Justify My Thug
Listen, I care more about the state of Jon & Kate’s marriage than I do Perez Hilton, but I gave the guy five minutes of my time yesterday—and I hope I don’t recall that little factoid on my death bed. (By the way, I think it’s the hair that did it. Jon’s plugs + Kate’s coiffure by Edward Scissorhands = domestic dystopia.) Anyway, a Facebook friend of mine (because who has real life friends anymore?) posted Perez’ video response to Black Eyed Peas (BEP) front man, will.i.am on her page, and I watched it. If you haven’t heard, will.i.am and/or his manager and/or his bodyguards allegedly gave the gossip blogger a people’s elbow or two, because Perez said mean things to Fergie—oh, how I wish he had done so in the name of Kim Hill!—and then called will.i.am a faggot, when the BEP in charge confronted him about it. I know, right? Why can’t we all just get along? Or were you wondering where the other two members of the BEP were in all of this? Either way, I’m with you.
After the scuffle, Hilton tweeted for “help” and will.i.am made a video blog explaining his side of the situation. But it was Hilton’s response that really gave me pause. In the very early moments of video—and I only suggest you watch it in its entirety if you are tickled or intrigued by extemporaneous incoherence—an irate Hilton calls will.i.am a thug. I know, no big deal, right? Well, maybe not. As my grandmother used to tell me, “It’s not what you say, but how you say it. It’s not the word that you use, but the way you convey it.” And when I heard Hilton say “thug,” something in the way he said it to me that he was really thinking, what he wanted to say was nigger.
Perhaps this is a stretch, but please bear with me. Last month, Dallas Mavericks’ owner, Mark Cuban confronted Lydia Moore, the mother of Kenyon Martin, a player on the Denver Nuggets. At the time, the two teams were in the middle of a rather physical (by 21st century standards; NBA players from the 1980s would scoff at the description) playoff series. The Nuggets had just won game 3 of the 7-game series in a highly controversial manner, and as he left the court, an angry Cuban thought it prudent to notify Ms. Moore that her son—apparently a very nice man off the court—was a thug. And it was Mother’s Day. Classy.
To be clear, I’m not interested in charging Cuban or Hilton with racism. And there has been and will continue to be plenty of discussion about Hilton’s problematic use of the term faggot to disrespect will.i.am. As an openly gay person, Hilton will get a pass from many for using the word, but since neither he nor Cuban is black, there’s no way they could have gotten away with calling their respective adversaries nigger, not even if they dropped the -er and replaced it with an -a. And so, what I am interested in is noting how in instances when the (racial) id can barely be quelled, thug is just a negative version of articulate: (probably) filled to the brim with unspoken assumptions and attitudes about black folks not visible to the unveiled eye. As the n-word slumbers under six feet of dirt somewhere in Detroit, its DNA seems to have seeped into the soil, providing nutrients to other words, ensuring a tarnished legacy that began on the tips of the tongues of non-blacks. Thug plays Splenda to nigger‘s sugar. Eventually, the n-word by any other name will taste as sweet. In the meantime, I might as well keep track. That’s (at least) two points for thug.
Personally, I think will.i.am should get a bunch of his celebrity friends together and record a song inspired by Perez’ response. It might not be as uplifting as “Yes We Can,” but it would be the ultimate dis record. You know, if you’re a post-backpacking will.i.am. And it might compel Perez to tell us how he really felt/feels.
I like this post, especially because of the way it links tone and connotation with the actual saying of inflammatory words like nigger. I hope that sentence made sense though I suspect that it didn’t. Nonetheless, I like the post and I like the way you articulate your point.
I like this post, especially because of the way it links tone and connotation with the actual saying of inflammatory words like nigger. I hope that sentence made sense though I suspect that it didn’t. Nonetheless, I like the post and I like the way you articulate your point.
made total sense. thanks for reading.
made total sense. thanks for reading.
Hi Summe,
I enjoyed reading this and thanks for the information.
