Ok. Sorry not sorry, but I’m gonna hop on my soapbox real quick.
I’m tired of hearing folks get ornery about shifting language—especially surrounding identity, like new pronouns for non-binary folks.
The thing is, language shifts. Saying “take a left” as opposed to “hang a Louie,” or “my” instead of “thy” didn’t catch so much friction because it wasn’t rubbing against preexisting concepts of how people should exist.
That we are creating new language (and reappropriating existing language) uncovers a deficit in our language system—not a deficit in the individual that goes by “they/them.” Ok? We failed them, not the other way around.
Here’s a history lesson for you: Up until the early 1970s, the term “domestic violence” didn’t exist. Back then, if a woman said to another, “Sometimes my husband goes out to the bar, and hits me when he comes home drunk,” the other woman would respond, “Honey that’s life.”
Its critical to be able to define your experiences in order to process them. And if a person is belittling the language another person uses to define themself, they need to find a better hobby than policing others. It’s fucking sad, and pompous, and generally ignorant.
Language is essential and powerful. Taking someone’s name away because you can’t empathize with experiences outside your realm just makes you an ass. Don’t be an ass.
