On the 'B' word.
So, I have been working things out of my vocabulary. 'Gay' meaning 'stupid' was a no-brainer. 'It was never IN my vocabulary. 'Retarded' was fairly easy. Very occasionally I'll catch myself before I say it, but it's pretty easy. I am trying to do the same with 'lame,' though I admit that one is much harder for me. 'Gypped' took some work, because I grew up with it, but I mostly say "cheated" instead now.
I am taking a stand against 'bitch.' It's a gendered slur, and one most often used to mean "woman who dares to have opinions that are not my own" or "woman with any conceivable level of assertiveness, god why doesn't she just allow me to be an ass to her in peace?" Oh, and sometimes it means "man who I am ridiculing by calling him a female epithet, because we all know that women suck."
Though, there are times when it means "asshole." Which, let me tell you, when I mean "female asshole," I do struggle with not using the word "bitch." I am trying to say "asshole" instead. Assholes are universal. Everyone has 'em.
What makes 'bitch' so insidious that it's become SUCH a part of our collective vocabulary that we don't really examine it, and because its casual misogyny is in line with our culture's unconscious misogyny, we often don't even notice it because it's all around us, like air. So, you can say 'bitch' and still be a good, if somewhat clueless person. But if you know the history and context of the word, it's worth choosing a different one.
So, I am drawing a line in this blog regarding the word "bitch." Any use of the word which is not used in a reclaiming sense or within a social justice context will be screened, with a link to this post. You can defend your use of the word if you want, but I reserve the right to make the judgment call in my own space.
Language is important. All manner of injustices get covered up by "but it's just a word" or some vague complaining about being "too PC." This is my line in the sand, and from this point forward, it's the one I'm sticking with.
Plus, I think it's a timely line to draw. There's been a lot of recent talk about the disproportional amount of hate that women get on the internet. These posts have been very "well duh" for a lot of us, but for a lot of people, they are eye-opening as hell. Check them out if you haven't already.
John Scalzi - The Sort of Crap I Don't Get
Seanan McGuire - Being a Female in the Age of the Internet
Naomi Dunford - Death Threats and Hate Crimes, Attacks On Women Bloggers Escalating
I am taking a stand against 'bitch.' It's a gendered slur, and one most often used to mean "woman who dares to have opinions that are not my own" or "woman with any conceivable level of assertiveness, god why doesn't she just allow me to be an ass to her in peace?" Oh, and sometimes it means "man who I am ridiculing by calling him a female epithet, because we all know that women suck."
Though, there are times when it means "asshole." Which, let me tell you, when I mean "female asshole," I do struggle with not using the word "bitch." I am trying to say "asshole" instead. Assholes are universal. Everyone has 'em.
What makes 'bitch' so insidious that it's become SUCH a part of our collective vocabulary that we don't really examine it, and because its casual misogyny is in line with our culture's unconscious misogyny, we often don't even notice it because it's all around us, like air. So, you can say 'bitch' and still be a good, if somewhat clueless person. But if you know the history and context of the word, it's worth choosing a different one.
So, I am drawing a line in this blog regarding the word "bitch." Any use of the word which is not used in a reclaiming sense or within a social justice context will be screened, with a link to this post. You can defend your use of the word if you want, but I reserve the right to make the judgment call in my own space.
Language is important. All manner of injustices get covered up by "but it's just a word" or some vague complaining about being "too PC." This is my line in the sand, and from this point forward, it's the one I'm sticking with.
Plus, I think it's a timely line to draw. There's been a lot of recent talk about the disproportional amount of hate that women get on the internet. These posts have been very "well duh" for a lot of us, but for a lot of people, they are eye-opening as hell. Check them out if you haven't already.
John Scalzi - The Sort of Crap I Don't Get
Seanan McGuire - Being a Female in the Age of the Internet
Naomi Dunford - Death Threats and Hate Crimes, Attacks On Women Bloggers Escalating