Grantgrantmagazine.com MagazineMarch 2016

Let’s talk about TheThe nn wordword a special report vw

In the issue... Editors-in-Chief 18 Eliza Kamerling-Brown March 2016 Molly Metz Blu Midyett Bella Rideau Lael Tate Chapter I: Recent incidents involving the N-word at Grant By Lael Tate, Molly Metz and Sophie Hauth 6 The Spark High School pushed administrators to take Online Editor action. Will upcoming plans for a schoolwide Sawyer Montgomery discussion help tackle issues around race? Design Editor Sarah Hamilton

Photo Editor By Blu Midyett and Molly Metz Chapter II: To understand the meaning of the N-word, you Cassius Pettit 9 Turning Back have to know its history. Then you have to be ready to listen when the discussion starts. Copy Editors the Pages Sophie Hauth Tess Waxman

Photo by Cassius Pettit Adviser By Sophie Hauth Photo story: Rahsaan Islam recalls how a group of white people chased him, David Austin Time with: The district’s assistant director of equity shouting the N-word at him and his friends. Others recount their experiences with 16 Cynthia MacLeod development graduated from Grant High School the word and how it shaped their lives. in 1969. She talks about her experience with the N-word, how it’s used today and the future of A word from the adviser: Why we’re taking on this issue Contact us race in the schools. My introduction to the word “nigger” was swift, painful and left an indelible imprint on my psyche. It When Legends Civil rights activist and former U.N. Ambassador By Eliza Kamerling-Brown happened more than 40 years ago on a walk home from Grant Magazine 17 Speak Andrew Young talks to Grant Magazine about elementary school with my older brother. He was ahead 2245 NE 36th Ave. his view on the N-word. of me on the sidewalk and any attempt at getting him to Portland, Ore. 97212 ease his pace wasn’t working. “Slow down, nigger,” I (503) 916-5160 said. He dropped his backpack, wheeled around and threw An Enduring Whether in a dark alley, walking in the school By Cassius Pettit, me to the ground. Then he was on me, his knees pinning hallways or playing a video game, several Grant Eliza Kamerling-Brown my arms to the ground. He punched me hard in the face 18 Impact and Finn Hawley-Blue grantmagazine.com community members recount times they’ve David Austin five times, drawing blood. With each strike he shouted, heard the racist slur. “Do you know what that word means?” When I got up, his eyes were red with rage, his fists still clenched. “Go ahead and tell mom what you called me,” he said, seething. I never said a word to my mother and I never said the word again. [email protected] Chapter III: Today, the N-word is commonplace in music, By Lael Tate, Bella Rideau Ask an older black person to recall the first time they heard the N-word and, invariably, and Eliza Kamerling-Brown 23 Then and Now movies and popular culture. Some say the they’ll step back and tell a story that is equal parts anger and pain. Growing up during an hateful power of the word has been defused. era when African Americans were attacked by police dogs and beaten by Southern sheriff’s Others still feel the sting of its past. deputies, it’s hard for me to believe that the use of the word has changed so much. Today, that history has given way to a culture that embraces the use of the word through facebook.com/GrantMagazine music, movies and social media. At Grant Magazine, we’ve spent nearly a year talking about how to tackle this incendiary Never said the N-word? Experts say there By Bella Rideau, Lael Tate Chapter IV: word. It’s heard in the halls every day. People of all races say it with such regularity that are plenty of coded terms that carry the same and Eliza Kamerling-Brown 28 Words in you’d think its meaning has been neutralized over time. But it remains one of the most weight. @grantmag Disguise racist, harmful and disparaging words in the English language. In an editorial in this issue, we take a stance against using the N-word. But you’ll read the word within the pages you hold. The magazine’s staff felt that in order to start a much- needed discussion about the word and its impact, people needed to see it, hear it and feel its Chapter V: The author’s childhood and his experience with By Blu Midyett power in order to understand. It’s not our intent to imply that it’s OK to use now because @grant_magazine 31 Afterthoughts the word have shaped his outlook on what it it’s printed here. means to him and his relationships. In this special report, you’ll read about how a series of racist incidents pushed the school to face the issue of race head on. Change, the school’s administrators say, is necessary, Editorial Policy and we’ll see if they can deliver on that promise. It’s a tough issue to cover, but we felt We encourage the community to participate compelled to shed light on it for you, our readers. We simply ask that you read with an open in our publication. Grant Magazine accepts mind and let us know what you think. guest editorials, letters to the editors and corrections. Please include your name and contact information with any submissions. To see a video report on this issue, go to grantmagazine.com/thewordvideo

2 Grant Magazine March 2016 3 Editorial In Perspective Commit to an Ongoing Dialogue about Race What does the Grant community think about the use of the N-word? The Grant High School community must change its approach to addressing racism or progress will stall indefinitely By Bella Rideau, Dylan Palmer and Joshua Webb

ast year, when seven white Grant obligatory nod in the core curriculum. High School freshman boys posted Because of this, we want to see a Lracist and misogynistic photos commitment from the administration to and comments to Instagram, amongst the unsubscribe from the majority culture that degrading remarks were “nigger” and occupies classrooms and the hallways. We “nigga.” Fast forward to early November, want to see teachers facilitate effective “I don’t use it myself. But I “I’ve never had a lesson on that “I feel like it’s definitely fair “A lot of people say it because when the Grant varsity boys soccer team conversations so it no longer takes five don’t think it’s my place to word but people need to know the to use in quotes. I definitely music has been a big influence came under fire for comments players months to plan for a 90-minute discussion. police how other black people history behind it. It’s the history use it if I’m ever quoting on...today’s views on things. made using the racial epithet. The N-word is used every day by use it. For some, it’s a term of behind slavery and systematic something. I don’t really let it So a lot of people use it You’d be very wrong if you assumed people of all different backgrounds with recognition. I don’t think non- oppression. It’s not a word that get in the way of me enjoying because it’s in songs they like. these events were isolated or rare. They both friendly and hateful intentions. This black people should use the I would ever let my children a song. So if I’m in the car I know how much it can offend speak to a greater disconnect at the school issue of Grant Magazine extends beyond word, and I don’t think that use…I do feel a certain amount singing to myself and it’s in people. I just choose not to that the administration has yet to confront, the discussion of the N-word, in all its should be at all conditional.” of discomfort when I hear it.” the song, I’ll say it.” use it.” though they have plans to. Grant’s equity uses. To us, it’s about much more than – Sidney Jones, 17, junior – Don Gavitte, 47, social – Collin De Kalb, 18, senior – Kaia Robbins, 14, team is trying to figure out how to start a the word. studies teacher freshman meaningful discussion on race. But the students out of a total of 396. And the As students, we tend to take words process is being far too drawn out. population of students of color has been lightly. We throw around curse words that, A number of things have come up as dropping steadily over the years. as children, we were shamed from saying obstacles for the start of these discussions, Those figures make discussions difficult. by our parents. The N-word does not fall mainly planning snags and the lack of But they also show the gaping hole we are into this category. In fact, the N-word really a timeline. Right now, the talks are set dealing with at Grant when it comes to race. doesn’t fall into any category. for mid-March instead of the initial How can we have honest conversations Collectively, as a staff, we don’t see a January date. This delay speaks to Grant’s when the numbers are so skewed? place for using the word in today’s society. normalized culture of racial ignorance. In the past when issues of race came up, We’ve done our reporting for this issue, It’s disturbing, the number of hurdles that the administration appeared to avoid the talking with students, staff and a host of topic, citing confidentiality around student “Everywhere I go I’m hearing “People say it as a joke…but it “I feel like most people are “A lot of people have a lot of continue to get in the way of understanding experts. But before we got that far, we discipline. Yet, when kids rampantly use this word from a lot of African- has a lot more meaning behind uncomfortable like even talking feelings about language and…I the role race plays in our everyday lives had to do our own research. How could the N-word in the halls and in classrooms, American kids and it’s not it. I really don’t care what about it, not even saying definitely am a part of a minority – namely, the fear that is associated with we speak authoritatively on a subject so you can hear the crickets chirping right...I feel like it means ethnicity or race you are. I just the word. But it’s a part of culture that has reclaimed hate talking about it. complicated without understanding its when it comes to the school’s collective ignorance. When someone is feel like it shouldn’t be used at everyone’s history and I feel words. I can definitely understand Our school’s staff is not equipped to power ourselves? reaction. saying it, they are referring to all…I’ll catch somebody and like we should talk about it. It’s the power of that. I think it’s moderate conversations on race because In our interviews, we’ve recognized We’re not suggesting focusing all our a black person no matter what. I’ll just be like ‘Slow down,’ like kind of like this taboo word that interesting and important to in the past, they haven’t been held certain trends. There are non-black people attention on one word that has a history of No matter if it’s ending with an obviously there’s other words isn’t talked about in general.” recognize and see where people accountable. This prompted Grant’s equity who avoid the word at all costs. In fact, racism buried within its core. What we are ‘A’ or ending with an ‘ER.’” you could use.” – Natalya Peterson, 15, feel discomfort and why.” team, in tandem with a select group of many Grant teachers find themselves in saying is that we need to talk more about – Domo Branch, 15, – Marcus Johnson, 17, junior freshman – Mykhiel Deych, 37, students who have been meeting weekly, this category. Then there are the non-black everything associated with the word. This sophomore English teacher to seek outside resources to help with the people who find it appropriate to use the upcoming schoolwide race talks. means starting those conversations early on word in both a derogatory way and what We respect that the administration is and then providing resources and platforms we consider to be superficial. pulling in outside personnel because if the for students of all backgrounds to recognize Within the black community, it gets school is going to do this, do it right. It’s one another’s histories. more complicated. Some make a case for heartening that thought and consideration A glaring example is that we have only reclamation of the word in an attempt at are being put into the discussions, but the two culturally-specific classes, Living in diluting the historic weight through its use. process sheds light on some of Grant’s the U.S. and African-American Literature, Others recognize that the word’s history is lesser known issues that contribute to the at Grant. That’s not nearly enough too vast and painful to divorce. social segregation – and inherent isolation to shed light on the multicultural There are arguments for each of these – we’ve seen on campus. perspective. outlooks, less so for the non-black people “I feel like the media really “To have the N-word just be “It’s fine for people of color to “It’s not a big deal. It’s in Among the chief issues is Grant’s The demographics in those classes are who think it is OK to use the word portrays...using the N-word as loosely thrown around by young use, but not white people. Like, the past, I guess. Like, a new staggering under-representation of considered anomalies when you look at regardless of intention. And not everyone something that’s...OK, no matter people...I don’t think they fully we created it, and we created it generation, so (we’ve got to) minorities when it comes to the adults at the whole of Grant High School. In these falls into these groupings definitively. what race you are. With a lot of understand what they’re saying. with that like horrible meaning set new rules. You don’t need our school. With 125 members on staff, courses, minority students make up the But our staff does: the history and the Internet stars kind of doing it, I They don’t get it. They don’t get to it. I think that white people to bring it forward.” nine are black, and only one of those is a majority. Part of this lies in the concept impact are too great to ignore. Beyond that, think that makes people think it’s the people who lived through it.” just don’t have that privilege – Asher Antoine, 16, teacher. And there are very few other non- that these classes are really the only how can a word be reclaimed if its history is OK.” – Richard Meadows, 52, because of its origins.” sophomore white teachers. two that recognize black history and the not understood? And how can its history be – Lucie Carmin, 15, sophomore language arts teacher – Cora Rios, 18, senior This year’s freshman class has 36 black multicultural narrative, rather than just an understood if there are no conversations? ◊ 4 Grant Magazine March 2016 5 I. The Spark A series of incidents involving students’ use of the N-word pushes Grant High School to a crossroads. By Lael Tate, Molly Metz and Sophie Hauth

