Keep ‘N’ Alive: How Alvin Kamara May Have Sparked a Revolution in Free Speech

Can we finally put to rest the idea that only Foundational Black Americans (FBA) may use the word rhyming with trigger and beginning with ‘N’? There’s a whole host of other names to call melanated members of society with coily hair, broad noses, and plump lips.

Whether fair skinned or dark as night, blacks have been told that it is up to them to bar (most) outsiders from writing or speaking the word. Hispanics, especially Puerto Ricans, have been given a pass mostly because of their origins as Taeno slaves centuries ago.

Yet for some reason yellow, white, and red people fall short of the mark that “rewards” the ability to make them to utter and draw the moniker.

If we look at the history of the term, it t was derived from Niger by whites and related to the word negro meaning black. The best way to consider the thought of how something neutral can become toxic in most people’s lives is the fact that it is tied to everything from slavery to Jim Crow South.

Often people will argue with you about how the word is usually the last thing someone hears before being lynched. That should not be glossed over. For someone to be beaten, stabbed, shot, castrated, hanged and then set ablaze to have the word spoken over them is atrocious, of course.

But those days are largely over. There are high profile cases that draw the attention of media outlets the world over. Going with the idea that Days of Hate as outlined by Troi “Star” Torain detail the ugliness of racism perpetrated against blacks in America.

The name ought to be used by everyone from the young crawling to the oldest hobbling.

NFL Running back for the Saints Alvin Kamara encountered a white fan who called him the word in a gesture of goodwill and sportsmanship. Nevertheless, Kamara exposed the young man. He posted the Instagram exchange. Why is this even an issue in the land of Freedom of Speech?

Kamara even cruised past the idea that the young man used the ‘a’ at the end of the word instead of the hard ‘er.’” The young man encountered the wrath of Internet cretins and thoughtful individuals alike.

The word is not the same totally and reflects a different context and idealism of the image of Mohammad but there exist parallels. With the image of the prophet, one can be put to death for drawing, acting, painting, or in recent years drawing comics of Him.

With n—- there is the same sentiment if not the overall brutality. Men, women, and children have been butchered for expressing the image of Mohammad. N—- usually connotes a fisticuffs and little more punishment than that except for a few instances.

For Kamara to expose him with restraint and his control and not threatening the fanatic’s well-being shows that he is at least mature. He had enough power of mind to recognize the difference between saying something and actually doing or suggesting it with ill-will.

Once it was shown that the young man claims he doesn’t use it in his “vocabulary” and Kamara posted their digital, verbal spat it was still over for him no matter what.

The n— word should be part of everyday speech. It should be part of everyday speech. Newscasters and professors should be able to discuss the word over and over throughout news cycles and lecture halls. Teachers should be appreciated for saying n—-.

If hip hop is the dominant genre around the world and the music is saturated with the word, doesn’t it stand to reason that little white kids are knowing note for note when the word occurs in song? Let us not be so naive to think people of all skin tones, facial features, eye and hair color use the word.

Let’s not bury the word but recognize the desperate need for a proper philosophy to guide us to clarity and comprehension.