This past July the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) buried the N-word by holding a mock funeral for the racial slur during its national convention in Detroit.

On Dec. 11, hip-hop artist Nas plans to resurrect the racially motivated slur by releasing an album titled Nigger.

Nas, who originally planned to title the album Nigga, recently decided on the change, something he believes will resonate with listeners.

"[People] shouldn't trip off the [album's] title; the songs are crazier than the title," Nas told MTV News. "We're taking power [away] from the word. No disrespect to none of them who were part of the Civil Rights Movement. Right now, we're on a whole new movement."

Grace Hampton, head of the African and African American Studies Department, said she believes there are "two schools of thought" surrounding the word.

"Years ago, it had such a powerful, negative connotation. It has become so commonplace now that people have forgotten the history and what it means," Hampton said. "The second school of thought would be that words don't hurt, which is not true."

Chairman of Island Def Jam Music Group, Antonio "L.A." Reid said he would support Nas and his album, regardless of the album's controversial title.

"We stand firmly behind and beside our artists with pride and with pleasure. Anything Nas wants to do, I completely stand beside him," Reid told MTV News. "While I'm not sure exactly all that [the title] entails, I know it's smart, so I stand behind him."

The exact content of the album is still being kept under the radar. Salaam Remi, who produced several tracks both on Nigger and on numerous tracks for Nas in the past, is remaining tight-lipped about the album.

"[I] can't comment for a few more weeks," Remi wrote in an e-mail.

Toby Jenkins, director of the Paul Robeson Cultural Center, said she believes many will not accept the album solely because of its title.

"It would be nice if there was middle ground," Jenkins said. "I still have hope. He's a very self-educated man. He puts a lot of education into his artwork."

Jenkins, who believes Nas uses a lot of "conscious thought and critical reflection" in his work, said she would need to hear the content and messages on the tracks before she can pass judgment.

"I would like to see how thoughtfully he approaches it and not just bash him right away," she said.

Kenneth Younger (senior-integrative arts) agreed.

"I'm pretty sure he didn't just randomly pick the title Nigger," Younger said. "It's strange. It's going to make me want to hear the album now."

Despite Younger's interest in the album's content, he still said the title was "outrageous."

"Is this really his fight to fight?" Younger said.

NAACP member Rev. Al Sharpton said he is opposed to anybody using the term, regardless of motive.

"We're in an age where they are hanging nooses; they're locking our kids up in Jena and Florida. We do not need to be degrading ourselves," Sharpton told MTV News. "We get degraded enough. I think we need artists to lift us up, not lock us down."

Nas said accusations from people in the black community are both "counter-productive" and "counter-revolutionary."

"You see how white boys ain't mad at 'cracker' [because] it don't have the same [sting] as 'nigger?' I want 'nigger' to have less meaning [than] 'cracker,' " Nas said in the MTV News article. "To think I'm gonna say something that's not intellectual is calling me a nigger."

Hampton disagreed.

"Just because you hear it doesn't mean the connotation isn't there," she said. "I question whether or not making the word so familiar removes the historical meaning of the word."

Jenkins believed there is importance in creating dialogue about a word with such history behind it.

"We do have to talk about the history of the word and critically teach people about the word," Jenkins said. "I wouldn't want people to bury the history of lynching. People need to know the history behind the word."

Def Jam Chairman and CEO Jay-Z said there is reason behind Nas' title choice.

"He's not just doing it for the sake of being provocative," Jay-Z told MTV News. "I hope [the concept] is coming from a great place. I believe it's coming from a great place. I just think it's misguided."

Jay-Z said peoples' focus should be directed toward more important matters, such as the community.

"People give strength to words, power to words. If you remove 'nigger,' then you have 'jiggaboo' and 'porch monkey,' the words will keep continuing," Jay-Z said in the article.

Jay-Z added, "How many words you gonna take out? People give the words power. I think we need to direct that [energy] towards the community."

Despite heavy media attention in recent weeks, Nas said he is sticking to what he knows best -- himself.

"Some people say I'm conscious, some say I'm a gangsta rapper -- it's just me doing me. I'm stomping in my own lane. I'm doing what I do," he said in the MTV News article.

Still, Hampton wondered if Nas would tackle the real issue at play here: "How do you remove the sting that already exists?"