The Soldier and I talking… this was 2003.

“I can’t believe it didn’t bother you to be called a nigger.”

“Well it didn’t.”

“Why not? Why didn’t that bother you, E? I don’t know what I’d do if someone called me a nigger. No one ever has,” he said. “Been called everything but a nigger,” he said.

“Well then you missed your chance. Because these people would have called you a nigger too.”

“I’m a nigger?”

“Yes. You’re my color aren’t you? So yeah. We’re both niggers and I am sure you’d have reacted the same way I did,” I said. “You don’t react when people call you all other kinds of racist things, so I bet if this happened… if you got called a nigger it would be no different. You wouldn’t care. What do you care? If someone wants to fight with you calling you, spic, or guinea or any of that is not going to do it. You’d just laugh at them. On the other hand if they tell you you’re not a man, well that may be the last thing they ever say. They will certainly regret it, I am sure of that.”

“You got that right, E. That would set me off. Probably be the last thing they’d ever say with teeth in their mouth, anyway.”

What are “fightin’ words to you?

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