin and they've been referred to by comparably demeaning words. They have been dehumanized. They have been treated as worse than property. They've been exterminated, not worthy to live by virtue of their religion or ethnicity or physical or mental condition.

The BIG difference falls in the ears of the beholder of a given word.

...Gale was a politically connected guy; he was a union head but also a member of the Wisconsin State Fair Park board and the Wisconsin Retirement Board. Politics - or rather, political correctness - may have played a part in how swiftly he was punished for the slip of the tongue, but it also spotlighted the need for a new sensitivity in dealing with the first African-American president of the United States.

Whether you supported him or not, Obama represents the first black authority figure many white Americans have ever had; it's a whole new ballgame in many respects. For some people, it's obviously going to take time to get used to the new rules.

But I suspect they will. Frankly, they don't have any other choice.

That sounds rather threatening, doesn't it?

Kane says with the election of Obama as the president of the United States, there are new rules. It's a whole new ballgame. One risks severe consequences if one says the N-word under these new rules.

First, I want to be clear that I NEVER use that word. It's terribly hurtful and demeaning. It's not in my vocabulary. I don't say it in public or in private. Obama's election has nothing to do with that.

However, when it comes to the virtual banning of the word, as Kane demands under the new Obama world order, (exempting black rappers and comedians and ex-KKK member Robert Byrd, of course), shouldn't liberals have a problem with that?

The Constitution still protects free speech, including speech as extremely offensive as the N-word.

There's no new rule.

Kane has to get used to that. He doesn't have any other choice.