Program Length: 1 hour
Produced: 1997

Sticks and stones can break my bones, but names will never hurt me.

Introduction   

This video presents songs by Me'shell NgdegeOcello, a black, female, bisexual musician. It also invites comments from several panelists, callers and audience members regarding the uses of the words 'faggot' and 'nigger' in our evolving society. This study guide suggests ways that students can process the information to better understand taboo words and the ideas they represent.

The guide's sections occur in the same chronological order as the items in the video. Some of the suggestions involve class discussion, some involve research. You need not view the whole tape at one sitting, nor is it necessary to use all of the guide; in fact, it is recommended that only those suggested activities be followed that best suit the students and the curriculum. Select a section of the video that you particularly want to focus upon, cueing up that moment and omitting the rest. Use the videotape with a remote control, pausing the VCR and discussing particular statements and images as necessary. Replay sections that need repeated screenings.

Many of the participants' key statements are included in the guide so teachers can become familiar with them and be prepared for them when they appear in the video. The tape and guide might be used in an entire unit of language study, or it may be a one-class break from other studies. Avi Lewis is the host. Me'shell NgdegeOcello (with her band) is a musical guest who comments and plays songs. The panel is comprised of Daniel Bader, student minister, Newman Center Daniel Paquette, writer/broadcaster Dan Prodnick, writer Joan Grant-Cummings, President, National Action Committee on the Status of Women.

Before Viewing   

1. Does hearing some words make you feel uncomfortable? Does saying some words make you feel uncomfortable? Would saying some words get you in trouble at home? at school? at work? What kinds of trouble?

2. Do you think some words should be taboo (not allowed)? Should they be outlawed by the government? by schools? by parents? Why might some people think no words should ever be taboo?

3. How do words come to have so much power that they can make people angry or sad, or even cause firings or suspensions? Could it be that it's not the words, but the judgments they communicate that make them powerful? Who gives the words power, the speakers or the listeners?

4. What judgments are communicated by the word 'gay?' What judgments are communicated by the word 'nigger?' Are those words of love or hate? Can they be both? How? What would YOU mean if you said those words? Have you ever called someone or something 'gay?' What did you mean? Have you ever called someone or something 'nigger?' What did you mean?
During Viewing   

5. Avi Lewis says: "Does what you are determine what you can say? Does the gender of your lover or the colour of your skin give you a language license? It's called 'reclaiming.' Words of hate are now being used with pride." What does 'reclaiming' mean? What is being reclaimed, the word or the meaning? Why is it important to reclaim words? How does the power of the word change when it is reclaimed?

6. Chuck D. says, "Calling ourselves bitches or niggers is not only derogatory but counterproductive." What does 'derogatory' mean? What does 'counterproductive' mean? How might blacks calling each other bitches or niggers be counterproductive? How might blacks calling each other bitches or niggers be productive? What is your opinion? Is blacks calling each other bitches or niggers an example of reclaiming?

7. Avi says, "When it was first released, Me'shell NgdegeOcello's album was shipped to 1000 radio stations. About 25 are playing it." From what you have seen and heard of Me'shell NgdegeOcello's music, why might 975 radio stations refuse to play her music? Is it the quality of the music? Is it the quality of the musicians? Is it the meaning of the words? Do radio stations have the right to censor music? Why?

8. Daniel Paquette says, "We're not really reclaiming the word -- it's really a term of endearment. Everyone brings something different to it."

9. Me'shell says, "In the black community, being gay is a whole other issue in itself." Is being gay different in the black community? How? How might being white and gay be different from being black and gay? Me'shell is black, a woman and bisexual. How would being part of three minority groups change her ways of seeing life?

10. Joan says, "My sensitivity to issues of homophobia and sexism and resistance came from listening to reggae, which is music of resistance. Music is a way for society to dialogue about issues." How is reggae a music of resistance? How is music is a way for society to dialogue about issues?

11. A screen at the beginning of the show states "Viewer discretion is advised. This show contains mature content." Why might viewers have to use their discretion in the use of this video? How is the content mature? Is there an audience that should not see this video? Who? Is there a part of Canada or the US where this video might not be welcome? Explain.

