Richards apologizes for racial slurs

[chri'stina 190]

I agree Jenn.

Richards was the professional, he should not have done it period. He is a racist. No matter how angry I have ever gotten or will get in my life those things will not come from my lips. You don't say it if you don't mean it. He should not have said it no matter what the hecklers said.

I saw his apology. I think he is very sorry, just not for what he wants us to believe he is sorry for.

I don't know if I would label him a racist just for using that word though. I sense a mentality among white males that's very childish IMO. "Why can't I say that word? If you can say it, then I should be able to say it! How come no one gets mad if someone insults me for being white. Why is it always about *them*?" Which isn't necessarily racist, just petty.

childish? what's childish about it? pointing out that using one word is social suicide, yet using the "grave racial insult" word for another ethnic group is acceptable? it's a double standard, jenn. i'm sorry you can't understand that.

I understand it perfectly well. You're offended that one group is able to insult you while you are not able to insult that group. Sure it's a double standard. But you might have a leg to stand on if you weren't crying all the time about people being offended too easily.

i find it offensive that racial insults are used at all by anyone. just because i'm white that does not give me the right to toss the word cracker around and claim it's not offensive because after all, i'm white. the same should apply to those who use the n word. why not just cut it out of one's vocabulary and quit perpetuating this evil word?

I'm not sure why the word cracker is really so bad. Sometimes my friends joking call each other that. It doesn't seem to be offensive like the N word. I think it's really stupid that people use that word too, even amongst friends. I like when Bill Cosby lectured about it and how stupid it is. But I see that word as much worse. Maybe it's because I have never seen anyone seriously be called a cracker and if they were they didn't seem to care at all. If someone called me that, I don't even consider it a slur, but just a stupid word. Maybe I'm missing something?

I also don't like double standards but to me cracker and the N word don't compare to each other. In Florida, if someone was born here we call them Florida crackers, and they call themselves that too. It doesn't have a slur feeling down here.

Main Entry: crack·er

Pronunciation: 'kra-k&r

Function: noun

1 chiefly dialect : a bragging liar : BOASTER

2 : something that makes a cracking or snapping noise: as a : FIRECRACKER b : the snapping end of a whiplash : SNAPPER c : a paper holder for a party favor that pops when the ends are pulled sharply

3 plural : NUTCRACKER

4 : a dry thin crispy baked bread product that may be leavened or unleavened

5 a usually disparaging : a poor usually Southern white b capitalized : a native or resident of Florida or Georgia -- used as a nickname

[mrsushi66 0]

The problem is (as OP suggested) is interpretation and context. Words only have power if people give them power, I believe this to be true for the most part. The exception is when a word has a long history in a certain context and the "N" word fits that bill.

IF I get in an arguement with a friend of mine who happens to be black and I call him a$$hole, idiot, d1ck, mothertrucker and many other explitives in that vein then we are just two guys arguing up a storm, albiet childshly but still just two guys. Now if I whip out the "N" word fully knowing the history of that word I am sorry but I knew what I was doing and it just took the heat of the arguement for me to display that piece of who I am. Does that make me a racisit, probably on some level.

Now take the same situation between to friends who are black and in my opinion the one that uses that word is a bit of a racisist but on a different level.

Is it a double standard, yep probably but guess what they exist. There are a lot of things in this world that are unfair and until everyone takes personal responsability to start the change with themselves things like this are gonig to continue. We only have control over ourselves, change starts with each of us.

The next time one of your friends tells a joke about a certain race or sexual orientation or little understood religion make a choice to laugh or not but remember it is always the little things that support the bigger things. The foundation of a building is built with individual stones.

I am sure someone will say this is political correctness ####### but I dont believe this is.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

The problem is (as OP suggested) is interpretation and context. Words only have power if people give them power, I believe this to be true for the most part. The exception is when a word has a long history in a certain context and the "N" word fits that bill.

IF I get in an arguement with a friend of mine who happens to be black and I call him a$$hole, idiot, d1ck, mothertrucker and many other explitives in that vein then we are just two guys arguing up a storm, albiet childshly but still just two guys. Now if I whip out the "N" word fully knowing the history of that word I am sorry but I knew what I was doing and it just took the heat of the arguement for me to display that piece of who I am. Does that make me a racisit, probably on some level.

Now take the same situation between to friends who are black and in my opinion the one that uses that word is a bit of a racisist but on a different level.

