Key points

Some words and phrases are performative; they do what they seem to describe.

The H-word is an emotionally charged vehicle of hate. The more we say it, the more we do it.

More than a result of intense polarization, the H-word is a cause and contributor to the spread of hate.

Hate is fueled by adrenaline, which has an addictive amphetamine effect.

Like a lot of poor people born in the late 1940s, I grew up in a bigoted household. My family did not discriminate in public and certainly not in the company of African Americans, but at home, behind closed doors, they frequently sounded out the N-word.

By the time I was in college, psychologists knew that sounding out the N-word not only reflected bigotry, but also caused and exacerbated it. I believe we’re now at that point of re

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