12. In the video version of Leviticus Faggot, we see some men having fun on the sidewalk. We also see some violent confrontations and a crying mother in a car. A man, apparently in a small room, writhes on the ground and bleeds into a sink. What might these images be representing? Why do we frequently hear the lines, "Save him, save him from this life?" Who does the mother want to save? Who does she pray will save him? What does he need to be saved from? What is 'this life?'

13. Leviticus Faggot makes some references to the Holy Bible. In the Modern American version of the Bible, the book of Leviticus states, "18:19 And thou shalt not approach unto a woman to uncover her nakedness, as long as she is impure by her uncleanness. 18:20 And thou shalt not lie carnally with thy neighbor's wife, to defile thyself with her. 18:21 And thou shalt not give any of thy seed to make them pass through the fire to Molech; neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am Jehovah. 18:22 Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination. 18:23 And thou shalt not lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith; neither shall any woman stand before a beast, to lie down thereto: it is confusion."

How do these statements relate to what we see and hear in Leviticus Faggot? There are other references made in Leviticus 20 and in Romans. Find and discuss these references in book or electronic versions of the Bible. Web sites you might look in are:

http://www.churchesofchrist.net/bibles/ASV/asvindex.htm
http://communio.hcbc.hu/library.html
http://www.wowme.com/bible/
http://www.ministrymall.com/

How do the biblical references relate to the discussion in Language lab II?

14. An audience member asks, "Why are there three white men and a straight woman on the panel? Why not black queer women?" Is the make up of the show's panelists prejudiced against black queer women? Explain.

15. Joline, a caller from Alberta, says, "You can have your own meaning, but you can't tell people what they can and cannot say." Can language be legislated? Why? Should language be legislated? Why? Dan Prodnick says, "What about hate laws?" Research hate laws to discover which words are allowed and which are not.

16. We see part of a MuchMusic Review Committee meeting, where the committee actually discusses whether Leviticus Faggot should be played on Much. The committee is working out the meaning and the censorable qualities of the video. One member states that it is an 'empathetic look at being gay, targeted at homophobics.' The others agree, and the video passes.Do you agree with their decision? Why?

17. Why did Dan Prodnick leave? Why wasn't he heard? Was he censored by the other speakers or the host? Was he out of order? What would you have done in this situation? Why?What do you think was going on? Mee'Shell quotes Malcolm X: To rant and rave is the last bastion of the hopeless and if you simply sit, a man will dig himself a grave. How does this statement relate to Dan Prodnick's statements and behaviour? How does it relate to Mee'Shell's work?

18. Maxine says, "For the most part I found this discussion really patronizing because we focused so much on this word. I see a bigger picture here. We have got to understand, individually, how our individual struggles link together. Whether we are Gay or whether we are straight we have to understand that, especially in the black community, then how those individual struggles link to the broader struggles of the community, then how the struggles of the community link to the struggles of oppressed people all over the world. Until we understand that, things like who I am sleeping with will always matter. There is a broader issue here, not that we are faggots." How does the issue of name-calling relate to issues of oppressed people? Is calling someone a name a way of dismissing them, of denying them the respect they deserve as humans? Explain.

19. Me'Shell says, "I'm simply an artist. I can't solve the problems of the world and I can't make you understand anything. All I can do is say what I feel and give you my experience." Do artists have a responsibility to their audiences? Do they help solve the problems of the world by identifying them? How does the sharing of the artistic experience help us understand the world? What does Leviticus Faggot help you understand?

20. How has this video and your discussions changed the ways you think about 'faggot,' 'nigger,' and other taboo words? Written by: Neil AndersenNeil Andersen is a Curriculum Consultant with the Toronto District School Board. He is also a speaker and consultant in media and communications technology. His most recent work includes the Media Launchpad website, the teachers' study guide for the award-winning Scanning Television, and study guides for Space, Bravo! and MuchMusic's Cable in the Classroom broadcasts of original media literacy programming.

Written by: Neil Andersen
Neil Andersen is an award-winning Curriculum Consultant with the Toronto District School Board. He is also a speaker and consultant in media and communications technology. His most recent work includes the Between the Lines CDs, the teachers' study guide for the award-winning Scanning Television, and study guides for Space, Bravo! and MuchMusic's Cable in the Classroom broadcasts of original media literacy programming.

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