With Elisabeth Hasselbeck leaving The View, and the American media talking about how irreplaceable she is, it’s worth taking a few moments to acknowledge why the sentiment actually bears some truth. In between voicing her undying support for the invasion of Iraq, and claiming “people get abortions for superficial reasons,” there was a moment when she let the world see that in one area, she was the smartest, bravest woman on that panel. But, of course, all we remember is that she cried.
During a discussion about Jesse Jackson hypocritically using the n-word when speaking about President Obama (after calling for a boycott Seinfeld because Michael Richards' used it), Hasselbeck rightly asserted that using the word in private is potentially more harmful than using it in public. This seemingly obvious statement was pounced upon by Sherri Shepherd:
“Don’t tell me I can’t use that word—because I use it…I grew up with my family using it. For me—I can use it as a term of endearment.”
Barbara Walters then interjected by making sure Shepherd wasn’t advocating segregation—asking “And if I used it?”
“I don’t want to hear it come out of your mouth.”
Turned out Shepherd was indeedadvocating segregation—the very entity that prevented her ancestors from enjoying full constitutional liberty. Hasselbeck then asked how she was supposed to explain to her children that they weren’t allowed to say that word, when pop culture icons (including Goldberg and Shepherd) use it every day. Her question went entirely unanswered, as histrionics quickly replaced honest debate. But it was certainly a question worth answering—and she literally could not have approached the issue with any more sincerity. The discussion soon became about Whoopi Goldberg’s mother, and her struggles with disenfranchisement—the equivalent of invoking the Holocaust in the face of legitimate inquiries about Israel’s blatantly illegal settlements in the West Bank.
The sentiment Hasselbeck was attempting to express was perfectly in line with what Maya Angelou, Cornel West, and Oprah Winfrey have said on the subject, but just as they are often written off as civil rights relics (rather than the still-potent icons they truly are), Hasselbeck’s words were never taken seriously, and her tears became the story. When black celebrities were asked to weigh in on the on-air debate that transpired, they almost all adopted segregationist platforms with pertinence to the First Amendment.
Representing proponents of the n-word’s casual use, Jay-Z and Michael Eric Dyson claim that black people have taken the power out of the word—now it can be used in a different context, without any hatred attached. But if that were true, there would be no instance in which usage of said word could ever offend them. This seems unlikely at best.
And why shouldn’t white people be allowed to use the word? Because their immediate ancestors don’t come from Africa, and it was never used in hatred against them—therefore can’t possibly understand the full historical context. By that same line of thinking, would it be acceptable if a majority of young, ethnically Arab Muslims publicly denounced black people practicing Islam? After all, their ancestors can’t possibly have felt the same persecution—since almost none of their ancestors were Muslims. Of course, these are both First Amendment issues, which means the entire debate is senseless. Anyone opposing anyone using any word—or practicing any religion—is wrong, according to the United States Constitution. Likewise, anyone advocating segregation of any kind is wrong.
Elisabeth Hasselbeck’s children—and all the other children that look like them—will grow up with an open book of opportunities in front of them, whether or not the black community stops using the n-word. Unfortunately, this is not the case for millions of children that don’t look like Hasselbeck’s children—they will face a world of prejudice and discrimination, simply because they have black skin. There is only one solution to this problem, and it is unity—for lack of a better term: “If you can’t beat em, join em.” Pragmatically speaking, no minority group can “beat” the majority—and frankly, they shouldn’t want to. The answer to segregation is never segregation. What minorities can do is “join” the majority, thereby transforming its otherwise homogenous makeup. Making black people use different bathrooms and drinking fountains was a way to keep the population divided—enforced by the white majority, because they believed in white supremacy. The days of institutional segregation are thankfully behind us, but it must be remembered that any such division only serves to protect the consolidated power of the established majority. So maybe, when someone like Elisabeth Hasselbeck holds out a pie that she was given at birth and insists on sharing it—just maybe, the smart thing to do is forego all hubris and take the piece of pie that’s rightfully yours.