What is your opinion of this story

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7128935

This is a story from NPR's Day to Day. It is about an effort to ban the N word in New York City. During the course of the report the n word, the s word (toward Hispanics) and the c word and g word (toward Asians) are all refered to by the term I just typed. Conversely the f word is first called that, then the reporter claims he mistook it for fuck, and then used faggot.

I find this truely amazing that a) the reporter supposedly didn't know which f word and b) that faggot alone was considered worth saying on the radio.

I reconsidered. I see your point. He would not have dared to actually SAY the other words the letters stood for, but he was OK with saying "faggot," an incredibly crude and disgusting label. I would change my vote, if I could! This would have zipped right on by me if you hadn't called it to my attention.

First off, when I hear "the F word" I only think of "fuck" too.

With context it may clearly mean "faggot", and I think in this context the reporter should have figured it out.

But I also don't want an "F word". I don't want a word to have so much power that it can't even be said.

That doesn't mean I want it used to hurt people, however. So like I said: I'm conflicted.

I heard it so many times from 7th through 10th grade and never knew what would follow that word. Sometime it was simply the word and other times it might be a beating. To this day I hear that word and just can't stop myself from reacting negatively.

I'll be damned if a word alone is going to have that power over me.

:-)

but like it or not the word does have that power because there is still such hatred in the world.

...discussion of this topic from yesterday's "Talk of the Nation" (it's on at the same time as Day to Day):

>>>The origins of the word in this sense are rather obscure.

It is often claimed that the derivation is associated directly with faggot meaning "bundle of sticks for burning", since homosexuals were supposedly burnt at the stake in medieval England. More accurately, they were doused in fuel and used in place of sticks for the burning of supposed witches (Fone, Byrne., Homophobia 2000). However, this practice ended centuries before the word faggot became associated with gay people. <1> This does not rule out the association of gay men with the word 'faggot' occuring because of this historical practice. The ability to label homosexuals 'faggots' in hindsight of the practice of using homosexuals as fuel to burn 'witches' in the Middle Ages cannot be ruled out. In this sense the epithet can be incredibly offensive, equating the value of the person so-called to lower than a reviled person that one would like to burn at the stake, in fact their value is only as fuel to burn the object of revulsion.<<<<<

The word 'faggot', like the word 'nigger' , is rarely used as anything other than as a precursor to, or suggestion of, violent assault.

People who think 'faggot' is ok are people who will not be particularly disturbed when a faggot is burned to death or discriminated against in some less colorful form.

But when you said 'F" word, i thought F*ck as well.

You know, like F Bomb.

Hell, It took me a while to even figure out what you meant by "S" word for hispanics and "G" word for asians.

Still dont' know what the "C" word for Asians is.

I have actually been around a few racists. Most just use words like "mexican" as if it was a dirty word.

and I woulda been p-o too, these people who are on the radio, tv, and run govt and companies have no respect for us as a whole.

http://www.snickers.com/contact.asp be sure to see my other story about snickers on here and write them.



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