John Singleton Needs to Learn the Power of Words

In Kenneth Turan’s review of John Singleton’s “Poetic Justice” (“Traveling on a Bumpy Road,” Calendar, July 23), he writes: “When the film’s liberal use of profanity is added in (plus enough presumably authentic slang to confuse anyone not raised in the ‘hood), a good part of ‘Poetic Justice’ is more unpleasant than most romances want to be.”

Unpleasant isn’t the word.

Is it possible these days for young black filmmakers to make a movie without those words ? In “Poetic Justice,” viewers are barraged with the “B” word, the “MF” word, and especially, the “N” word. Singleton may think it sounds hip, cute or tough to use these words, but I don’t.

In the past when I heard young blacks use the “N” word, I ignored it; I knew it was the way many of them talk to each other. It is part of their hip jargon. They aren’t particularly troubled by the odious significance of it. So my question for those blacks who liberally douse their films with the word: Is it OK for whites to do the same?

We know the answer. It’s absolutely taboo for a white person to use the “N” word. When any white person, especially a celebrity or public official uses the word or makes any other racist reference, they’ll hear about it.

But the double standard that many young blacks apply to whites is now coming back to haunt them. Many young whites, like blacks, are casually tossing the word around.

Not long ago, a black friend found out how casual. He and two young whites were in an elevator. Suddenly, one of the whites jokingly called his companion a “nigger.” It didn’t matter to him that a black man was standing there. Was it racism? Was it cultural insensibility, or just plain ignorance? Did he realize that many blacks find the word offensive? Probably not.

He was dressed in the latest baggy style. In the cross-over world of hip culture, he’d certainly heard blacks use the phrase with one another. I’m also sure he’d heard black comedians and rappers wear the word out in their rap lyrics and comedy lines. Rapper Eazy-E used it in the title of one song and then rode it to the top of the record charts.

In recent issues of popular black magazines Essence and Emerge, black writers went through lengthy gyrations trying to justify using the word. They claim that the more a black person uses the word, the less offensive it becomes. Comedian-turned-activist Dick Gregory had the same idea some years ago when he used the “N” word as the title of his autobiography.

Many blacks say they use the word endearingly or affectionately. Others are defiant. They say they don’t care what a white person calls them, it’s only words and they can’t hurt.

But they do. Words are not value neutral. They express concepts and ideas. Often, they reflect society’s standards. If color-phobia is one, then an emotionally charged word like this one can easily reinforce and perpetuate stereotypes. So I’m puzzled.

Don’t the admirers of the “N” word know anything about the brutal history of slavery and segregation? Don’t they know that lynch mobs preceded their orgies of violence by shouting this epithet?

Don’t they know that the recent escalation in hate crimes, nationally, is strong proof that racial violence is hardly a thing of the past? The Los Angeles County Human Relations Commission reported that in 1992 L.A. County experienced a record number of hate crimes. And blacks were the major targets. The “N” word was the favorite racist epithet that vandals plastered on the walls of black homes and businesses.

Don’t they know that the “N” word has left psychological scars on the generations of black children that American society treated like racial untouchables?

Maybe that’s why Richard Pryor told a concert audience that he would never use the “N” word again. The audience was stunned. The irreverent comedian had practically made a career out of using the word in his routines. Pryor softly explained that the word was profane and disrespectful. He was dropping it because he had too much pride in blacks and himself. The audience applauded. I suggest that Singleton and anyone else who thinks it’s hip to use the “N” word should go rent the tape of that concert.