Is it a double standard, yep probably but guess what they exist. There are a lot of things in this world that are unfair and until everyone takes personal responsability to start the change with themselves things like this are gonig to continue. We only have control over ourselves, change starts with each of us.

The next time one of your friends tells a joke about a certain race or sexual orientation or little understood religion make a choice to laugh or not but remember it is always the little things that support the bigger things. The foundation of a building is built with individual stones.

I am sure someone will say this is political correctness ####### but I dont believe this is.

It's not really a double standard, but of recognizing how words can be powerful under different circumstances. Joke around with your friend and call him a retard and he'll laugh it off, but do that in front of parent who's child is mentally retarded and it's like driving a stake into their heart.

Edited November 21, 2006 by Steven_and_Jinky

[mrsushi66 0]

Sure it's a double standard. Dont you think a parent of a mentally handicapped had ever used the word retard prior to having that child. Then when faced with this situation they re-evaluate the word but it is still a double standard because when they originally said it they didnt truly mean anything by it but now that they have a child who is mentally handicapped the word has a history and a context.

[Caladan 19]

Pet peeve: middle class white guys b*tching they're oppressed because they can't use n------ ironically. Wah, wah.

If you look at humor, it generally follows lines of small-group towards big-group. The fool may mock the king, but if the king mocks the fool, he's cruel. Why? Power dynamic. It's funny when Richard Pryor did 'whiteface.' Why? Because there was a long nasty traditon of blackface, and reversing norms is funny.

Words can also have different meanings depending on context, and so can actions. I may criticize my sister. You can't. You're not her sister. Same thing here. In-groups get to make their own rules. It's not a double standard, it's just that a small group, like a family, is in a better position to judge someone's intentions. Steven's retard example is good.

None of this has a damned thing to do with Richards, of course. He responded to a heckler in a nasty way and then tried to pass it off as a joke and failed miserably. This isn't a case of poor white guy unable to make a joke, this is a case of poor washed-up comedian getting heckled and running straight for the racial slurs.

[Alex+R 0]

Pet peeve: middle class white guys b*tching they're oppressed because they can't use n------ ironically. Wah, wah.

If you look at humor, it generally follows lines of small-group towards big-group. The fool may mock the king, but if the king mocks the fool, he's cruel. Why? Power dynamic. It's funny when Richard Pryor did 'whiteface.' Why? Because there was a long nasty traditon of blackface, and reversing norms is funny.

Words can also have different meanings depending on context, and so can actions. I may criticize my sister. You can't. You're not her sister. Same thing here. In-groups get to make their own rules. It's not a double standard, it's just that a small group, like a family, is in a better position to judge someone's intentions. Steven's retard example is good.

None of this has a damned thing to do with Richards, of course. He responded to a heckler in a nasty way and then tried to pass it off as a joke and failed miserably. This isn't a case of poor white guy unable to make a joke, this is a case of poor washed-up comedian getting heckled and running straight for the racial slurs.

I made this argument once and everyone told me that racism is racism and therefore I was a racist.

[Caladan 19]

I'd have a hard time taking that sort of claim seriously. 'Yes, it not being socially acceptable to call someone 'n-----' is *exactly* like being a minority. And when you're hungry because you skipped breakfast, that's *exactly* like starving in Africa.'

[rebeccajo 14]

Something on the subject. In Brazil, the N-word is "negro" and black is "preto". For us it's an insult to call someone a "preto", when in fact, "negro" is the right name for the race. At the same time, depending on the context it's perfectly acceptable to use the word "preto" when talking about someone who's african-american.

So, 10 years ago I was an exchange student in US, and back then my english was poor and I didn't know much about US at all. I had a teacher pulling me to the corner of the classroom and saying between gritted teeth that I should NOT use the N word and I had no idea what she was talking about "what n word?" and she had a hard time actually saying it to me and explaining what I did wrong. I watched myself from that point on but I also remember that my african american classmates didn't seem offended by me, 'cus obviously, they knew I was foreign, and that I wasn't trying to be racist on anything.

Now I understand this a lot better, but back then I thought that maybe the whole N word issue was viewed worse by whites than by black people. And really, even more in Brazil, we're so mixed that now we have TONS of colors in between to invent names for, we go from chocolate, to coffee and milk, to brownie, or whatever we can use to call someone's color. I call myself a yellowish, since I'm a mix between spanish, black, native brazilian indian, and portuguese.

