Huck Finn and the N-word:
So, last night I received 10 texts after the post about HUCK FINN being PC-ified. I was done with this story, I had moved on. When our local news came on at 10pm, I was interested in seeing how they would cover the story. Keep in mind last night it was everywhere and on everything. When I was driving home it was on NPR, but I am done with this story, I took a stand or at least said where I stand.
I don't usually watch this particular channel but, my cousin was texting me to turn to channel 4 news. In the newscast they have a section called "Good Question?" And you know what the question was, "should a new version of Huck Finn be edited? Or something to that effect. So, as I am watching the story they interviewed 5 or 6 people, one was white and the others were all black. Now, the when the media wants to get around being or appearing racist they get a lot of African-Americans to basically say the same thing that any white person would say but, by having a African-American say it's some how less offensive. So, I now know what direction the story is headed based of the comments made by the six people being interviewed. There was this hallmark moment early on in this piece when they had two young African-American gentlemen outside a corner store, dressed in their full winter grab, looking seriously urban. So, the reported ask them what they think and then... wait... the male said "I use the word." All of them almost in unison saying "Leave it alone," "it's fine," then a clip of Anderson Copper, from CNN, saying that changing the book to be more sensitive would be like changing the the title of the book "War and Peace" to just "Peace." For real?
I remember this book in elementary school and nobody pulled it off the shelves then; So, I have to say that I was quite surprised to hear that many schools across the country did not allow the book in their schools. With that being said, this edited version of the book is intended for elementary and middle school students, this is the core audience. A edited version allows teachers to bring the book into the classroom and expose this literary classic to them, an opportunity they have not had in a long time. The original version is not being pulled off the shelves and hidden away. The new normal is that we are more PC and that is because we are now a more diverse society. We censor and edit content all the time and content is being edited for us, whether you know it or not. I am editing myself right now!
At the end of that story, they cut to the reporter and the news anchors all agreeing that this new change was silly and smiling. I am now in-sensed. First of all they are all white, so what the hell do they know about being called a "nigger?" They may have used the word but, they have never been called one. I could not help but think about my Elementary and Middle school years and being called a "nigger" everyday of the week from the grades 4 till 9th grade. Sometimes I even forgot my own name because I knew they don't SEE me as a person, just this word. Kids can be cruel, especially in High school. As an adult we instinctively protect kids from many things until they the maturity to handle it. However, this is a call that each parent must make at home, but while this book is on our school shelves we need to protect those kids who cannot protect them themselves. It's as if everyone forgot about all the news stories a couple months ago about all these kids being bullied in school and kids killing themselves because they did feel like they fit in or were not welcome in their schools. Words have power, even the wrong words.
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