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Yes they can in fact say this. You do realize english is not the only language that exists or ever existed right ? Or that northern american culture is not hegemonic (yet) ?
Niger/nigra/nigrum is a latin word that simply means black or dark without all the prejudice attached to it in english, and believe it or not, variations of that root word still exist in a shitload of european languages and dialects to signify the exact same thing : a color.
To claim as you do that the denigrative usage of the word is the only understanding some farmer from the depths of the Urals should have is frankly preposterous.
When the fine is orders of magnitude less than the money you made breaking the law, it’s not deterrence, it’s just the cost of doing business.