The so-called ‘n-word’ is always surrounded by controversy. It’s been in the news lately thanks to a hunting camp once owned by GOP candidate Rick Perry’s family called ‘Ni**erhead’. Since that story broke the debate over whether the word is inherently offensive and whether or not Perry’s family should have condemned the name sooner has raged between political pundits, candidates and even the women of The View
N-word 101: College class studies story behind the slur
The rules of who can use the term known in variation as ni**er, ni**a, negro and the socially accepted euphemism of the n-word, still bear some uncertainty. Over the course of history, many geographical sites possessed names with the bitterly contentious word.
Although in 1967, the United States Board on Geographic Names changed the names of 143 places throughout the country from ni**er to negro, many states have decided to change the names of their historical sites all together. The slideshow below highlights some national locales that may get name recognition for the wrong reasons.