One of the most irritating aspects of being a part of the 13 percent of Black folks in a very White America, is having to constantly explain and verify our existence.
At the top of the list of things we consider offensive is using the n-word, which has always been a source of contention for the Caucasian community.
Seeing how there’s documented evidence of the socio-economic privilege White people have, you’d think not being able to say one word wouldn’t be a big deal. Oh, but it is.
In a now deleted video posted to Instagram Stories, Game of Thrones star Sophie Turner is in the gym with boyfriend Joe Jonas and DJ Brendan Fallis, who’s holding the phone. Everyone is saying “hi” to the camera, but when the camera pans around to Turner, she can allegedly be heard saying, “What’s up my ni**er?!”
Fallis immediately laughs.
Turner has already denied saying the racial slur. She “used the word ‘motherf*ckers’” her rep told The Cut.
But for most people, they heard what they heard. And there are a few issues here.
First, Turner as a 21-year-old adult should know good and well that she shouldn’t use the word. Point blank.
Second, in less than a week Fallis is set to marry DJ/socialite Hannah Bronfman, a Black woman. While she’s made questionable statements in the past, often removing herself from the Black narrative in this country, she is a Black woman. And her soon-to-be husband should be privy to the deep pain attached to the word when used by White people.
If we have to say it one more time, we might scream. At this point, it’s not about telling White folks to not say the n-word, it’s about how sad it is that we have to constantly remind them.