efore and after school and in between classes, Grant High Many students of all ethnic backgrounds say the word freely, School’s center hall has always been abuzz with students excusing its use because of its representation in music and popular Bmeeting up with friends before rushing off to beat the culture. Others say they’re taking back the word through an next bell. What stands out, though, isn’t the routine clustering of attempt at reclamation. Getting a grasp on the word’s acceptance students, but rather the casual use of the N-word. in high school is tough. It depends on who you talk to. It’s thrown around as a greeting – synonymous to “bro” for Kinsley Daniels, a senior at Grant who is African American many – as its relative power, meaning and history are seemingly says: “I don’t think anyone who isn’t black should say it. Also, ignored. I feel like black people really shouldn’t, but it’s become kind of Music containing the word blasts from car stereos and students’ communal...there’s like a lot of meaning behind it, but it depends headphones. And even more frequent than the word’s use at school on how you say it.” is its use on social media. It hits all digital platforms, from photos Principal Carol Campbell says communication is the key. “The and videos on Instagram to the comment sections of Facebook. thing about the N-word, I think, is avoiding it is not the answer,” Teachers and administrators hear it all the time, but it doesn’t Campbell says. “I think we really need to talk about it. Part of this draw the attention that it did in the past. People seem unfazed by education and part of these conversations and being comfortable Photo by Cassius Pettit It is not out of the ordinary to hear the N-word in the hallways of Grant High School from students of all races. its prevalence. to talk about race is being able to talk about things like that. I’m Last year, when a group of white freshman boys went on a social excited that we are actually doing some things instead of just spelling out “NI**ER” on their T-shirts (pg. 13). The letters were able to own imperfection and engage in making shifts in practice media tirade, using the N-word as their calling card, it began to talking about it.” originally a part of the class slogan for a senior class photo. There in order to intentionally meet the needs of students of color.” create a stir. Grant administrators scrambled to deal with the issue, Despite the varying opinions on the usage and acceptance was some backlash from the local media, but the girls claimed they In recent weeks, the team has moved into planning the logistics but the result was more of a stifling of discussions around the of the N-word, by looking at the history one thing is clear: it’s were not racist and walked away largely unscathed. of the event, taking the process one step at a time. They all power of the word than a fostering of meaningful conversations. a pejorative and an insulting word created to force slaves into a Grant senior Alejandro Morales, who is Hispanic Latino and acknowledge it is uncharted territory. Things got worse this past November when members of the position of inferiority. attended the same Arizona school for a little over a year, says: “I’m Vice Principal Diallo Lewis, who is black, says: “No one’s Grant boys soccer team jokingly used the word at a group dinner But despite this history, there is no shortage of inflammatory not very surprised, in all honesty. It’s a very predominantly white doing this and no one has done this, so there’s really no blueprint before the state playoffs. Led by a senior, the team used a function incidents surrounding the word taking place in school settings. school, and it’s a very affluent school, as well...(the N-word) was for it. That’s why I think we have got to be really thoughtful in on Snapchat that plays videos in reverse. “Reggin,” they said into In December of last year, the N-word was found written on the used a lot; it was used, to be honest, more in the white community what we do.” smartphones as the app replayed their words. wall of a boy’s restroom at Beverly Cleary School, a predominantly than it was in the black community.” The event, which will consist of classroom discussions and will “Nigger.” When a black player on the team complained, white elementary and middle school that is a five-minute walk As events such as these seem to only be increasing in the high culminate with a school-wide assembly, is scheduled for later this the slurs and other comments continued. The black player left from Grant and feeds into the high school. school setting, Campbell and her staff had no choice but to act, month. the team and administrators hustled to get the coaches, other For the principal Teri Geist, who is white, the staff and the deciding that schoolwide discussions on race were necessary. Given the administration’s inconsistent history of handling players and the parents to discuss what happened. School-wide students, it was a wake-up call. They were shocked. “When the “I think the incident with the boys soccer team was something incidents surrounding race, there’s a lot at stake. But teachers and discussions extending beyond the incident are set to happen in teachers, especially the middle school teachers, brought that up to that was probably needed,” says Marty Williams, Grant’s administrators are confident these discussions are imperative and March. their students…just humongous disappointment among the kids,” restorative justice coordinator, who is black. “It was something will have a positive impact. What’s happening in the Grant community is a reflection of a she says. that was unfortunate, but I think that it was needed to help people “My personal experiences as a student, as a mother and as nation grappling with an ever-changing population and the fallout On top of that, they realized that many of the boys on the Grant understand that it is important. It’s not a negative thing to talk an educator lead me to believe that we have gone way too long of a variety of issues around race. Add to that the historical power soccer team had attended Beverly Cleary. “When the staff heard about race.” ignoring race as a factor in education,” Palmer says. “Until we are of the word, its frequent use among entertainers and a student body about the incident at Grant with the soccer players and realized As the administrative team began planning the discussions, they willing and able...to own that and engage in trying to rectify that that doesn’t know the history, and it’s no wonder that the word that many of the children in that incident were Beverly Cleary spent time building a core group of leaders and centered meetings and being open to hearing a new perspective and incorporating continues to spring up so frequently. kids, it was another hit,” Geist says. “We think when we train, around self-reflection. other perspectives into our practice, we are not going to impact the And especially at Grant – a school where families say they when we have open discussion and we talk to kids about how you Julie Palmer, who is African American, is a teacher on special school experience for students of color.” appreciate the diversity – this word has become an enigma. Lukas treat people and you talk about race…our kids weren’t allies? assignment for the Equity Department with Portland Public Campbell remains upbeat about the prospect of holding the talks Sherman, a white English teacher who tries to bring conversations They participated? It was very disappointing.” Schools. She plays an integral part in the planning of the meetings. and thinks the school will be better off. “We still have a lot of work about race into his classroom, says: “I think in Portland, there’s These events are not isolated to the Grant community. In late “Every individual needs to be reflective and be open to hearing to do; I don’t think we’ll ever be done,” she says. “It’s something kind of a myth that we’re sort of this liberal utopia and we embrace January, six white girls who are students at Desert Vista High from other people how their practices are working and how they you constantly work on. I’ve been in education for 32 years and… everything. But I think there are a lot of tensions under the surface.” School in Phoenix, Ariz. posted a photo to Snapchat of themselves are not working,” Palmer says, “people in education need to be this is by far the farthest along that we’ve ever been.” ◊ 6 Grant Magazine March 2016 7 Spotlight: Paul Coakley

The retired Portland principal’s clashes in the segregated South have shaped his stance against the N-word

By Blu Midyett Photo by Finn Hawley-Blue aul Coakley remembers stepping separate but equal as the order of the day. Middle School and Roosevelt and II. off the bus with 25 other black Blacks and whites rarely mixed. Gresham high schools. Turning Back Pstudents in a tiny Tennessee town. When he was 12, Coakley recalls Now retired, the barrel-chested “Go back to where you came from, walking with a black friend to the theater. Coakley – known for his trademark nigger,” an angry mob of residents After waiting in line for all the white laugh and encouraging nature – often the Pages shouted as Coakley started the first patrons to go in, the two approached the substitutes as principal at Grant when To understand the power and magnitude day of his senior year at Gallatin High ticket counter. needed. School. “It sounded like everyone had gotten Every now and then Coakley is haunted of the N-word, you can’t ignore history. It was 1970, and most of the 30,000 their tickets,” he recalls. “The guy that by the word when he hears kids in the halls By Blu Midyett and Molly Metz residents of Gallatin opposed integration. was selling them turned to me and my at Grant using it. Whenever it happens, he The black students had to be escorted by friend...and he told us: ‘Niggers don’t shakes his head. police, who feared that violence might come through the front door. You have to “I’ve heard it being used more and erupt. go through the back.’” more,” he says. “One thing that hasn’t “I wasn’t trying to hear who was saying They started to walk to the back but changed is I immediately address it. I’ll it; you’re gonna hear that word,” Coakley stopped short. If they couldn’t go in the turn and say ‘Excuse me?’ and the kids recalls. “When you look at the history, front, Coakley decided, then they weren’t say ‘I’m sorry’ because they know. it was a word that was designed to hurt going to go in at all. “It’s almost like if no one is going to people, a derogatory word, and that’s why “That was part of the protest; we were say anything about it then (they’ll) just go it’s not a word that’s endearing to me at going to protest peacefully and we would ahead and use it.” all.” stay away,” he says of his choice. “We Coakley wants kids to understand the Growing up in rural Tennessee, went back six years later and walked history of the word that has always made Coakley knows what it’s like to face through the front door...it felt good, real him cringe. discrimination. He was born in Detroit, good. It felt like you were a part of the “With things like the N-word, I’ve never the youngest of eight children. His parents country and you had the same rights that used that because I know the deprivation split up when he was young and he stayed anyone else had.” and the putdowns, I know about all those with his mom. When Coakley finished high school things,” he says. “People have given their She was unable to care for all of her and went to college, he decided to become lives not to be called that word. You have children, so she sent him to Tennessee a teacher. In 1980, he was recruited to to understand the history behind it before to live with his uncle. He remembers Portland by the school district and later you just loosely use this word. You have how different life in the South was, with served as principal of Harriet Tubman to.” ◊

