Quote:
Originally Posted by MMM
Similarly, though more slowly, “slut,” “whore” and “c**t” are being reappropriated. “The young people use those terms all the time teasingly and sometimes to even refer to themselves,” says Hill. “It is more common to hear someone say ‘I am a slut’ than ‘I am a whore.’ ” “C**t” is gaining currency among some young lesbians, though Baim says it is a word that gets stuck in her throat. “While it is a reclaimed word, it is one I can hardly say, the same way some older blacks have trouble saying the n-word.”
I love the reclaiming. It's like fan girls claiming J-rockers.
Fag (faggot): The new “queer.” “Like the n-word, it’s a word that can be said by gay people,” says Hill. “I hear ‘fag’ a great deal, especially among queer-identified young people, like ‘don’t be such a fag’ or ‘you are such a fag.’ “
It's wonderful to see young gay people cutting themselves on sexual lines down much in the same way young blacks do on racial lines.
Girl: “‘Girl’ is used by older women,” says Baim. “It is kind of nice because it used to be used derogatorily and now it is used in a fun way.”
I missed that one. When was "girl" a derogatory term?
Guys: Very controversial. Used, especially in the Midwest, when referring to a group of people. “In Chicago that word gets used a lot,” says Hill. And Baim says, “I use it all of the time.” Some feminists, like Andi Zeisler, the editor of Bitch, find “guys” problematic. “We assume the descriptor ‘guys’ denotes a quality of universality,” she says. “It would be hard to imagine a group of men being addressed by their server as ‘hey you gals’ and not taking offense, but the reverse happens all the time.”
"Guys" is a "very controversial word? Again, news to me.
This is great reading. Thanks Mercedesjin. It's nice to see there are people in academia with this kind of time on their hands. I used to think I was PC, but now I see the PC of the 90s I subscribed to is practically racist, and I must sound like a Klansman the way I talk.
You guys should really read it.
OOPS!
|
It is interesting to learn new things, isn't it? I also didn't realize some of the things that were on that site. For example, gender neutral words. Those are really interesting to me.
Unfortunately, I think that it would be a little difficult for one person to take on all of these issues. It's important to respect different groups of people, so it's also important to keep these various issues on the article in mind - but I can't say that I'm as passionate about every single term. "Fag", for example, is something I could never use. I'm not passionate about reclaiming that word.
I learned early on that it's important to pick and choose battles, because a person can very quickly before burnt out over important issues like these.