The following was posted on my youtube page: JOE CLAIRE, Is washed up, He’s a f***ing clown who keeps S####-ing at the Comedy Store in L.A. and all he says is ,N***a, this and N***a that, he tells an audience full of white folks that they came out on ,N***a night, what a sorry ass plantation slave N***a mentality, get the f**k off the stage N***a. You’re a f***ing Bum! Wow. People really take things to heart. Now, it was posted by a dude named WINDBLOWSBLAQ. I could sit here and write a whole response to my brother but I think I could get more mileage out of it by talking about something much bigger. My love for my “n***as!” Check this out. A few months ago I wrote an editorial entitled “n***afied.” It was my take on the N-word. In summation I let everyone know that I will always use that word because all of my heroes were called it at some point in their lives. I also understand that I have a unique position in that I am a college educated “n***a.” I learned from my father, an attorney and professor, that we come from “n***a” culture. That’s right N***A CULTURE. That part of us that we look down upon for how it may be viewed by others, but call upon when it suits us. Jazz came from “n***as.” The blues came from “n***as.” Our style, our spirit our tenacity comes from our “n***a” parts! And I will never turn my back on that for anyone. Sure, we continue to put on Nike Airs and names like Negroes and Blacks and African Americans and Coloreds, but through all those eras we always counted on our “n***as” to get us through when things got tough. Our “n***a” mentality has often been what helped us survive and adapt. I mean picture a young Fredrick Douglas taking a bath in a river to get clean as he made his way north. The knowledge he had was “n***a” knowledge. Who else knows how to use dirt to get clean besides “n***as,” people? Oprah Winfrey used parts of her “n***a” experience to propel herself into the entertainment and financial stratosphere. Sure she is articulate and well read, however when she was Ms. Sophia she called on her “n***aness” to give you what you needed to understand Alice Walker’s point. As a child I didn’t like Arnold and Willis because they talked too proper to be two orphans from Harlem. Sure I talked proper when I had to, but I turned it off and on as most Blacks do. Arnold and Willis never turned it off and I felt that they, or the people responsible for the show, were insulting my intelligence. I know that we naturally have “n***a” parts to our psyche, that’s what made the dude write that comment about me in the first place. But I think that those parts are just as beautiful and delightful as our regal parts. Are there drawbacks to being a “n***a?” Of course, but there are also drawbacks to being part of the W.E.B. DuBois’ talented tenth. In my opinion it is a sad state when a Black man is ashamed of eating chicken in front of a white person for fear of what they may think. I believe that is the most “n***erish” thing in the world. To cower under the gaze of somebody who already thinks very little of you in the first place is truly being a n***er. “N***as” don’t give two s#### about what others may think. And as we can see from the last ten to fifteen years “n***as” are making headway in places that a lot of “Blacks” wish they could. Master P’s “n***a” skills changed how Black artists do business in the music field and opened the door for anyone of color to grab their balls like a real “n***a” should and turn the entertainment industry upside down. Kanye West clowned the hell out of those “get-in-line” Blacks that settle for degrees and a no money for fear of jumping out there like “n***as” are supposed to and getting theirs on a large scale on his multi platinum first album. And what’s the name of the “n***a” who saved Chrysler by designing that “n***afied” ass Chrentley! (LOL) Where would we be without Moms Mabley, Pigmeat Markum, Flip Wilson and Richard Pryor? We’d be f##### up. That’s where we’d be. Martin Luther King would not be quite the orator if he didn’t have the “n***a” roots that started the Black church in the first place. Do the research. Our “church” came about because of what we have inside. We had to break off from the white church because we were and are culturally miles apart from white folks. And I can’t find a better description for that than “n***a.” Some would say it’s our “Blackness”, but “Black” is a derogatory term that has the same sting as “n***a”, around the globe. We adopted it and ran with it just like we are doing with the word “n***a” now! Furthermore the word “n***er” was originally just a dialectal variant of the word Negro. They put the sting in it and we reacted to it. Like n***ers. So while my brother on youtube is more than entitled to his opinion, I think that he is off base by labeling me a clown and/or bum. He’s hating, because ya boy is funny as hell at the Comedy Store every week. He ain’t say nothing about how I got the place packed week in and week out. He failed to mention as well, that the crowd is never more than five percent White. Nor did he mention that I always give a definition for the word N***A. I say that it is an acronym for Non Immigrants Gaining Global Achievements. So stay “blaq” Shazza Zulu and feel free to holla at’cha n***a when you see me! Much LoveCleez P.S. Take a grammar class… maaan!