8 Grant Magazine March 2016 9 Renee Anderson spent 11 years teaching math in school classrooms and dialogue around how it’s used today is “My approach to history is not, ‘In 1892, this happened; in rare. One thing remains certain: the word has been used openly 1913, this happened,’ because it’s all history,” he says. “It was all at Grant High School and fought hard to help to oppress black people for centuries. contributing to the discourse on American race relations, not just But today, there is no clear consensus on what the word really the word itself but the context it exists in. It’s not the six letters thousands of students navigate the world of means. that make up the word. It’s what the letters together have come “Every time that word is said, it does have a reverberation to signify. There is not a quick definition.” mathematics. As one of the few black classroom and a very painful one,” says Roberta Hunte, an assistant Looking back to the beginnings of the word and understanding professor of Black Studies at Portland State University who is what fueled its evolution might bring us closer to understanding teachers at Grant, she clearly understood the black. the role it plays in society today. “I don’t think it’s something to The N-word’s roots are tied to the beginning of slavery and shy away from,” says Hunte. “It’s a part of our history and, in while it has long been considered a hateful word, it has lasted many ways, it’s a part of our present.” achievement gap students of color face every over time. Today, many of its references come in songs, movies • • • and other entertainment venues, and In 1619, the first slave ships arrived year and has her share of stories around race its power has been diminished in the in Jamestown, Virginia. The English minds of some, especially young “Black people or settlers who manned the ships brought in the classroom. people. white people, it was with them dozens of slaves. Written That, many adults say, comes from a accounts show that settlers called Her view on the N-word was shaped from a young age and is word before fifth grade,” Anderson recalls. “I knew it wasn’t lack of understanding about the history. meant to convey a slaves “negar” and intended for it to absolute: it’s a word best left in the past. nice the way she said it. She wouldn’t give us any books. She “This word is used, but only talked certain degree of be derogatory. It was 1963 when then Renee Wilkerson hopped on a bus wouldn’t look at us.” about when something bad happens,” Jabari Asim is the editor-in-chief in Menlo Park, Calif., to her first day of fifth grade at an all- At that moment, a little girl’s perspective on a loaded word says Grant’s Restorative Justice sub-humanity from of Crisis Magazine, the official publication of the National Association white elementary school. Like many other school districts was seared into her mind, and it stuck. To Anderson, there’s no Coordinator Marty Williams, who the very beginning.” for the Advancement of Colored across the nation at the time, black students were bused escaping the long and painful history that the N-word has in this is African American. “They aren’t really talking about why they need to People. He’s also the author of the book into white neighborhoods to integrate schools as part of federal country. - Jabari Asim, “The N Word.” He says he found in his be educated about this, why it means law. “When that teacher used that word for me, she wasn’t being Author of “The N Word” research for the book that the word was Anderson remembers entering a class full of white faces nice,” says Anderson, who retired from Grant in June 2011. “She what it means, and why you should or used in a way to hold a powerful sway and a teacher who refused to speak to her. The teacher boldly was trying to put us down. When the word is used for when shouldn’t use it.” over slaves. announced to the class that she wasn’t going to teach the “nigger masters were talking to slaves, they weren’t being nice. They Neal Lester, a professor of English “There is no evidence to suggest that girls,” pointing to her and another black student. They were weren’t saying, ‘Oh you’re just my favorite worker.’ It wasn’t a at Arizona State University who is African American, teaches an it was ever a race neutral term,” Asim says. “Black people or white forced to sit at the back of the room and didn’t receive any of the nice word.” entire course devoted to the N-word. For him, the importance is people, it was meant to convey a certain degree of sub-humanity books that the white kids read. In American culture, the N-word is rooted in a racist past, one not in the definition of the word, but in looking at how it has been from the very beginning.” Nigger girls. The words stung. “I don’t even remember the that many know little about. Its origins are generally left alone used in the past. The etymology of the word is where it starts. In Latin, negro

1874: The McLoughlin 1916: A magazine prints an 1700s: The N-word is Brothers of New York advertisement called “Nigger firmly established as a produce a game called Milk” that depicts an African- derogatory word toward “Chopped Up Niggers.” American baby drinking milk. African-American people.

1619: The first written 1837: Abolitionist activist Hosea Easton writes “A Treatise on the Intellectual Character 1884: Mark Twain releases his book “The November 6, 1939: Author Agatha account of the N-word and Civil and Political Condition of the Colored People of the United States: And the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.” The novel Christie publishes “Ten Little Niggers.” is used towards African Prejudice Exercised Towards Them.” He describes the N-word as an “opprobrious uses the N-word 219 times and continues The novel was later renamed “And slaves in America. term, employed to impose contempt upon (blacks) as an inferior race.” to draw scrutiny for its repeated use. Then There Were None.”

10 Grant Magazine March 2016 11 January 22, 2016: A photo of Arizona August 8, 1988: NWA a.k.a “Niggas With teens spelling out the N-word on Attitude” release the pivotal album “Straight T-shirts circulates the internet, 1950s and 1960s: The line “catch a July 9, 2007: The NAACP holds a symbolic Outta Compton,” featuring songs like “Fuck Tha prompting protests and a request that nigger by its toe” is gradually replaced funeral for the N-word in Detroit. They bury Police” that use the word profusely. Some cite the teens be expelled. with “catch a tiger by its toe” in the a coffin adorned with black flowers that songs like these as productive uses of the word nursery rhyme, “Eeny Meeny Miny represents the word. www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/22/ Moe.” Illustration by Catherine Hunter in music. Photo courtesy of Getty Images phoenix-arizona-high-school-racist-shirts

September 10, 1976: March 4, 2001: Former member of March 26, 2007: Richard Pryor releases the Ku Klux Klan, Senator Robert Jabari Asim “Bicentennial Nigger,” a Byrd uses the term “white nigger,” publishes “The comedy album that later a common derivative of the N-word N Word.” went on to win the Grammy used against white people in an for best comedy album. interview with Fox News.

means black. Asim and others say many derivatives developed belief that blacks were a subspecies of human. Many scientists blackface makeup. The N-word appeared on hundreds of food and from the original spelling as it spread across other languages. and philosophers argued that Africans were biologically different cleaning products. It began to fill American households as popular The word we now know as “nigger” came from one of those and intellectually inferior to whites, citing scientific evidence culture expanded. derivatives. that wasn’t valid. “You have things like Nigger Hair tobacco, Gally Nigger banks “What tends to happen is over the years and with differing “It was used synonymously with slaves because slaves became and popular in white middle class houses was a collection of sheet geographical locations, people a representation of inferiority,” music called ‘Nigga Songsters,’ which are full of racist songs that may start to change the way says Lester. “It was a people could gather around a piano and sing in the parlor,” says that they say a certain word,” naming, but it wasn’t a naming Asim. “By the 1920s, the word was everywhere.” says Shirley Jackson, chair of “It’s not about a specific that allowed for any personal • • • the Black Studies Department identity.” During the civil rights era, the N-word was a regular weapon used at PSU. “Over time, it evolved identity...It’s about anybody As white Americans by law enforcement and racists in the South. With everything from into a more phonetic spelling.” encountered different ethnic the death of 14-year-old Emmett Till to the assaults of the Freedom This phonetic spelling is that can be insulted by groups, the word was applied Riders, the word was used like venom. often traced back to the South, connecting them with to other cultures that were also Lynchings and other forms of violence claimed the lives of where heavy accents created viewed as inferior to whites. thousands of black men and women, who were also victims of the a new pronunciation. That anyone that is African For example, the phrase word. The African-American community began to organize and pronunciation was routinely “‘white nigger” was used to speak out. used to describe African slaves American.” describe some Jewish people. Paul Coakley, a retired Portland Public Schools principal during a time when plantation “It’s not about a specific who often substitutes for administrators at Grant, says he began owners and others began to -Neal Lester, Professor of English, identity, a racial identity or following the civil rights movement like a fan follows a sports team. procure millions of Africans, Arizona State University racial profiling. It’s about He aspired to be like his older cousins who were part of one of the beginning in the 1600s. Slave anybody that can be insulted by first peaceful sit-ins in Tennessee. narratives dating back to that connecting them with anyone “They were attacked, hit, beaten, spit up on, all kinds of things,” era have been found to use the that is African American or says Coakley, who was raised by an uncle in Tennessee. “But all of word to describe other African slaves. black,” says Lester. “Jews have been called the N-word, so this that...people were willing to take just to show that they were equal “They weren’t saying it as brother or friend, ever,” says Asim. is something that is beyond a kind of rational explanation as for in the eyes of the law, in the eyes of man and in the eyes of our “The earliest black people writing about the use of the word very why it causes a response from people.” country.” early on have already condemned it as a pejorative that didn’t in Advertisers, playwrights and authors began to capitalize on For Coakley, the demeaning qualities of the word stood for Advertising companies frequently used the N-word any way reflect black identity or the black experience.” the negative racial connotations of the word in the mid-1800s, something much greater than just an epithet. It represented the to promote their products. By the 1700s, use of the word had spread, mainly to push the using it extensively in minstrel performances where actors used inequalities that the black community faced. “That word was used Photo courtesy of Antique Tobacco

