OK, first of all, Harry is not going to die.
For crissake, people, don't you know anything about kids books? Didn't you read as a child??? Are you such suckers for marketing that you're buying in? Someone brought up Narnia tonight at a party (can't you tell I was at a party drinking rum punch? youcanttellcanya?) and I said, But that was a whole Christian theme written after WWII when dying was prevelant and sending children to Heaven was looked upon as a happy ending. All I got was blank looks.
But then, why am I surprised? Millions tune into fucking Oprah every day, so obviously the country's intellect is not what I think it is. I mean, this is where we have a clearly stated freedom of speech law on the books and still someone wants to ban Nigger from the American vocabulary.
What about Fuck?
What about Cunt?
Those two words denegrate natural acts and body parts that we all do and have, regardless of color. Nigger is not a word I hear with any frequency at all, except by those who are black. Granted I live in a freakishly white neighborhood, but even when I used to live in Wichita and worked with a mostly black faculty at Wichita State University, it was not a word I heard.
Word I heard.
Get me, I busted a rhyme.
Which actually might be my point. I listen to a minor bit of rap--I'm a punk rock girl at heart so whatevah--but that's where I hear that word. I'm thinking it's a perceived slight in this day and age. Really, most white folks I know think of race in terms of lament--we don't have enough mixture. Like I said, whitish neighborhood. I look at multi-race kids (and I know a few up close and personal) and I think beautiful. It's my theory that God wants all of us to mix up and make great big beautiful snickerdoodle chocolate chip cookie kids.
But until then... I've actually suffered discrimination because of my skin color (my tan came up tonight at the party) and dude, it's all in how you handle it. While in Wisconsin, I was deliberately ignored in stores and I was stared at in the street. (I'm often asked if I'm Mexican in the summer, even here where there are so many South Americans.) I was easily the darkest person at this party tonight, and I was there with India Indians. However, despite all that, I don't think about my skin color until someone brings it up. I wore my little strapless number tonight (oh yeah, it's hot, Old Navy donchaknow) and yeah, I lay out cuz it feels good being mostly naked in the sun. But I don't think about someone disdaining me cuz of my skin color and I downright ignore them if they do cuz frankly, I'm way cooler than them. (I'm not, and that's the ironic point, in case you missed it. It's all attitude, dude.)
Lest you think it's only skin color, I'm no stranger to physical discrimination. For example, I'm short. Really short. 5 feet short. I've had coworkers that I didn't like put their fucking elbows on my fucking shoulder, for fuck's sake. However, most people think I'm taller, and it's not because I wear heels. I just don't let my height define my stature. I walk the fucking walk, man. Trust me, most folks think I can kick their ass.
I can't, but that's beside the point. I'm just saying to all the African Americans out there: ignore the "n-word", as you so quaintly call it, do whatever it is you gotta do in your life, and it will go away. It' s already deteriorated in our parts, so keep ignoring it, and rock on.
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