Today, in the land of COMP I, we began talking about techniques to define words and the power held by those who are able to influence the connotations words take on. This eventually moved to a discussion of the word “nigger” and how it is understood: is it a word that can be reappropriated by the African-American community as a positive word, or is the baggage of history too heavy to release this term from its negative context?
We watched these two YouTube clips and then discussed Gloria Naylor’s piece on the “N” word.
The majority of the class seemed shocked at the subject matter, perhaps because up to this point we have been discussing listening and writer-response techniques, and now we have slid into the world of cultural studies. For as provocative as the subject matter is, no one seemed to have any strong statements to make on the topic, other than it was a topic that generally made them uncomfortable. Some people thought that the topic of race was “over,” and it wasn’t that interesting to talk about anymore.
Maybe I am one of those people who always project into daily conversation whatever it is they are reading, but I have been reading this text on teaching race in the classroom (Race in the College Classroom, TuSmith and Reddy), and there is a lot of discussion about how white people are prone to resist discussing matters of race in the classroom. Some authors in the text argue it is because whites have not grown up with the racialized awareness that people of color have. Whiteness, in the American 20th century, and still possibly today, has been considered a “non-race.” Some authors in this text argue that whiteness needs to be re-legitimized as a race for topics of race to be broached with less trepidation in classroom discussion, (especially in majority-white institutions).
When people trust you enough to “let you in,” you find out that racism (and all the other “isms”) are alive and well in this country. People still tell stories about hideously bad treatment they’ve received on the job or in school or just in their own neighborhoods. These days, it’s just more hidden/sneaky. But, just ask a black guy about driving in Albany and how easy it is to be pulled over. Ask a woman about the last time a group of guys felt free to shout out about her physical attributes. Ask a gay guy about threats or actually having been beaten up. The isms are ugly and sneaky and don’t deserve our silent assent. Your professor is wonderful to bring these things out into the open. Like monsters who dwell only in darkness, the isms shrivel up a little when they’re brought into the light. If we bring them out in the open enough, maybe someday we’ll be able to kill them off. Oh, what wishful thinking.
That day that compI when we watched the you tube videos was pretty intense. I felt the awkwardness of hearing the “N” word. Especially when the only black guy in the class put his head down, and refused in a way to make any comment or give any feedback. What did you thimk about that Mr. Wilk?
That class was uncomfortable, and it was uncomfortable last year, too. It is uncomfortable in different ways, depending on the make-up of the class. For instance, if you are in an all-white class, there is a feeling of inauthenticity if it is just white people sitting around talking about how the N word makes them uncomfortable. But that is a valid conversation, and I think we should discuss why the word is still uncomfortable and should be faced head-on.
Also, in the same type of classroom situation, non-white students sometimes feel pressured to “represent” the non-white races. As a teacher I try to be aware of that pressure.
In fact, in my other Comp One class, the only black student in the class said “hey, don’t you white people worry. You can talk about race around me.” It was a funny statement, but a serious one nonetheless.
Vonnie Vannier suggested I visit your website, and I was intrigued when I read about your discussion of the “n” word in class. I’m the Associate Dean overseeing the Instructional Support Services and Retention unit at the college, and one of the offices within that unit is the Collegiate Academic Support Program. The program supports minority students enrolled at the college. An off-the-cuff discussion about the use of the word was recently facilitated by Roy Pompey, the head of that office, and I know that he would welcome continuing the conversation within some sort of a more formal, scheduled settting. If you’re interested in participating, give Roy a call at #7160.
Kathy
Thanks for this comment Kathy, I’ll contact Roy soon. I’d like to do some more work like this next semester.