12 Grant Magazine March 2016 13 as a word to say that African-American people were less than entertainment was aimed at a black audience, it rarely reached • • • and were not as good,” says Coakley. “If you forget your the white mainstream. When Leeman returned to Grant as a teacher in 2001, he taught history, then you’re doomed to repeat it, so it’s very important Using the word “was often done in those films with a bit of African-American Literature and chose to use the word. “I just that we teach young people and all people about their history.” self-awareness, occasionally a wink to the camera almost, a said it because I believed that I was trying to sort of create a “If you forget But for some, the word has negligible meaning in heavy dose of irony,” says Asim. “They were saying, ‘We’re post-racial world,” he says. “I made my classes use the word. I a conversation about race. With a disproportionate going to challenge the status quo. We’re going to challenge said, ‘We’re just gonna use the word. It’s a lit class. We’re just number of blacks in prison, a huge achievement gap whatever the prevailing message is,’ and some of it was done gonna. Get over it.’ And I regret that.” between minority and white students and with the high through language.” Today, he allows students in class to simply say “N” when it your history, number of police shootings of unarmed black people, It wasn’t until a young black comedian named Richard Pryor comes up in a book or writing. some say there’s more to worry about than the use of a word. started to crack jokes that white audiences began to laugh along. For Renee Anderson, the memories of Grant are filled with Karl Acker is a resource specialist at Grant who is black. With the release of comedy albums like “Bicentennial Nigger,” students who used the N-word in the halls and around school. But He grew up in New Orleans in the 1970s and used the which won a Grammy, Pryor’s profuse use of the N-word was in her classroom, the word was strictly forbidden. then you’re word openly. “It was a term of endearment,” he recalls. something all of America was listening to. Anderson still actively participates in race conversations at “We used it as code to get over on the teachers, to say some At Grant, the culture was no different. Grant. Her motivation, she says, comes from her faith in the stuff to each other in a tone using different words...In the Cynthia MacLeod serves as assistant director of equity future. neighborhood that I grew up in, eating and surviving were high professional development for Portland Public Schools. She “When I’m old and gray, those are the folks that are going to doomed to priorities; words being used were very, very low priority.” remembers moving from Texas to Portland in the 1960s and be voting on what’s going on at Grant,” Anderson says of today’s It was a time that saw Americans of all races open their eyes hearing the word in the halls of Grant. students. “I want to graduate people who are concerned citizens. to what was happening to Black America. And the negative “I had been taught that that word was derogatory and hurtful, Concerned not about just the Grant community, but concerned repeat it.” connotations associated with blackness in the early 1970s and that it was something that white people said to black people,” about what happens in the Portland metro area.” began to take a radical shift nationwide. “Black is beautiful” says MacLeod. “I was not accustomed to people of color, African Today, Anderson worries that the dwindling number of black became a heralded mantra. Americans, using it with each other in a casual manner. First staff at Grant will have an impact on discussions about race, and - P a u l C o a k l e y , f o r m e r P o r t l a n d Movies and television shows depicting black characters time I heard it...I held my breath because I thought, ‘Oh my gosh that directly affects any conversation around the N-word. were developed. One movie, “Three the Hard Way,” depicted something terrible is about to happen.’” “It’s very important to have a diverse staff because people will Public Schools Principal three black characters who saved the black race from a group But nothing did, and the word became normal to MacLeod know different things, depending on where they come from,” of white supremacists. Many of the films and shows during as her years at Grant continued. She graduated in 1969. The says Anderson. “Some things people will look at very differently this era used the N-word. different meanings behind the (if) they are looking through a For some, this gave the word a new meaning and handed word and a segregated culture different lens and may not think the power of it to the black community. But since the within the school created a racial that an issue is important because divide. MacLeod remembers “First time I heard it...I of their background.” rising pressure between the small held my breath because Marty Williams, the restorative black population and the majority justice coordinator, wants people white school. I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, to simply understand and have That pressure continued in something terrible is empathy for differing points of later years. Dylan Leeman, who view. But the key, he says, is is white, now teaches English at about to happen.’” knowing your subject matter and Grant. He remembers attending fully grasping its impact. the school in the late 1980s and - Cynthia MacLeod, “Before you teach something,” early 1990s. “There was a lot of Assistant Director of Equity Williams says, “get education racial tension at Grant when I Professional Development, around it because the word went there...integration was pretty Portland Public Schools holds a certain sensitivity to it new,” he recalls. “I think the white to some groups. It can be either kids...were still really resistant to traumatic, it could be anger or it black kids at Grant when I was here.” could be where it’s just a conflict of the word, period. I think Leeman remembers hearing the word frequently in the halls it’s more about the education of the word…‘This is what this and recalls the emergence of rival gangs – both black gangs and word is and this is where it came from. What is your opinion on Skinheads – fueling the tension. it?’” When he heard two female friends use the word openly with Asim says he doesn’t think banning the word is a likely option. their Skinhead boyfriends, Leeman made it his mission to spread Doing so, he says, would further stifle conversation at a time what they had said around the entire school. The two girls ended when racism needs to be put under the spotlight. up transferring out of Grant. “It’s really naïve and sort of ahistorical” to think the N-word will just go away, he says. “It’s an unwillingness to confront the Left: After a trip to Kenya in 1979, Richard Pryor reality of racism. I think the only way the word could exist, as announced that he would stop using the N-word in his a race-neutral term, is dependent on the elimination of racism, comedy performance, despite having used the word on which I don’t see ever occurring.” ◊ the cover of his Grammy-winning comedy album. Sophie Hauth and Joshua Webb contributed to this story.

Photo courtesy of Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images 14 Grant Magazine March 2016 15 Andrew Young Time with...Cynthia MacLeod “Adults must Born: March 12, 1932, realize that in New Orleans, La. kids are having College: conversations Howard University; Looking Back about race.” Dillard University; Cynthia MacLeod, a 1969 Grant alum, Hartford Theological reflects on how the school’s racial dynamic has evolved Seminary Interview by Sophie Hauth • Photo by Molly Metz Notable facts: Helped draw up the 1964 Civil Rights Act What’s your role in the Portland Public harmful or not, that can always be debated. But the and the 1965 Voting Schools equity department? impact of the use of the word is much clearer and Rights Act; was I focus on providing professional much less open to discussion. Did it harm or didn’t standing nearby when development around racial equity it harm? I think that that...would be most important Dr. Martin Luther King for school administrators. for adults to consider. I think students should be Jr. was assassinated engaged in a dialogue, but I do think there should in Memphis on April 4, You grew up in Texas and be real close attention paid to the impact it’s having 1968 then moved to Oregon on African-American or black students. Recipient: during your sophomore Presidential Medal of year of high school. What You went to Grant during the height of the Civil Freedom was your experience with Rights Movement. What was that like? the N-word in both places? There was talk about black power. The Black Photo courtesy Associated Press I grew up in a family that Panthers were definitely in the news and very was very protective and…kept much a part of the political scene then, as was Dr. When Andrew the time in the South. Jeff (Foxworthy), he’s got this book of “Redneck me isolated from overt racial Martin Luther King and Malcolm X. So there were Philosophy”… And so white people call each other ‘Redneck’ all the language. The word was seen discussions about how the civil rights movement Young Speaks… time. But I don’t feel comfortable using (that word). In Congress, it as very derogatory. Once I came to should progress and what should happen and who was interesting because every time congressmen go home to their Oregon, I had to become accustomed should be in charge. I never witnessed any physical The Civil Rights legend adds to the constituencies they hear the latest jokes. The Irish congressman to the word being used in a familial confrontations or verbal confrontations, but I heard conversation on the rules of race from Boston would come back and he’d tell Irish jokes. The Italian way, and I’m still uncomfortable, about it. I would hear a group of white kids and, By Eliza Kamerling-Brown congressman would come back and he’d have some Italian ones. It’s honestly, personally uncomfortable. you know, there was going to be a big rumble… all right for Jews to tell Jewish jokes. It’s all right for me to tell black in the park, or somebody called somebody the jokes. But it’s not all right for somebody else to do it. So what are the rules around using it? N-word and they were going to get together and hen it comes to history, Andrew Young has seen it all. “When I grew up, we were ‘colored.’ And then all of a sudden we Are there any? have a fight. Head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference became ‘black.’ And then we became ‘African American.’ And we What I find important…is that as people Win the 1960s. Chief strategist and negotiator for blacks were ‘Negroes’ in between. So, I just don’t use racial designations of color, as African Americans, I think it’s What’s the difference between then and now at during the height of the civil rights movement. Close friend and about people even when I know them extremely well. It’s hard for important that we determine the narrative Grant when it comes to racial dynamics? confidant of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. me to tell a Jewish joke to somebody Jewish, even though somebody around the use of that word, and that that I think about some of the incidents that I hear about He’s also been a U.S. congressman, an ambassador for the U.S. to Jewish told it to me. It’s not right for me to do it. And it’s just a matter narrative not be determined by white people in my office... a couple situations with the sports the United Nations during President Jimmy Carter’s time in office, of us learning to live together in a respectable diverse way. or any other race of people. It should be up teams, and that is very much the kind of thing when and was the celebrated mayor of Atlanta in the 1980s. “There are all of these diversity sensitivities that we have to live with to us as (black people) to decide the narrative I was there in the 60s and early 70s. The reaction Young, 83, came to Portland in December to speak at a conference. in a diverse society. But the best way to do it is a ‘no fouls and accept for that word. to it now is somewhat different, because when I He sat down with Grant Magazine for a discussion on race and apologies’ (approach). was in high school that would’ve just been ‘hush, leadership. The following is an edited excerpt from the interview If somebody uses a What’s your narrative or stance on the hush.’ It would’ve been whispered and gossiped, about the N-word. word toward me in a word? but there would’ve been no direct and intentional way that I don’t like, I Personally, I don’t think it should be used. I way of dealing with it. “It’s like any word. It depends on its context. Now, in college, we say, ‘You know, that’s think when it is used, it is a negative word. used it as a term of affection. See, it was an all-black college, and I not good. If you say that However, I understand that that’s just my What’s the first step to dealing with these race- was always very comfortable with this word as a term of affection. to somebody else black, perspective on it. Whether the intent is to be related incidents in an effective way? But if somebody’s angry with you and of a different race that uses it, they’re liable to knock I think that adults must realize that kids are it’s completely different. your lights out.’ So it’s having conversations about race, that kids notice “The other thing I tend to do is to say that the word really does not best not to do that.” ◊ race, that kids talk about race. That’s the adults’ just indicate race. It indicates a quality of capital. There are white Age: 64 responsibility, for us to get ourselves in a place niggas…black niggas…brown niggas…red niggas…rich niggas… so that we can create a space so the children can poor niggas. But it doesn’t constitute race. But at the same time, At a business Job: Assistant Director of Equity Development for Portland Public Schools conference last Family: Two grown sons; Joseph and Colin Thomas do what they’re going to do anyway. They’re when I was growing up in a predominantly white neighborhood, December, former Last book read: “All the Light We Cannot See” by Anthony Doerr going to talk. They want to know, and they need my grandmama said, ‘If somebody calls you nigga and you don’t U.N. ambassador and Current work project: Preparing a presentation on the impact to grow and learn about race and themselves hit ‘em, and if you don’t fight about it, when you come home you confidant of Dr. Martin of microaggressions on the school climate for an administrative leadership as racial beings as well as other people’s race will get a whupping.’ So it was not used in my house, but we used it Luther King Jr., Andrew academy this month Young, discussed the and the impact that race is having on all of our in the street. N-word with Grant lives. ◊ “It’s...a term that I have trouble with, which white people use all Magazine. Photo by Joshua Webb 16 Grant Magazine March 2016 17 The Moment You Hear It Members of the Grant community recall how the N-word has affected their lives