Although I generally agree “[i]t’s not the word that you use, but the way you convey it,” I question your assessment that when Perez Hilton vehemently called will.i.am a thug for the violence suffered at the hands of Will.i.am’s consorts that he meant nigger. I also question (have concerns about) your seeming willingness to downplay physical violence into a “scuffle.” I believe that we as members of civil society have to hold people responsible for being animal-esque (i.e., resorting to physical violence when insulted verbally). I hope that your silence does not mean that you concur or even have sentimental understanding of Will.i.am’s consorts actions.
Hi Summe,
I enjoyed reading this and thanks for the information.
Although I generally agree “[i]t’s not the word that you use, but the way you convey it,” I question your assessment that when Perez Hilton vehemently called will.i.am a thug for the violence suffered at the hands of Will.i.am’s consorts that he meant nigger. I also question (have concerns about) your seeming willingness to downplay physical violence into a “scuffle.” I believe that we as members of civil society have to hold people responsible for being animal-esque (i.e., resorting to physical violence when insulted verbally). I hope that your silence does not mean that you concur or even have sentimental understanding of Will.i.am’s consorts actions.
Hi Summer,
I enjoyed reading this and thanks for the information.
Although I generally agree “[i]t’s not the word that you use, but the way you convey it,” I question your assessment that when Perez Hilton vehemently called will.i.am a thug for the violence suffered at the hands of Will.i.am’s consorts that he meant nigger. I also question (have concerns about) your seeming willingness to downplay physical violence into a “scuffle.” I believe that we as members of civil society have to hold people responsible for being animal-esque (i.e., resorting to physical violence when insulted verbally). I hope that your silence does not mean that you concur or even have sentimental understanding of Will.i.am’s consorts actions
Hi Summer,
I enjoyed reading this and thanks for the information.
Although I generally agree “[i]t’s not the word that you use, but the way you convey it,” I question your assessment that when Perez Hilton vehemently called will.i.am a thug for the violence suffered at the hands of Will.i.am’s consorts that he meant nigger. I also question (have concerns about) your seeming willingness to downplay physical violence into a “scuffle.” I believe that we as members of civil society have to hold people responsible for being animal-esque (i.e., resorting to physical violence when insulted verbally). I hope that your silence does not mean that you concur or even have sentimental understanding of Will.i.am’s consorts actions
hi supernerd,
thanks for your response. you don’t think perez (or mark cuban) meant nigger? ok. that’s cool. tomato. tomahto.
to your second point, i thought my opening par. would reveal that i was writing from a sardonic place–one where i will over- or understate things to sort of humorously disarm my reader so that she might be entertained as i make a larger, more serious critique. if that didn’t come across to you in this post, duly noted. we’re just getting to know each other. i’ll do better next time.
but to be clear, i had no intention of “downplaying” the violence–or doing anything with it, for that matter. my primary concern was about (fighting) words–or the use of the term “thug”–not the fight. had i written another, or different entry, perhaps that would have been my focus. but i saw the situation as an opportunity to connect some other, more interesting dots, so i put the fight on the back burner. my “silence” doesn’t indicate my agreement with team will.i.am’s actions–i don’t really care about them either. rather, at the worst, it revealed that i didn’t find that part of the story at all interesting.
hi supernerd,
thanks for your response. you don’t think perez (or mark cuban) meant nigger? ok. that’s cool. tomato. tomahto.
to your second point, i thought my opening par. would reveal that i was writing from a sardonic place–one where i will over- or understate things to sort of humorously disarm my reader so that she might be entertained as i make a larger, more serious critique. if that didn’t come across to you in this post, duly noted. we’re just getting to know each other. i’ll do better next time.
but to be clear, i had no intention of “downplaying” the violence–or doing anything with it, for that matter. my primary concern was about (fighting) words–or the use of the term “thug”–not the fight. had i written another, or different entry, perhaps that would have been my focus. but i saw the situation as an opportunity to connect some other, more interesting dots, so i put the fight on the back burner. my “silence” doesn’t indicate my agreement with team will.i.am’s actions–i don’t really care about them either. rather, at the worst, it revealed that i didn’t find that part of the story at all interesting.
Thank you for clearing that up about the sardonic tone, and I agree that it is hard to push sarcasm, satire and etc. in writing form. Also, I tend to read (especially in this space) for “the meat and potatoes” often times I miss the stylistic aspects of the individual writer, My BAD.
