Rev. Jesse Jackson, congresswoman Maxine Waters and other black leaders in the United States have challenged entertainers — including rappers — to stop using the "n-word."

"We want to give our ancestors a present … dignity over degradation," Jackson said at a news conference in Los Angeles on Monday.

From left: Comedian Paul Mooney, Rev. Jesse Jackson, U.S. congresswoman Maxine Waters and NAACP spokesman Willis Edwards hold a press conference Monday to launch their campaign against the racial slur.
(Ric Francis/Associated Press)

He and a group that included Waters, a Democrat legislator from Los Angeles, and comedian Paul Mooney have begun a campaign against the racial slur that they plan to take to TV networks, film companies and musicians over the next few weeks.

The issue has arisen because of Michael Richards's use of the word during a racial tirade against two black hecklers at a Los Angeles comedy club 10 days ago.

Richards has apologized publicly for using the n-word and for allowing his anger to get the better of him. But Jackson isn't satisfied.

He asked the public not to buy a DVD box set of the seventh season of the TV show Seinfeld, in which Richards stars as Kramer, Jerry Seinfeld's wacky neighbour.

Ironically, the DVD has become the 11th most popular DVD on Amazon, in part because of receiving so much publicity.

Waters said situations such as the Richards incident help turn mainstream media attention to issues involving the black community and gave an opportunity to talk about the representation of blacks in the media.

"This is not simply about whether or not the black community forgives or forgets, this is about understanding that this is pervasive, that this happens in all of our institutions, one way or the other," Waters said.

"We're not trying to penalize anyone, but don't use the n-word, no matter who you are, whether you're black, white, young or old," she said.

Too many believe the word is acceptable

Waters said she believes some young people and people for whom English is a second language believe the word is acceptable because it is so much in common use, particularly by black comedians and hip-hop artists.

Mooney, who was also at the news conference, pledged to stop using the word, which is a standard part of several of his routines.

The call for banning the word is bound to be controversial among black entertainers.

While the word is universally seen as offensive when used by people of other races, some experts say it is a term of empowerment when used by black comedians and in rap lyrics.

Harvard law professor Randall Kennedy, who is African American and wrote the book Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word, says some artists have "grabbed the word, flipped it around and done their own thing with it."

The move to ban the word is well-intentioned, he said, but it may be calling too much attention to a marginal problem.

With files from the Associated Press