Tearale Triplett, 46, counselor (below) “I grew up with a lot of social consciousness, as well as pride for who I was as a black person. The first time I experienced...the personal attack with the word was when I was about 15. I saw it all over my locker and upon seeing it, I felt pretty violated, honestly, that that person or group of people would target my locker...and not have the guts to say it to my face…I was in high school, so a group of friends and I settled matters, if you know what I mean...I’m in no way, shape or form endorsing any kind of physical reaction. But that’s kind of just where we were as kids, and it was quite shocking to the group, as well.” – Interview by Blu Midyett • Photo by Eliza Kamerling-Brown

Rahsaan Islam, 18, senior (above) “This was about two years ago. It was three of us. I was messing around a bit, and then I like tipped something over in front of (someone’s) house. We didn’t think they’d think nothing of it, so we were walking down Alberta Street, and that’s when they pulled up in a car and started chasing us. They were grown men, like 20s or 30s, all white. We just broke down this alleyway, and they were calling us the N-word and stuff. Like,‘Get that N-word’ or whatever and then they got one of my friends; they beat him up. I ran through the alley and they didn’t catch the rest of us. I called the police myself, and that didn’t help at all because they shifted the blame on us. Like they tried to turn the whole story around, and we were like,‘This is a problem,’ and they didn’t care about it. There was no type of justice. They got away with it.” – Interview and photo by Cassius Pettit

March 2016 19 Téa Johnson, 17, junior (below) Andrea Alvarado, 18, senior (left) “I had gotten to school early and a bunch Alejandra Alvarado, 17, junior (center) of my friends were hanging out in the Sophia Ferere, 20, Portland State hall, so I joined them. There was a group University junior (far right) of black males on the stairs. I don’t remember what they were doing, but Andrea: “I use the N-word, but it’s not often…and they said something that’s technically when I do it’s...in a context where people know that grammatically incorrect. One of the boys I’m...not using it as a way to insult someone…but in my group that I didn’t really know that there are some people who do feel insulted.” well called them all, not to their faces but to us, the N-word. He turned to us Alejandra: “I think though we’re not black, we also and was making fun of their grammar. have gone through the same struggles and have I was really shocked. I was like ‘You our own…names that we’re called and that some can’t really say that,’ and he said ‘Why, if people use. With the N-word, you can change it they can say it I can say it.’ I’m like,‘No, from something completely negative to something you’re white, so you can’t; that’s not how completely positive...I think...it’s owned by...the it works.’ And he said that I was being whole minority group together.” racist toward white people. It struck me as so odd, and it still strikes me as odd Sophia: “They know I don’t like the N-word...Ever that someone could use a word that since they met me, they’re very open about it and has been used to like systematically I’m OK with that, but it makes me uncomfortable...I degrade black people, directly towards don’t say it, and I don’t want other people to say it black people, and not see that they are around me.” being racist.” – Interview and photo by Eliza Kamerling-Brown – Interview and photo by Finn Hawley-Blue Calvin Scott, 18, senior (left) “So, there’s Xbox, and then there’s Xbox Live where you can talk to other people online and like play your games. And it’s the Internet, so people just are reckless and they say whatever they please because they have more power to say what they want without getting in trouble. I was laying in my room with a headset on, playing Xbox. I got a good kill or something, and then someone just called me the N-word. I was a little upset because you can’t really do anything about it except for just either respond with an insult or just sit there with the mic on. They could’ve easily used another word, but that’s the word they chose. I’m not sure if they knew that I was black or not. It’s a problem that people are just using that as a normal insult.” – Interview and photo by Cassius Pettit Spotlight: Kyra Orr

The Grant High School senior believes that both recognition of history and reclamation of the N-word are necessary for society to move forward Story and photo by Eliza Kamerling-Brown

yra Orr was sitting in a semicircle her dad’s side of the family for as long as she with some. “You can’t just ignore history,” of chairs in Jefferson High School’s can remember, thrown around at parties and she admits. “I mean that was a word that was Kband room the first time she family get-togethers as a term of endearment being thrown around to just tear us down, III. encountered the N-word. or a greeting. make us feel weak, less than human, since Then and Now It was January, and she was preparing Now 18, Orr uses the word colloquially to we were apparently three-fifths of a human to perform in a local play in celebration of embrace a friend or make a joking statement. being. For some, the N-word is an opportunity to take back a Black History Month. Orr was 12 at the time She says she understands that the history “So, no, you can’t get rid of that history... term that was once used as a tool of dehumanization. and reading along in her script of “Who I am; behind it isn’t simply pulled apart from It’s there. Etched in stone. Don’t even try to For others, the history is too painful to ignore. Celebrating Me” with the other members of the word. Still, she’s adamant about the like sugar coat it. Don’t walk around it. You the cast. importance of reclaiming it. can’t. It happened.” By Lael Tate, Bella Rideau and Eliza Kamerling-Brown In a scene about racism in the South, Orr “Every time I think about reclaiming the Orr doesn’t think doing away with the was reading one of her lines and stumbled to word, I think about like, ‘If you can reclaim word altogether would solve anything, and in get the words out. “Thou cuts not a figger, queer, why can’t we reclaim the N-word?’” some ways she feels there are more important you are a nig…nigger, and that is the law of she says of the LGBTQ community’s conversations that people in the Grant Jim Crow,” she muttered. attempts to mollify a once-damaging slur community and across the country should be She remembers hesitating and looking used against gays. having about race. at her director, unsure if it was OK for her “Yes, it’s a word that definitely took us “Honestly, what they tell you on TV young self to speak aloud a version of a word down...but let’s flip the script,” Orr says of or in the history books,” Orr says, “That she had always been taught not to mess with. the N-word. “Let’s use it to our advantage. we come from slavery and we come from “I heard it a lot but I never heard that It comes from a place (of) vulnerability, broken homes and broken families and all version,” says Orr now, reflecting on the weakness, like being stepped over... that other stuff? We honestly didn’t. We experience. “A lot of stuff was going through Reclaiming it is us thinking like, ‘You know didn’t start from slavery...slavery is not the my head. ‘Can I say that? Will I get in what? We went through this. We struggled. only thing behind that word...We come from trouble?...I can’t say it. Please don’t make me We’re gonna take upon it ourselves, because... royalty. We are kings, queens, princesses, say this.’” we’re not the images we’re shown every day princes...We got taken and we couldn’t Orr’s director eventually allowed her on TV or in music lyrics or whatever.’ change that. to swap lines with another cast member, “We each want to strive to be something, “I think we really can reclaim the word but her experience with the word didn’t end and I think it’s honestly about time that we and turn it into something positive,” she says, there. have something that...makes people forced “because we did not go through all that just As Orr has grown older, the N-word to see us and know that we’re not going to be here and not like gain something. I feel has remained a consistent piece of her anywhere.” like it can make us stronger if we...reclaimed vocabulary. It’s been used by members of Orr recognizes her opinion is unpopular the word.” ◊

