Harmless Words

Dear Black People,

While you're celebrating a teenager getting her life ruined for uttering CENSORED.

I will present you with a choice.

Either it's such a harmful word that it can never be uttered.

OR

The context of its use matters and must be considered before we consider if any harm has been done.

You're already using the latter choice based upon how you speak to each other and letting "musicians" use it extensively in their lyrics.

By ceding that there is a context where the word is harmless, you're admitting that it is not always harmful.

I know you're going to hate this next part, but you're going to have to start listening to how someone meant it rather than how you took it.

Why?

Because that "music" I mentioned earlier?  It's becoming part of everyday American culture.  You are teaching people to use the word on a daily basis in a manner that has nothing to do with race or racism.

When you use it to mean "dude" or "buddy" and that's the only context some young person sees it in, they are not going think anything about using it themselves.

So, either get used to it being used all the time by everyone, or start demanding nobody say it at all, ever.

I think the fact that we have to look so hard for someone to punish for racism as this says that it's rare as hen's teeth.