I do, however, want to press back on the idea that you’re “mak[ing] a larger, more serious critique” when you go into conjecture about the word “thug” being the modern descendent of the word “nigger” as opposed to the facts of the interaction. I am not sure a meta-conjecture/critique of the word “thug” does justice to your new idea of fighting words. The word THUG did not get the ball rolling where will.i.am’s consorts decided to become brutes for hire. It was the power of the word ‘faggot’ and what it symbolized that did the ‘trick.’
I agree in theory with what you are suggesting about words being able to encapsulate different meanings in different times.
Thank you for clearing that up about the sardonic tone, and I agree that it is hard to push sarcasm, satire and etc. in writing form. Also, I tend to read (especially in this space) for “the meat and potatoes” often times I miss the stylistic aspects of the individual writer, My BAD.
I do, however, want to press back on the idea that you’re “mak[ing] a larger, more serious critique” when you go into conjecture about the word “thug” being the modern descendent of the word “nigger” as opposed to the facts of the interaction. I am not sure a meta-conjecture/critique of the word “thug” does justice to your new idea of fighting words. The word THUG did not get the ball rolling where will.i.am’s consorts decided to become brutes for hire. It was the power of the word ‘faggot’ and what it symbolized that did the ‘trick.’
I agree in theory with what you are suggesting about words being able to encapsulate different meanings in different times.
I really enjoyed reading this blog, Summer. Like Ainsley, I like the way you articulate your point. I especially liked the “thug/nigger : Splenda, sugar” analogy. Looking forward to reading more from you.
I really enjoyed reading this blog, Summer. Like Ainsley, I like the way you articulate your point. I especially liked the “thug/nigger : Splenda, sugar” analogy. Looking forward to reading more from you.
@supernerd: it seems like you want this post to be about what it’s not. it’s not about the word faggot. it’s not about the fight. it’s about two instances where i believe the word thug was used as a euphemism for nigger. if you don’t agree my assessment, that’s cool. if you don’t think i chose to discuss the most important nuggets of this altercation, that’s cool, too. i’ve no monopoly on the issue. what you think about the situation might make a nice post. maybe folks would be interested in reading two differing viewpoints on the same issue at this site. it’s worked other places.
@leigh: thanks for reading. i look forward to reading more from you, too.
@supernerd: it seems like you want this post to be about what it’s not. it’s not about the word faggot. it’s not about the fight. it’s about two instances where i believe the word thug was used as a euphemism for nigger. if you don’t agree my assessment, that’s cool. if you don’t think i chose to discuss the most important nuggets of this altercation, that’s cool, too. i’ve no monopoly on the issue. what you think about the situation might make a nice post. maybe folks would be interested in reading two differing viewpoints on the same issue at this site. it’s worked other places.
@leigh: thanks for reading. i look forward to reading more from you, too.
i thought this was great. it’d be cool if we could embed videos into the actual post so that the reader could visually witness what you arguing about tone/connotation, without clicking away from your post.
i thought this was great. it’d be cool if we could embed videos into the actual post so that the reader could visually witness what you arguing about tone/connotation, without clicking away from your post.
hi alex,
thanks. i wasn’t sure if i should do that–didn’t know which would be more distracting. but next time, i’ll take you advice.
hi alex,
thanks. i wasn’t sure if i should do that–didn’t know which would be more distracting. but next time, i’ll take you advice.
loved it! great tone, excellent pace. i believe the point you are making is true and think it is very similar to “chick” and “bitch.”
i also agree with alex m. i was looking for a picture. perhaps one for every person in the story would be problematic and i agree it would be a distraction, but the main characters should get a little play. would be nice if your lively piece could get play on words alone, but you know what the deal is, particularly in this perezhilton.com world.
loved it! great tone, excellent pace. i believe the point you are making is true and think it is very similar to “chick” and “bitch.”
i also agree with alex m. i was looking for a picture. perhaps one for every person in the story would be problematic and i agree it would be a distraction, but the main characters should get a little play. would be nice if your lively piece could get play on words alone, but you know what the deal is, particularly in this perezhilton.com world.
hi alexb.,
thanks. i’ll def start adding pictures/clips/etc.
hi alexb.,
thanks. i’ll def start adding pictures/clips/etc.