22 Grant Magazine March 2016 23 Can a bad tree ever bear good fruit?

ophomore D’Allah Dent learned birthed by hate, they say, is there is no other word in the English common that we can use together.” what the word “nigger” meant in first what stands behind the idea. language that parallels its weight and Brianna Henderson, a junior at Grant who grade. Her class was learning the Grant junior Eric McGee, thus it can never be divorced from is African American, has had a complex history of the civil rights movement, who is black, embraces the its derogatory meaning. experience with the word. Sand the teacher talked about the legacy of attempt at reclamation. “Back in Over time, Millner “I used to be ashamed to be black,” she Rosa Parks and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. like slave times, they used asserts that in attempts says. “I thought it was a compliment when The unit was surface level at best, at worst, the word...as a derogatory to create distance from people told me: ‘You talk like a white girl. incomplete. But when Dent got home, her term toward blacks,” the hatred behind the You act like a white girl.’ I let the white kids mother, Edwina, and father, David, talked McGee says. “Right N-word, each new generation use the N-word around me because, ‘Hey, with their young daughter about the impact now, if like somebody’s of black people over the years I’m cool and stuff’ and they think I’m cool.” of the time period. There was no getting past saying it, I just wouldn’t has “self-selected” a more But things changed in high school and she the N-word. care because it wouldn’t mean desirable term to be took offense to such talk. Henderson credits “They went way back (in history) and then anything to me.” referred to. the shift to several factors, including her they brought it up to today,” Dent recalls. But the movement to “For my social studies teacher, Marta Repollet. She “This is what we have to deal with. Slavery is redefine the N-word is grandparents, the teaches Living in the U.S., a history class that over and now we have Black History Month stunted by the very idea of term was ‘colored,’” focuses on minority experiences throughout where we can celebrate, but we still have to ownership. D’Allah Dent’s says Millner. “My the narrative of the country. deal with racism.” mother, Edwina, says: “I parent’s preferred to be “I remember coming to her class. It was That conversation still sticks with her. don’t think it’s a word ‘negroes;’ I preferred right after Mike Brown got killed on the And David Dent doesn’t mince words that can be reclaimed. to be identified as a street like a dog,” Henderson recalls. “That about why the conversations are so important. Reclaiming means that black person; my was one of the first things we talked about “Here we have, in our home, we have a racial you owned it in the first children were African Americans. And and she did address that…she enlightened dialogue. We teach them,” he says about his place. It’s a part of our this latest generation has decided that they want to try me of all my heritage. And learning about kids. “They come home...and they recognize vocabulary, but for you to to reclaim the N-word.” minorities in that class, it…was like a door. what’s what. It’s a shame; we wish they didn’t say, ‘OK, this is a term of endearment for something that Portland rapper Michael Caples, known by his stage name Mic Capes, Like all this good stuff happened. We weren’t and they were just them, but with people, it’s actually was used to oppress us and was used for many generations,’ there’s a recognizes the seemingly changing dynamic of the word. “I feel like it has been just slaves? That’s what we did?” a reality. They see it, from the youngest to the sick mentality to it. They don’t have to call you guys ‘niggers.’ Now, you call each reclaimed, but I feel like it’s also like a generational thing,” he says. “You know, our From there, Henderson threw herself oldest, they see it; they see what’s going on.” other that.” parents and up...they come from a different time in America.” into learning about her cultural history and For Dent and many Grant High School Darrell Millner, an emeritus professor of Black Studies at Portland State University Many students recognize this generational gap when it comes to the word. Deaijainae the struggles of other minorities. She has students, every day is a reminder. Walk who is black, doesn’t think that a movement is sustainable and considers all present day Tolbert, who is African American and used to consider the N-word a part of her become a leading voice in class discussions, through the hallways and there’s a good attempts to be “self-delusional.” everyday vocabulary, admits that “sometimes when (my parents) do catch me saying especially in her Advanced Placement chance you’ll hear the word – or its “In my estimation,” he says, “that term carries such a load of historical animosity that it, I do get a long lecture about it. So it’s not that they don’t like it, they just don’t feel English class that has few students of color euphemism, “nigga.” Sometimes from white I really doubt that that will ever be possible...There’s too much history attached to it.” like that word is respected no more.” in it. “I make it my duty to always stand up students, other times from black students. Millner says the word hasn’t strayed far from its degrading nature of putting blacks Diallo Lewis, one of Grant’s vice principals and one of the few black staff members, for every minority,” she says. “I’m always It’s a sign that squares with what’s in a subhuman role. affirms this. “When I was younger...the word was used within circles of friends,” he the one to bring up race, like that’s my main happening in popular culture. Consider “I think to understand the power of the N-word, you have to follow the history for says. “But I think once you become educated about the history of the word and where it question. And I feel like I get really killed famous musician Kanye West’s song, “All about 200 years as it comes down to us from the period of legal slavery,” Millner says. comes from, you begin to look at things differently.” about it because everyone’s always like: Day,” which uses the word a total of 42 times “When you do that, what you see is that the N-word is a part of a hierarchy of racial For those attempting to reclaim the word, there’s an important distinction between ‘Ah, here she goes again talking about race. in five minutes. J. Cole’s “Fire Squad” says it terms, that in addition to whatever literal meaning it may have had, had a coded meaning “nigga” and “nigger.” Why do you always have to bring race into 25 times. Today, it’s everywhere. For young that was understood both by the party who used it and the party who it was directed at.” Senior Calvin Scott recognizes the difference. “‘ER’ is more of an insult where ‘A’ is it, Brianna?’” people, it’s part of a movement to reclaim Millner notes that because of its divisive nature, the N-word remains at the top of the like, ‘My brother, my friend,’” Scott says. “We go through the same struggle every And while she is firm in her beliefs that the word. Giving positive power to a word hierarchy of racially charged terms that have survived throughout history. Simply put, day. We’re both black, we both get the same hate...it’s something we have in race is an important point of discussion and

24 Grant Magazine March 2016 25 largely avoided by her peers and teachers, Henderson’s stance on the reclamation of the N-word is evolving. “I’m guilty of saying it, especially in rap songs,” she says. “Like I’ll just be like, ‘N-word, N-word,’ just throwing it around. But like, I don’t like addressing people by this.” Still, Henderson says, that’s changing. “I’ve become more pro- “If I am in my car and I’m black and so...I’m done with that word, even in music...I don’t playing some dirty language want white people to look at me and be like, ‘Oh, she’s using the N-word,’” she says. “I don’t know how to argue against that when music, and there are some white people say, ‘Oh, well you said the N-word, why can’t I?’” acknowledge that other people that aren’t black A question that Henderson’s experience brings up is whether or there’s systemic racism or For Mathias not the fight to reclaim the N-word within the African-American white privilege like that, you know Thelus, a senior of in the car, with my other black community encourages its use among non-black students. that makes you somewhat complicit Haitian descent, the lines are “I think all kids…begin to think it’s very casual, a casual response in something larger, and that means you’re probably friends, and the N-word comes blurred. Earlier this year, his English to things, and I think that becomes very dangerous,” Lewis says. responsible for doing something.” class read August Wilson’s “Fences,” which up...if you’re like comfortable “When you’re the black kid and you’re using that word and you With this perceived evolving definition of the N-word, many uses the N-word 28 times. have a white friend and you’re using the word, all of a sudden your see shifting power dynamics that reflect rising tensions. saying the word and like you Prior to starting the play, there was little white friend turns and says it, you become angry and upset. It’s not Russ Peterson is a white social studies teacher at Grant and discussion on the topic of the N-word and how know the meaning of the a word that you should be throwing around lightly.” taught African-American Literature last year. “I think it was a the class would address it. When the word came Aujai Webster, an African-American junior, acknowledges little weird for my students walking in to see a white guy teaching up, the atmosphere was charged. word, then it’s OK to say it.” there’s a fine line when it comes to the N-word being usedby the class,” he says. “But you know, I don’t think it really matters. A fellow student who is not black played Troy different races. But she doesn’t think that it should be strictly I teach women’s history; I’m not a woman. I bring up GLBTQ - Mathias Thelus, Grant senior Maxson, the main character who says the word limited to a certain community. issues in my classroom; I’m straight.” throughout the play. Thelus recalls: “The word “If you heard a white person singing ‘Niggas in Paris,’ would Each year, he spent several weeks teaching the history behind came up and he is my good friend and I was like, you be offended? And then not offended if you hear a black person the N-word and leading class discussions. For Peterson, the Caples, who uses the word in some of his rap songs, recognizes ‘You can say it, man. I don’t care. It is a part of the story.’” saying it?” Webster asks. “If you are getting offended because one conversations were productive, and he felt students benefited from the complexity of the situation. But the student chose not to and Thelus said the word for him person is singing that same song, I don’t think that’s fair.” the material and context provided. “Hip-hop, even though it’s black-rooted and it is black culture, every time it came up. The N-word, in all its usages, is a difficult topic to maneuver A question that often came up in class was, he says, “Is it it’s become more commercialized and then it’s included every Courtney Palmer, who is white, is in her first year of teaching around. This is a stance that many members of the Grant community possible to say that it is being reclaimed only for a certain group race,” he says. “You got white kids that feel like they’re a part of African-American Literature at Grant. The numbers this year can agree on; and for teachers who attempt to spark discussions on of people or does it have to be a universal thing?” it. Them being in the culture, they feel like they can say it. And I’m dropped significantly, limiting the class to just one period. Of the the topic of race, generating conversations has proven difficult. His response, Peterson says, is the product of talking with conflicted at shows, you know, there’s white kids who know my 26 students enrolled in the class, a small number are white. Palmer “I think teachers do try to facilitate those conversations, but students and exploring the history of the word. “If we’re words, and they (are) rapping it.” admits the demographics were more evenly split in the beginning the other students often are either uncomfortable with it or I think going to talk about words having power, the ability to not only For some people, songs that use the N-word offer a license to of the year, but many of the white students chose to drop the class. more often than not, kind of dismissive,” says Lukas Sherman, define a word but say who can and cannot use a word ishow say it. As for how Palmer tackles the subject of the N-word, she doesn’t a white English teacher at Grant. “If you’re a white student, to someone exercises power,” he says. “And so by the same token, Thelus says if others – regardless of race – are comfortable shy away from confronting it. In fact, early in the year, Palmer African Americans, who as a group have been using the word in music, he’s fine with it. “If I am in my car and listed words offensive to the black community that the class would marginalized and not had power over language, to I’m playing some dirty language music, and there are some other encounter throughout the year in certain texts. Among the words have this group say, ‘It is acceptable for we African people that aren’t black in the car, with my other black friends, and are “nigger” and “nigga,” which Palmer chose not to code with the Americans to use it and nobody else, and all the N-word comes up...if you’re like comfortable saying the word moniker, the “N-word.” “If you’re a white student and white folks can’t use it,’ I’m totally at ease with... and like you know the meaning of the word, then it’s OK to say “It has a historical value,” she notes. having African Americans be empowered in that it,” he says. This approach is controversial, but Palmer says it enables honest to acknowledge that there’s way.” Others are steadfast that non-black people need to refrain from and open conversations about the nature of the word. Still, the reality of a white teacher responsible for using the word, regardless of context. systemic racism or white “I have a lot of students who use it amongst themselves, and I’m teaching black history left the class disconnected, Senior Kinsley Daniels, who is African American, agrees with not going to crack down on that,” she says. “That particular word especially when Peterson himself said the words this sentiment. “Since it’s in so many songs and like Vines and privilege like that, you know doesn’t have a derogatory sense to it between students of color. I before a Socratic seminar. Senior Clayton Harley, YouTube, I feel like it’s easy to misinterpret it as something like think there is a reclaiming of the N-word going on socially.” who is black, acknowledged that his white teacher you can...say,” she says. “So, I’ve definitely, like, stopped my that makes you somewhat For many, the answer to understanding the connotations of had crossed a line. friends multiple times from like saying it...I’ll just be like, ‘Yeah, the N-word lies with the education around it, and at Grant, that complicit in something “We were talking about the difference between you’re kinda not able to say that.’” discourse is limited. Would students be attempting redefinition ‘nigger’ and ‘nigga,’” Harley remembers. “I was So, can the N-word ever be truly reclaimed? The jury is still out and using the word if there was recognition of its history in the larger and that means you’re trying to explain my point basically, but Mr. on a case that may never reach a conclusion. classroom? Peterson was kinda cutting me off. ‘What’s the Noah Evans-Kluthe, who is multiracial, says, “I have a feeling “I don’t know,” Lewis admits. “I mean what does that probably responsible for doing difference between “nigger” and “nigga?”’ and that this word...it will always have a double meaning, like the ‘A’ mean, to reclaim the word? Whose word was it in the first he kept saying that over and over and so I got and the ‘ER,’ it will always have those two sides to it, two sides to something.” place? So what are you claiming? Why would you want to claim frustrated and I was like ‘OK, you’re being an the same coin.” it? asshole,’ and he sent me out of class.” Millner says it’s an evolving discussion. “You don’t have - Lukas Sherman, “That becomes the question. And then you look at our society After class, the two had a conversation and much chance of changing the voice of the direction of the next and our culture and you look at even pop culture in music media; found some common ground. But for Harley generation; they select their own path.” ◊ Grant English teacher there are so many things out there and so many images out there and others, white people using the word is still a where the word is being thrown around so casually.” complicated subject. Dylan Palmer and Joshua Webb contributed to this story.

