Racial slurs!

[Rev. Rye]

Well, in the interest of addressing our racist idiot bully's points, I figure I may as well dissect it.

Are we allowed to use racial slurs here? Of course not. 

But what is a racial slur? 

Here's how the OED defines that particular variation on "slur.": an offensive term used deliberately to show a lack of respect for a particular group of people. Presumably, a racial slur would be one that shows a lack of respect for a particular group of people specifically because they're from a different race.

Is the n word a racial slur? You know what I mean when I say the n word, right? Yeah, that word. 

But if I say "the n word", in your mind you're visualizing it. You're probably even saying it to yourself, otherwise how would you know that that is the word? 

So if I say "the n word", isn't that the same as saying it? 

No, saying "The N-word" is not the same as saying the actual N-word. For one thing, people don't use the phrase "N-Word" to disparage black people.

Is it ok to refer to the word in some way so that we all know is meant, such as saying the letter that it begins with? 

What about obscure racial slurs? 

If I say a word and you don't know that it's a racial slur, does it matter? 

What if you then later find out that it's a racial slur, does it matter then? 

What if you see it as one but I don't? Is it a racial slur even if I didn't use it as one?

Then maybe take that as a sign to not use it anymore once it's pointed out?

And anyway, where's the line? When does a reference to a racial/ethnic group become a slur? Who decides? 

Who decides when a phrase becomes a slur? The people being subjected to it. When does that happen? Maybe when the people being subjected to it realise it's being used to dehumanise them.

Is "brit" a racial slur? "aussie"? What about referring to japanese people by using the word "Japan" minus the last 2 letters? Is that not a term of endearment? Who decides? 

Brit and Aussie aren't considered racial slurs, because, for one thing, it's not used to dehumanise entire groups of people. And if you look up that shortened form for "Japan" on Wikipedia, you'll see quite a bit of information about how it was used to dehumanise Japanese people well beyond what is expected for a country we were at war with, with that shit spilling over into the treatment of Japanese-American civilians.

What about referring to mexicans using a word made up of 2 words, one being a synonym of moist and the other being a synonym of rear? Mexicans themselves have no issue with it when talking about those who cross the border by going through a river. 

Who decided that that's a problem word? 

Mexicans probably give other Mexicans a pass with that particular word because it's reasonable to assume that if someone who's actually from the affected group uses the term towards one of their own, they're less likely to do so with bad intent. Who decided it was a problem word? Probably the people who decided that maybe insulting people over their presumed immigration status was a bad thing. Or the people who... well, look up the term you're alluding to on Wikipedia. Specifically the disambiguation page. There's five bullet points on that list, and the third links to a page on an actual American government initiative that involved forcibly deporting Mexican-Americans back to Mexico (and they didn't just target Mexicans who came to America illegally in this operation).

What if I make up a word and then tell you that I mean it as a racial slur? 

For example, what if I talk about phlegmberries? What the hell does that even mean? Nothing, I just made it up. Is it a slur? When does it become one? 

You see, it's not that simple. 

It's been a pleasure educating you people. You're welcome.

If you're the sort of person who just creates ethnic slurs to insult groups, then you're a piece of shit. It probably won't become a racial slur until other people catch on to what you're doing, but it's still shitty.