I was away for a couple of days and I didn't get a chance to reply to this comment.

Abbot, given that the word "nigger" doesn't just offend people, which is permitted on this site, but actually hurts many, what point exactly are you trying to make?

I have no problem with people using any word here, and I'm certainly not going to censor what you have said, but this discussion is far from over, and it seems to me that you are attempting to pre-empt the outcome.

You are well aware that a debate is going on here regarding when and where the word nigger is acceptable. Why are you using this word on this site outside a discussion on its acceptable uses?

I forgot to mention.

Martin Luther King was one hell of a nigger.

Just a pity we don't have one hell of a nigger like that in Ireland.

Two certainties in one sentence.

You are a very certain woman.

Obama is not black, he’s just strangely brown.

Your girlfriends need to get over it, and see the man for what he is.

“….ban it’s use by the society….”

You need to find yourself another society.

“This girl believes ‘African’ or ‘African-American’ is the correct nomenclature”

I’d recommend that you don’t join a society that uses words like “nomenclature”, its bad for your health.

Here’s a little bit of Martin Luther King you might want to share with your current girlfriends (the humans you socialise with).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b80Bsw0UG-U&feature=player_embedded

Let me know what your girlfriends think.

Oh, bye the bye Martin Luther King was a black man.

If your girlfriends think he was white maybe they’re colour blind.

I am a member of a certain society in a certain third level institution. In it, we like to stage debates. In our many speeches about Barack Obama in recent times, he was often referred to as being 'black'. One member saw this term as being offensive and sought to ban it's use by the society. This girl believes 'African' or 'African-American' is the correct nomenclature. I tried to tell her that even Martin Luther King used the word 'negro'. It caused a huge ruckus, and now everybody has to tip-toe carefully when talking about a coloured human being. This girl even complained to some professors, despite the fact that the society is a student-driven one and prides itself on it's independence. She refuses to listen to reason – that the word was never used in an ofensive manner and it happens to be used by the Harvard Law Review, Yale Law Review, etc.

The person in question is just one of those people who sees racism everywhere and wants to blame it for all her problems, and was probably looking for attention.

An Irish friend of mine was falsely accused of a racial slur against a person of a minority group. What started out as a mere argument between two people was tuned into a racial accusation. Thankfully, friends and other witnesses confirmed that the confrontation was not at all racially motivated and that no racial insults were exchanged. My friend was distressed of being branded a racist until cleared by the police of this fabricated, yet serious allegation.

Moral of the story: Make sure potential witnesses are around while engaging in conversations and/or arguments with members of minority groups. Ironically, this racist slur allegation would have been unfounded considering the use of words and had the quarrel been with just another “Caucasian” Irish person.

until we are able to openly discuss the racial disparity here in the u.s., and for openers by
the simple act of white americans
offering up an apology for 200+ years of blatent mis-treatment of one human being to another, until then, the word will still carry fire.
and also, until then no healing can begin…
believe me, the "n" word is but a tiny tip of a very large berg.