26 Grant Magazine March 2016 27 Junior Brianna Henderson admits “even black people now it’s kind of disappointing because they know.” think like, thug and ghetto are ways to...classify black people in... He continued. “What’s the definition of a thug? Really? What’s their class and stuff and like...‘Oh you act like or look like a thug. going on here?” Because you act classless, you must live in the ghetto.’” His questions were met with laughter from the correspondents “Thug” has also become a popular word that, unlike ghetto, in the room, but it’s no laughing matter to black students like hasn’t strayed far from its meaning. The etymology of the word Henderson. traces back to India in the 19th century where the Hindi word “Thug shouldn’t be a term used to label minorities and you see “thag” was used to refer to criminals and swindlers. It eventually that in the news a lot,” Henderson says. “Like, ‘He was a thug, a made its way to the United States as “thug.” It still retains the gang member...He lived in the ghetto and stuff.’” original meaning, but the targets of the word are more often than Walters, the sociolinguist, says these words are used to skirt IV. not black men. around the issue of race. “A black protester is far more likely to be called a thug than “When you take terms like ghetto, thug...those are clear, very, Words in like a white protester,” says Grant English teacher Lukas Sherman, very negative terms to start with,” he says. “But they’re also being who is white. That’s “without people really understanding the used in a sense as stand-ins so that someone may not have to say Disguise implications of that word.” something that they don’t want.” Politicians, the media and others won’t use the N-word up front. But coded In 2013, Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman, who This often happens in the entertainment industry. is black, was fresh off a win that would take his team to the Super In 1999, rapper Anthony Mandigo introduced a new word terms have become commonplace when referring to black people. Bowl. The Stanford graduate drew plenty of media attention when that would soon enter the multitude of other coded terms when he exclaimed over and over, “I’m the best corner in the game.” The he released his single, “Do tha Ratchet.” In the song, the word By Bella Rideau, Lael Tate and Eliza Kamerling-Brown sound bite was broadcasted over sports networks and primetime ratchet finds its roots in his hometown of Shreveport, La., where news shows for months. he describes the hard working pride of the community. Critics didn’t shy away from calling him a thug. But Sherman Five years later, he collaborated with Lil’ Boosie to revamp the fter the Carolina Panthers dismantled the Arizona But it’s becoming increasingly apparent that although the shot back. song. The accompanying music video highlighted the signature Cardinals in the National Football League playoffs in word is no longer socially acceptable in a formal sense, it is still “The reason it bothers me is because it seems like it’s an dance style that came to be known as “The Ratchet.” This version January, a young black quarterback by the name of Cam communicated in other ways. accepted way of calling somebody the N-word now,” he said at of the song gained much more popularity and the phrase was A a press conference. “It’s like everybody else said the N-word and thrown into the center stage of pop culture. Newton reached one of the top pinnacles of professional sports: a “In the context of American racial history, there have always been trip to the Super Bowl. many terms that have been used to identify a black person, a person of then they say ‘thug’ and that’s fine. It kind of takes me aback and But as it was introduced to a larger audience, the meaning As the Panthers’ signal caller, Newton led the team to a nearly color,” says Darrell Millner, an Emeritus professor of Black Studies Illustration by Sarah Hamilton unblemished record during the season. Known for his size, strength at Portland State University. “Those terms have always coexisted. and quirky end-zone celebrations, Newton also created a stir this And each of the various terms had a particular connotation when season and developed his share of critics. used in that exchange between the user and the target.” CONVENIENCE STORE ROBBERY Some called him a showboat. Others complained that his These coded terms have acquired their negative implications antics after touchdowns were bringing the league down. When he through both systemic and de facto racism and harmful stereotypes. A GROUP OF suggested his critics were calling him out because he was a black They have become common because they don’t solicit the same quarterback, many responded by calling him a thug. social backlash that the N-word does. Still, they are abundant in THUGS* ROBBED A Newton shot back via Instagram, quoting boxer Muhammad the media, in politics and among groups of friends. LOCAL CONVENIENCE Ali: “I know where I’m going and I know the truth and I don’t “What that lets you do is talk about something without explicitly STORE LAST NIGHT... have to be what you want me to be. I’m free to be what I want.” racializing it, though you have implicitly racialized it,” Portland The implication in the use of the word “thug” was clear: It refers State University sociolinguist Keith Walters says. to malintent or criminal behavior. But Newton made it clear that he Sophomore Deaijainae Tolbert, who is African American, says wasn’t going to let the media take shots with such coded language. her experience with the use of coded terms at Grant is frustrating Many words – among them “ratchet,” “ghetto” and “sketchy” and unfair. “I get called for being ghetto, but for some reason in – are widely used by mainstream media. And their use implicitly order for me to express myself, I (have to) be loud,” she says. degrades people and communities of color. The language, in The term “ghetto” denotatively means an area of a city with a essence, becomes code for something negative. large concentration of ethnic or racial minorities. Ghettos often Nike Arnold, an associate professor of applied linguistics at form because of social, economic or governmental restrictions Portland State University, says the notion of coded language is and today are commonly used to describe something as cheap rooted in the power dynamics of race. “Humans have always used and substandard. More specifically, the word is used to target and language to position themselves and position others,” Arnold says. degrade the black community. “It can happen implicitly and very explicitly. In the case of these But Aujai Webster, a junior who is African American, notes: derogatory terms, that’s a very explicit positioning of somebody.” “Not just one race can be ghetto. Ghetto is a word, that is, anyone Like the N-word, these coded terms carry weight. Their can be ghetto. It’s not just one race…It is an offensive word for connotations extend into perpetuating offensive stereotypes and some but then you hear some people calling themselves ghetto.” 6:276:27 69 62°° adding to the superiority complex of white dominance in American The use of this word can be traced back to the 16th century culture. Still, discussion around coded language is a relatively new when European countries segregated the Jewish population to concept. specific parts of their cities. By the end of the 19th century, Jewish The N-word’s use began dwindling from the political and public ghettos around Europe were thought to have disappeared, but that arenas in the 1960s. Since then, the word has mainly been used by changed with the rise to power of Nazi Germany. people who express overtly racist beliefs or by young people who In the United States, the word has morphed into both an intra *Black people seek to reclaim it. and interracial put-down. 28 Grant Magazine March 2016 29 Afterthoughts began to change. Marked by the release of “Ratchet Girl Anthem” can say there’s an inner-city culture in which generations of people by Emmanuel and Phillip Hudson in 2012, it became a term to don’t value work,” Ian Haney López, author of “Dog Whistle degrade African-American women by stereotyping them as wild Politics” and law professor at University of California-Berkeley, and unrefined. said in an article in “The Root” following Ryan’s interview. And its use has carried over into television to further enforce Ryan’s word choice and message as a whole was offensive. stereotypes. Henderson says: “I was actually watching a show Some understood the true meaning of his commentary while not that long ago like, ‘Real Housewives of Potomac,’ I guess. others didn’t recognize the problem, an element to the dog-whistle And like these are black women and like that’s the only time, like tactic. shows about black women are always about drama.” “All that a political candidate has to do is use the word thug, and Today among students, “ratchet” can be heard in almost any many listeners will immediately picture someone who is African conversation with implications meant to degrade. American,” Walters says. Perhaps the most common and overlooked of the coded terms The reality of dog-whistle politics is that there’s a thin line is the word “sketchy,” which means incomplete. But informally between strategic, implicit messages and outwardly racist remarks. among young people and in pop culture, it’s taken on the These implicit messages are especially abundant in the media, meaning of threatening, dishonest and disreputable and tends whose unique ability to shape the public agenda has enforced the to describe areas or neighborhoods with greater minority use of coded language. populations. Last April, CNN news anchor Erin Burnett referred to black Walters points out that protesters in Baltimore as coded language doesn’t always “thugs.” City Councilman come out in obvious ways. He Carl Stokes, who is black, asserts that terms like “urban,” responded sharply saying “inner-city” and “at-risk” “All that a political facetiously, “Come on. So have become increasingly calling them thugs — just call V. racialized and are commonly candidate has to do is them niggers.” used in conversation to allow use the word thug, and Although the use of these A Choice of Words, members of the dominant words in the media is disputed, culture to speak without any many listeners will it continues to happen. A Matter of Conscience repercussions. And this carries over into “For example,” recounts immediately picture the school setting. These To understand the meaning of the word “nigger,” Walters, “Portland State someone who is African words are not new to the I had to face my family, my friends and myself. advertises itself as an urban lexicon of Grant students university, and it has every American.” or staff, and teachers can be By Blu Midyett right to do that because it’s heard lightly saying many of located smack dab in the - Keith Walters, these coded terms during class. middle of downtown Portland. This offhand use is especially But I have certainly been Sociolinguist, problematic because people remember when I first the word came from, how white men had taken places and people have said to throw them around as if they said the word nigger. Western Africans from their homes and made me, ‘Oh, Portland State’s an Portland State University don’t mean anything, refusing It wasn’t out of hate. them their slaves, using this word like the sting urban university – how many to acknowledge the role that It wasn’t a joke. It of a whip. The word was how white plantation black students do you have?’