[ArcticKnight]

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All,

FWIW, I've actually come across a bunch of people, generally older people in the South, who use the word and aren't really racist at all. That's just the word they use to describe black people, just like I use black and not African-American.

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I don't care if they are 120 years old. They know it is a racially charged word, and still chose to use it. I'll never understand why so many many Americans think it's Ok to use words that are offensive to others, by shrugging it off by say "we don't really mean anything bad by saying it."

I live in an area that is aproximately 50% Aboriginal and 50% non-Aboriginal. The Aboriginals find "indian" to be derogatory, so out of respect, people don't use it. Inuit in Canada find "eskimo" derogatory, so we don't use it. It's not complicated - it's just about being respectful about how others do and do not like to be referred.

As for the comments on racism, if you are using the N-----R word when you fully know that African-Americans find it offensive, than you are being racist. If you feel it's a learned behaviour, then unlearn it!!

I travel in Canada and the US lots, and in the cities in both countries there are black populations. However, I hardly ever here the N word in Canada, and in the states I'm amazed how frequently it is used. It seems to me most of the older folks that use this word are just trying to hang on to the old days, where "those" black folks knew their place.. It's sad, really.

The attitudes by some folks on this thread are troubling.