I got this friend, he's probably gonna get fired. You see... he works in the public eye, and he recently used a racial slur during casual conversation to a coworker. They're cool with each other like that, just normal joes, working in a stiff day job, calling each other names and slurs to pass the time. To each other, they see no harm done. The only problem is... a customer heard them, took offense, and complained to their home office.

This goes a few ways I suppose. I'm a minority myself. But I'm also a regular person. I have often times used racial slurs and other put downs in my own comfort zone of company. I think at one point we all have. If you say you haven't, you are either almost perfect or lying to yourself. You don't have to look past 9/11 to see a majority of Americans and stand up comedians using the middle eastern stereotype to get a laugh. You don't have to look beyond a casual night out among young hispanics before we start making fun of our own accents and weird traditions. You even have the "N-word" making it's way into prime time television and rap music videos for the past decade.

Hey America, let's wake up. We are most definitely NOT saints. A comedian once said "Everyone makes fun of a redneck till they have car trouble." That's the point of living in this melting pot. That's what makes us free. And if you want to call me an ignorant moron, well Hell, luckily, you have the freedom to do just that.

Once, when I was a kid, I noticed all the foul language and hateful messages written in a public restroom. My dad looked at me with sad eyes when I asked him about it. He said "It takes a small mind to write it, but also a small mind to read it." I took that to heart, I still do. It's not the words so much that hurt. It's the feelings people put behind them. After all, a prayer said by a person who doesn't believe he is talking to God, but just reciting words on a piece of paper, probably isn't as powerful as the person who is actually trying to talk to God.

I think that goes on today. I think if we use these words and make them harmless, it actually takes their power of hate away. I could be wrong, I'm sure I'll receive a slew of emails telling me that I don't know what I'm talking about, etc. etc... and that's fine.
But I got to tell you, the english language is powerful indeed, but so are the people who use it. Every year new words get introduced to the dictionary and officially entered into our language. The people who speak American English actually CHANGE the meaning of some words just by using them. It's a great thing. We can give a hateful word power, and we can take it away.

The whole context thing bugs me. Because I know my friend so well, I know that he would never use the slur in a racial hateful way. He used it as a greeting, the way many of you probably greet each other. I know the customer who overheard took it out of context. But... what can you do nowadays anyway? Most major companies are so afraid of bad press and lawsuits, they won't defend employees when it comes to things like that, no it's much easier to let things go. My friend knows this, he's made his peace with it, he's ready for the consequences. It just seems weird that the laws set out to protect people would punish someone I know has the least amount of racial hatred. Things as simple as a generation gap and misunderstood eavesdropping of a conversation can cost someone their job.

I put this blog up to stimulate thought. I'm interested to hear what people think. I do think that there are some really racist and closet racists out there, you don't have to look very far on the internet for that. But mostly, I think that people are good. I think that we realize our differences, and often point them out to each other. But we do the same to high school football team rivals, Canadians, and the Schwan's guy who always rings the doorbell at the wrong time of the afternoon. At the end of the day, we're all the same.