Use of the "N" word in Heart of Darkness?

I don't feel he's being racist. Back in that day, that word was a way of referring to black people, and over time has become steadily more offensive (especially since the civil rights movement.) In fact, if you'll look at how his protagonist speaks about the Africans, Conrad appears to view them as quite dignified. Most of his characters use the word as a modern-day person would use the term "black."