We Are Holding Ourselves in Bondage

After I had a heated debated with my very intelligent brother, Kevin Edwards, I had to sit down to write this scathing column about Damon Wayans and his sad attempt to trademark the term “Nigga” for his proposed clothing line and retail store.

Incredibly, Wayans and a whole lot of other people of color – like my brother – see absolutely nothing wrong with promoting the use of a degrading racial slur that has been used as a verbal weapon against blacks for centuries.

I, however, see this subject through the eyes of someone much older – someone, like, Wayans’ father or grandfather possibly, who, I am fairly certain, had to battle racism and the “N” word on an almost daily basis when they were both young men. Which, coincidentally, makes me wonder how Wayan’s family members feel about the subject.

At any rate, let me make my argument against Wayans and his supporters.

Now, when I initially broached the subject with my brother, he was totally unaware of the ongoing saga and the national media attention it is garnering. However, he quickly rose to Wayans’ defense by saying things like, “We have other more important issues to worry about” and “Maybe he has another purpose for all of this.” As a matter of fact, one of my brother’s comments became the basis and headline for this article.

Incredibly, I couldn’t – and still can’t – fathom where this line of thinking could originate. I agree with my brother’s comment on the fact that African-Americans have a lot more important issues to deal with, but realistically, this exact thought process – combined with a lot of other factors – is at the very core of what is ailing African-Americans across the country.

How can our young people – who use this word so freely these day – and really don’t care about how it was used to degrade their ancestors – ever understand where they are going if they never take the time to research their past?