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Author discusses career of troublesome word by Dick Peterson Public Relations “Words are not self-defining.” By that Harvard Law School professor Randall Kennedy, J.D., means that words have to be thought about, examined, and most of all understood in light of their speaker’s intentions.  And that gets complicated.  “People are impatient with complications,” Kennedy said to a nearly full Institute of Psychiatry Auditorium at noon Thursday, April 18. “We have to be on guard against avoiding complications.” Kennedy is author of an insightful, and sometimes ‘inciteful,’ book entitled “nigger, The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word.” The book tracks “the word” from its origins to the present, from whence it could well catapult into a future use of familial endearment, dehumanizing racial ostracism, or both. It’s probably the most powerfully connotative word in American usage. Beginning his presentation with “first a couple subjects on my mind,” and ending with equal time for dialogue with his audience, Kennedy expressed his concern about the progress and future of affirmative action in America. He called affirmative action “a vexing issue whose very existence is in question.” Since a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 1978 upholding the validity of taking race into account in medical school admissions for historically disadvantaged persons, affirmative action has of late come under strong political pressure from all directions. “Some say it was a good thing for a quarter of a century and now ought to be phased out; some say it was always bad; some say it was good and it’s still good,” Kennedy said. “And all those voices want to be heard.” He noted the evolution of affirmative action with its “backward justification” toward diversity in a modern-day America “that is awash with people from other shores.” And then there are the struggles over racial symbolism: the etiquette of titles and first names, the mistaken assumption of function based on race and sex and “where does one fit in the hierarchy?” and the use of names and titles such as the black male’s historical aversion to being called ‘boy’ and the racial politics surrounding it. “The use of first names is deeply imbedded in racial history,” Kennedy said, citing the experience in court of black activist Mrs. Mary Hamilton. She was jailed for contempt of court after refusing to answer when being addressed by her first name only. White women before her had been addressed with courtesy titles. “Words,” Kennedy said during an extended dialogue session with his audience, “take on their meaning depending on their context. Meaning is governed by a person’s intentions. But you can imagine how the best of intentions can be misunderstood.” Unless the word—especially “the word” – is understood, “One ought not use it,” he said. “But younger people tend to be more willing to experiment with this presumptively bad word,” Kennedy said. He cited comedy—Richard Pryor – and literature—“Huckleberry Finn,” by Mark Twain – as prime examples of effective use of the word to promote positive social change. “Huck Finn is anti-racist, anti-slavery. Should we ban it? No! I intensely disagree with anyone (who would ban the book from school libraries),” its use of “the word” more than 200 times notwithstanding, he said. Expanding his thoughts about the need to guard against avoiding complications, Kennedy said, “We really ought to take people one by one. Whites and blacks can both nurture and inspire; whites and blacks and all permeations in between. “All are different, and all share a basic humanity.”