By Damion Boycott
Should it be considered racist if a black supervisor calls a black employee nigger? A federal judge in New York thinks so.
Judge Marjorie Sharpe awarded Brandi Johnson $250,000 after she argued that her former supervisor, Rob Carmona, routinely berated her and in one particularly heated rant called her and a co-worker niggers. Johnson is African-American. Carmona is a black man of Puerto Rican descent.
In her case against her former boss Johnson described "a hostile work environment", and said Carmona made derogatory comments to her and fellow co-workers. Initially her complaints fell on deaf ears and were ignored, then she decided to record one of Carmonas' nigger infused rants. Johnsons' four minute recording was the proof she needed to go forward with a case against him.
"I'm gonna give it to you hard-core ..." he could be heard saying on the tape."You and her are very bright ... but y'all act like niggers ... seriously."
Carmona and his attorney argued that his use of the word nigger was not meant to be derogatory. He explained that it is used "multiple contexts" in the black and latino communities- sometimes derogatory and sometimes as an endearing term.
Judge Sharpe, however did not accept Carmonas' explanation.
"When you use the word nigger to an African-American, no matter how many alternative definitions that you may try to substitute with the word nigger, that is no different than calling a Hispanic by the worst possible word you can call a Hispanic, calling a homosexual male the worst possible word that you can call a homosexual male," Sharpe told jurors.
The idea that the word nigger is some kind of endearing term is absurd at best. The origin of the word had a disagreeable connotation, it was used as an insult. The idea that black people began to use the word shows forth some level of self hate. Yes, there are some African Americans that use the word as a term of endearment, but that is not always the case. The people that use the word nigger as an endearing term can easily be described as misguided. They also sound and look extremely ignorant when they use the term in public- around people of all races. Most of the time when the word is used it is meant to be an offensive pejorative. The word was originally used by Europeans to denigrate people of African origin.
For Carmona to try to justify use of the word by saying that it is used as an endearing term is ridiculous. Sharpe has ordered him to pay Ms. Johnson $250,000. In his case the word is being used as a negative not as an endearing term.