... race plays in a number of cameI out of curiosity. At the owners and their employees degraded the people In that case, (urban) is a kind dynamics. time, I was seven and living in they owned, using the word to put an entire race of euphemism.” Millner says: “There’s a scale between using the term that an a small apartment in Lawrence, beneath them. The danger of coded language extends beyond school hallways individual prefers to use as self-identification, all the way down to Kan., with my mother. As a My mother – even today – believes the word and Twitter; it’s found a place in politics, as well. Dog-whistle the N-word. And every term that would be a part of that hierarchy child, I was goofy and loved to joke has no place in our society. I was devastated at the politics is a concept that utilizes coded language to implicitly would be a coded reference to how you felt about that person. So with my mom, often calling her silly time. It shocked me that one word could carry so demean certain people without being outwardly discriminatory. instead of calling that person in the early 20th century a colored names and laughing along with her. much weight. Today’s politicians often choose their words wisely and, with the person, if I called them a darkie that was an indication that I had “Nigger,” I said to her, giggling along This, coming from my white mother, has help of racially-coded terms, can send charged messages through no respect for them. But not to the degree of calling them the as I continued to laugh about whatever stuck with me. I’ve held onto what she said back their rhetoric. N-word.” else I was saying. I watched as my then. But my surroundings and experiences have “The issue is if you understand the code, then you get the The concept of coded language doesn’t extend as far back as mother’s always-optimistic face turned to changed along the way. Today, I hear the word in meaning,” Walters says. “But this means you don’t really have to the N-word, but it has certainly found a place today in American a cold, stern gaze. music and coming out of the mouths of my friends, say the potentially offensive thing, at least not initially.” culture. And it speaks to a bigger issue. “Do you know what that word means?” white and black. Whether it’s used as a term of In 2014, now Speaker of the House Paul Ryan went on the Until race is acknowledged as a prominent intersection in she asked, incredulously. I had no idea. I friendship, as an added emphasis to a joke or as a record during a morning talk show to say there was a “real culture the public arena, the undertones of the N-word will continue to had heard it in movies and on television, hateful comment, I continue to struggle on where problem” in the country’s “inner cities.” He went on to directly penetrate all facets of our culture. but had no idea of the weight that it held. to draw the line between casual use and ignorance. criticize men in these communities for not stepping up to the Nike Arnold, the associate professor of applied linguistics at My mom gathered herself, spoke softly Living as a racially mixed child, I’ve had some plate. Ryan’s pitch was meant to gain support for his upcoming Portland State University, says that it’s part of a cycle. “These and made her point. “You can’t say confusion about my identity. I’ve been surrounded legislative proposals, among them work requirements for “inner- conscious efforts to find a new term that is not as loaded,” she says, that,” she said. by white faces my whole life. I have pale skin, but city” men. “over time, these terms have gained the same negative connotations She explained where my hair is kinky. I’ve grown up “You can’t publicly say black people don’t like to work, but you and then we’ve looked for other ones. This is an endless process.” ◊ Photo by Molly Metz 30 Grant Magazine March 2016 31 Serving the Grant community for 16 years! wanting to understand and embrace a bigger piece of black culture Finding the Right Resources in my life than I have had. It’s important to recognize that discussions around race and the N-word When someone black recognizes that I’m mixed, I feel a sense need to continue beyond this issue of the magazine. Our intent is not to Tim Volpert of pride that I haven’t found anywhere else. It helps me to know dictate answers but to spark discussions between students, staff and the that my black side has meaning and is still there, that it hasn’t been community at large. To get a handle on such an explosive subject is going to Attorney at Law drowned out. take everyone making an effort to listen and understand. Unfortunately, there’s another form I’ve found that goes with • Civil litigation that confirmation. It would come out when I found myself in the “Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word” pit of jokes from my white friends. In the past, I wasn’t particularly by Randall Kennedy • Mediation hurt by them and never equated them to being hateful, racist slurs. Randall Kennedy, an author and law professor at Harvard • Appeals But the demeaning and isolating qualities of the jokes eventually University, details the history of the N-word, identifying key made me question their credibility as humor. points that make the word what it is today. From court cases I was in sixth grade when my friends began making references to popular culture to power dynamics, Kennedy explores the to African-American stereotypes and laughing about them. I nuances of a word that’s become one of the most complex in our lexicon. For more than 30 years, Tim has represented laughed with them for a while. They told me I should be good at individuals, businesses, neighborhood and basketball because my dad was black. Once, we played a game “Mommy, What Does ‘Nigger’ Mean?” other associations and public bodies in state gifts & cards called “Run from the Black Man,” where I chased my friends by Gloria Naylor around the woods. and federal courts and administrative agencies. I played into these gags without knowing or understanding that Renowned author Gloria Naylor tells the story of the first Whatever your legal issues may be, give Tim a clothing time she heard the word, recognizing its bizarre sound & I was perpetuating stereotypes with my friends. By participating and painful implications. She outlines an argument for call. He is a problem solver! and not questioning things, I was aiding in the creation of racial reclaiming the word in the black community to mean “varied insensitivity. This behavior was not new and it didn’t come out of and complex human beings.” Free consultation! Jewelry nowhere. Through the media, music and the entertainment industry that “The N Word” by Jabari Asim (503) 703-9054 we all watched together, I have no confusion as to where these 4210 NE Fremont, Portland, OR ideas came from. And without a reasonable voice opposing my Jabari Asim walks the reader through the birth of the N-word and the impact it’s dealt on American culture. Following its Or send Tim an email: [email protected] 503-287-4440 www.thearrangementpdx.com friends, “nigger” quickly came into frequent use. use from the mouths of former presidents to the music of For more information, visit us online First, it was singing along to a song, a greeting from time to time modern day rap, Asim makes clear his opposition to the or hearing it in a joke. Throughout middle school, my non-black casual use of the N-word. http://www.timvolpertlaw.com/ friends began to question why I rarely ever said the word along with them. The few times that I did say it, it never felt right. By the time high school rolled around, the word was commonplace. “Between the World and Me” Many of the black students I met at Grant don’t mind the casual by Ta-Nehisi Coates WeWe are are invested invested in in your your future. future. use of the word; some even use it openly with white friends. The concept of it as a negative expression continued to confuse me. I In an open letter to his 15-year-old son, Ta-Nehisi Coates holds TheThe College College Board Board is re-designingis re-designing the the nothing back in describing the racial injustice that black people SATSAT starting starting in inMarch March 2016. 2016. wasn’t sure how to treat it and grew increasingly OK with its use. face in America. He makes it clear to his son that the system is WeWe offer offer SAT SAT classes classes with with a focus a focus That didn’t last. As I watched and read about the injustices done not meant to benefit him as a young black man. In this, Coates to black people in our country over time, I had to take a step back. makes it clear that he speaks to the black youth of this country. onon the the re-designed re-designed test. test. But anyone willing to listen will greatly benefit from this read. Re-designedRe-designed SAT SAT test test dates dates are: are: I began to realize the negative legacy that the word still holds. MarchMarch 5, 5,May May 7, 7,June June 4 4 And so I was shocked, but not completely surprised, when some long-time friends of mine began making racist jokes over a group “The N-word” by The Washington Post text. I called a particular friend out and he told me that he “doesn’t WinterWinter 2016 2016 Classes Classes include include hate niggers.” My other friends responded with laughs at first, but Using filmed conversations and interactive media, The ACTACT Prep Prep I was furious. I told him I wouldn’t speak with him if he continued Washington Post creates a powerful platform for discussion. to act like that, so I cut him off for weeks. The Post tackles the confusion around the word by sharing CollegeCollege Prep: Prep: Calculus Calculus At this particular point, I had to decide if I was ready to fully anecdotes and opinions from people of all different ethnicities take on my newfound beliefs. Could I do more than simply say and backgrounds through video and in a printed story: SATSAT Prep: Prep: Re-designed Re-designed Test Test “shut up” or give a blank stare? www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dre/features/the-n-word SAT:SAT: Advanced Advanced Math Math Help Help I haven’t entirely overcome the fear of confrontation when SAT:SAT: Math Math Help Help

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