Thursday, October 03, 2013

I AM NOBODY'S NIGGER

I switched on my car radio on my journey through driving rain today and heard a rap, spoken with powerful words by its author, Dean Atta, with a gentle stable rhythm, a rythm which added to its potency. It was one of a variety of poetry forms being broadcast today for National Poetry Day. It is the first time for longer than I can remember that words have had such a powerful affect on me, it made me think, think deep, and remember. 

The rap started with its title,"I Am Nobody's Nigger" and went on to tell a story, old and not so old. I cannot reproduce the rap here in any form that could convey its power and do its story any justice. Instead, I ask that you listen to it yourselves on BBC Radio 4 iplayer from a broadcast at 11.30am today, Thursday 3rd October, 2013.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03brwqv

6 comments:

Vincent said...
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Vincent said...
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Vincent said...

You’re right there, ZACL. I listened to it with great interest. It covered all the angles and revealed an underlying truth.

Nigger has become a highly politicized word, by which I mean it is used to convey advantage, or to capitalize on historic disadvantage.

There is power to be had in convincing the English-speaking world that nigger is a terrible word which should never be uttered because of the connotations it had in America in certain notorious contexts. The horror was huge and comparable with other crimes against a whole race such as the Hitlerian holocaust.

I’m sure it’s the case that behind closed doors or elsewhere in America (or elsewhere) the word is still used to convey hate, contempt and dominance. But who owns a word? Who dictates whether, when and how it can be used?

It has come to be an instrument of power in the hands of black people who retain the right to use it in their own ways: as term of endearment; as a term of defiance (e.g. Darcus Howe & Black Power); as a stick to beat anyone who uses it, or uses it “wrongly”; and finally for commercial marketing purposes, as in the case of Dean Atta & Reginald D Hunter - Dean Atta’s publisher saw the value of having it as the title of a book of poems, Hunter is known to the wider public for little else. The benefit of the publicity is worth more than the occasional banning.

In England the word used to have no sting at all. As children we used to say Eeny meeny miny mo, catch a nigger by his toe all the time and no one thought anything of it.

My wife (K) came from Jamaica in 2005 & is black,. At least I can say that word although fashions change and a word can become offensive and forbidden. Spastic for example was a perfectly acceptable word until used as a playground taunt by children apparently so the Spastics Society had to change its name. But you cannot really erase historical uses of words. Orwell dealt with this in 1984.

A few years ago K was once in a meeting at work. Her boss inadvertently used the expression “nigger in the woodpile” to express some dilemma she was in, till she felt the shock in the room and realized what she had said. She burst into tears, ran from the room and had to be comforted, especially by K. It took a while. Her grief, of course, was not for any offence caused but for the potential consequences to herself, as if she had just set off a landmine. It might have gone on her employment record forever.

I don’t think we should collude in giving mere words such power. We do so by being frightened of them, and accepting that some group which has historically been persecuted (blacks, homosexuals, Jews) may dictate what is or is not offensive language.

The programme aired different views and let us draw our own conclusions. I like the views of Darcus Howe, Christopher Hawse & the Nigerian man. I revere Linton Kwesi Johnson, especially his song “Inglan is a bitch” for its gentle humour. Other voices including that of the essentially innocent Dean Atta (who nevertheless takes advantage like all the others) are more hypocritical.

But like it or not, hypocrisy, like everyday euphemisms and Daily Mail headlines, is part of our national culture: endemic and ineradicable.

Snowbird said...

A really interesting and moving discussion. I personally feel the word has no place in society as it's always open to abuse by some people.xxxx

ZACL said...

Hi Snowbird,

I have thought long and hard about the connotations of words in our society. As some have been coined in abusive situations, they have never changed and are never likely too.I agree with your sentiments, they are not acceptable, they have no place, other than to serve for aggressive and negative purposes.

ZACL said...

Hello Vincent,

I appreciate your thoughts on this subject.

It seems too easy to use the ideas of propaganda and publicity to rationalise what is, after all an underlying disgusting simmer in society, from yesteryear and today. If it is not stopped in its tracks, words, some coined for the purpose, others, developed into it, will continue to be flags for further and future distasteful events.

Whatever means creates awareness of the dangerousness of words, so be it; I see it as useful in tackling what it/they really mean within the general milieu.

Within the 'closed shop', where groups use the argot against themselves, it becomes confusing, the use of such words are then more difficult for an outsider to interpret. However, I believe, when an outsider is using dubious language, the motivations must be examined.

Offensive verbal weapons should have no place to hide, be rationalised or, defended in decent society.