Was President Obama justified in used the N-Word?
President Obama used the actual N-Word in an interview with Marc Maran. Was that appropriate? Following is the context in which it was used,
“Racism, we are not cured of it,” said President Obama. “And it’s not just a matter of it not being polite to say nigger in public. That’s not the measure of whether racism still exists or not. It’s not just a matter of overt discrimination. Societies don’t, overnight, completely erase everything that happened 200 to 300 years prior.”
It is rather telling that most of the discussion on the network programs is whether the president should be using the n-word and less about what he is saying. Making the use of the word impolite is just a facade. If systemic results of the lack of equality is not actually resolved, a cosmetic change is immaterial. This is a discussion one hoped President Obama would have had immediately after his reelection. It is understood that because of the shallowness of our media he would not deal with the issue more graphically in his first term lest it stalled all his important policies. There is no reason why he would not have done this much earlier in his second term.
Some have complained that the President was conflating gun control with racial hatred. They wanted him to address it head on. It seems like he has gotten the message. Better late than never.
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