Uh....maybe I'm being stupid here but is 'negro' just as bad as the other N word?

I mean, in biology class I was taught that 'negroid' is the correct scientific name of the race.

Is it considered just as bad?

[eclowjpd 0]

There are many double standards when it comes to race relations. It's perfectly okay for some african americans to call white people "crackers". And it is meant as a derogatory term. But when those same people hear the word "***" only the white person is the racist.

If you see the video, there's no question that Richards was way over the line, but there's not much talk about him being taunted as being a mother ###### cracker.

[Heracles 417]

in particular, the man in the audience calls him a "f-ing cracker a$$" and a "f-ing white man"

Where is the condemnation of that. double standards..

If racism where illegal, as it is in a so many other countries, one would find both sides of the fence breaking the law..

Edited November 21, 2006 by Infidel

[eclowjpd 0]

The problem is (as OP suggested) is interpretation and context. Words only have power if people give them power, I believe this to be true for the most part. The exception is when a word has a long history in a certain context and the "N" word fits that bill.

IF I get in an arguement with a friend of mine who happens to be black and I call him a$$hole, idiot, d1ck, mothertrucker and many other explitives in that vein then we are just two guys arguing up a storm, albiet childshly but still just two guys. Now if I whip out the "N" word fully knowing the history of that word I am sorry but I knew what I was doing and it just took the heat of the arguement for me to display that piece of who I am. Does that make me a racisit, probably on some level.

Now take the same situation between to friends who are black and in my opinion the one that uses that word is a bit of a racisist but on a different level.

Is it a double standard, yep probably but guess what they exist. There are a lot of things in this world that are unfair and until everyone takes personal responsability to start the change with themselves things like this are gonig to continue. We only have control over ourselves, change starts with each of us.

The next time one of your friends tells a joke about a certain race or sexual orientation or little understood religion make a choice to laugh or not but remember it is always the little things that support the bigger things. The foundation of a building is built with individual stones.

I am sure someone will say this is political correctness ####### but I dont believe this is.

It's not really a double standard, but of recognizing how words can be powerful under different circumstances. Joke around with your friend and call him a retard and he'll laugh it off, but do that in front of parent who's child is mentally retarded and it's like driving a stake into their heart.

Could not disagree with you more. If you call me a cracker, I would certainly take offense and feel that it is racist based. You would feel the same if I call you ***, right?

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Pet peeve: middle class white guys b*tching they're oppressed because they can't use n------ ironically. Wah, wah.

If you look at humor, it generally follows lines of small-group towards big-group. The fool may mock the king, but if the king mocks the fool, he's cruel. Why? Power dynamic. It's funny when Richard Pryor did 'whiteface.' Why? Because there was a long nasty traditon of blackface, and reversing norms is funny.

Words can also have different meanings depending on context, and so can actions. I may criticize my sister. You can't. You're not her sister. Same thing here. In-groups get to make their own rules. It's not a double standard, it's just that a small group, like a family, is in a better position to judge someone's intentions. Steven's retard example is good.

None of this has a damned thing to do with Richards, of course. He responded to a heckler in a nasty way and then tried to pass it off as a joke and failed miserably. This isn't a case of poor white guy unable to make a joke, this is a case of poor washed-up comedian getting heckled and running straight for the racial slurs.

[pedroh 21]

btw.. among the afro-americans.. is not ***.. its #######'.. yes, the sound makes a BIG difference.. they dont say 'wassup ***' they say 'wassup #######'.... that last R is what adds the offensive tone..

double standard, or not.. its easy as fukc... if you're not black, don't say the N word, even if u work with blacks and are considered one of 'my #######'s'.. just don't fuckin use it.. period.. there's no big science around it..

[Jenn! 918]

double standard, or not.. its easy as fukc... if you're not black, don't say the N word, even if u work with blacks and are considered one of 'my #######'s'.. just don't fuckin use it.. period.. there's no big science around it..

[Cristy 4]

You are welcome to call me a cracker, just put cheese on my head and I am happy.

I hate the use of the word ####### ....especially in music. My kids think they can say it because it is in the music they hear. You can't have white kids walking around calling people my #######. But they think it is ok because they hear it all the time.

I don't think anyone should use it...no matter what their race.