For Someone Who Calls Themself a "Doctor" She Should Be More Sensitive

To be honest, I think Dr Laura gave voice to a rather prevalent frustration that many white folk have, relative to the double-standard of the use of the word "nigger." The problem however is that what she said was sufficiently out of touch with the history of the word that it is substantively an affront to civil discourse and the struggle to put the legacy of racism behind our nation.

The word "nigger" is not just a racial slur.  The word entered English from anglicized Spanish and Portugese as a variant of "negro" (from "nigro" meaning "black") and has always been particularly associated with defining the place of black folk as below the place of white folk, as well as the threats of violence and terrorism necessary to enforce such a social station.

We need to remember that in living memory it was not uncommon for groups to use violence including murder to keep "niggers" from getting "uppity" and that this plays very much into the social dynamics of the word.

When a white person calls a black person a "nigger" this then becomes a different social action than when a black person calls another black person the same thing.  The first carries a threat of direct violence, while the second carries a warning of violence by third parties.  That doesn't make the latter less oppressive than the former though.

Against this background, Dr Laura's statements contain the subtext of "How dare you black folk discriminate against us white folk?  We want an equal opportunity to be your oppressors!"  Substituting "n-word" for "nigger" doesn't make this go away.  The desire to be free to use such a word is a legacy of racism and this is as true for the use of the term among black folk as it is among anyone else.  The answer is to discuss whether it is helpful for the use of the word among anyone to be tolerated given the close historical tie to racial oppression, intimidation, and violence.

I think this double standard may be far more symptomatic of deep remaining racial issues, and it is high time we as a nation got together and had an open conversation about this.  We must come to the table willing to tolerate being offended in the name of being challenged to face our differences and try to build bridges.

The legacy of racism in this nation is still carried around by nearly American (perhaps excluding very recent immigrants), regardless of race or ethnicity, yet that legacy is invisible because it is not overt.    I would hope that by coming together across these lines we can see it, be challenged by it, and ultimately build the connections we need to put that chapter in our history to rest.

This doesn't mean that I think that most Americans think one race is necessarily superior or should be in power at the expense of other races, and I wouldn't even call carrying on such a legacy "racist" because I think there is value to defining such a term narrowly, and because I don't think these "echos" or "legacies" are specific to racism.  Even if we recognize race for what it is (a cultural construct used to defend cultural identity in the face of change and to guard against loss of political power), that doesn't mean that we do not unknowingly further  some impersonal mechanisms  of that construct. For example, I don't think the Time Magazine staff were consciously trying to change the darkness of OJ Simpson's skin in their photos of him before vs after the murder investigation began, but yet such a change is obvious if you do a comparison.

We need to get together, talk, and listen, sacrificing our willingness to take offense, and to try to understand things from as many viewpoints as possible.  I think we are able to begin to move beyond these ugly aspects of our history, but the journey will not be fast or easy, and we can't do it if we can't talk about how words like "nigger" play into it.

Well said, MichaelN! Only the most passionate Dr. Laura sycophant could possibly think it was OK for her to act this way, and her "apology" was petulant and childish. She's an American and has the right to say what she wants - and other Americans like her have the same right to respond to her offensive language honestly. They voted with their feet, and she lost a lot of fans while making her point. That's how it works - she just didn't like it. Funny how her principles don't hold up when they work against her.

What really gets me, too, is the stupidity of the racial slur. She should have instinctively known that the n word in any context would be offensive. However, Dr. Laura can call herself "doctor" because she has a PhD.

I thought Dr. Laura's apology was even more nauseous than her original commentary. I was watching one of the NBC news programs where she was voted 'Dumbest Person of the Week' and I thought that fit just about perfectly.

Good Commentary Michael! I totally agree.

I concur, I do not listen to her ot other talk radio shows. In the car it is classical or teaching Co. cd's,, (an example I recommend to all on Lunch.com). I just think that all of these talking heads regardless of whether they are on the right or left act like "shock jocks" to boost ratings. I am appalled at how low political discourse in this country has sunk, a pox on both their houses. It has caused our politicians to include the majority of the senate stoop to the low standard set for them mainly set by talking media heads. Good unbiased journalism in this country is just about dead.