I don’t speak for every black person, so I can only speak from how I feel. Some don’t mind the use of the word in quoting a black person, others do. I’m just one of the people who feels it’s sufficient to say ‘n-word’.. if extra specifications are needed, someone can include whether it was with an ‘-er’ or an ‘-a’.

I just feel like the point can be made without spelling out the entire word itself. Oftentimes when I see people using it in a quote it feels as though it’s an excuse they’re using.

No worries about overstepping boundaries, it’s definitely a gray area and like I said I’m sure someone will be in disagreement with me. In my opinion there’s no difference between using asterisks and typing ‘n-word’. Both communicate respect for the word and it’s effects.