A viral article out of the UK is posing an fascinating request — pleading with the general public (and the media) to cease utilizing the phrase “queer” … because the creator apparently views it as a slur.
The transient opinion piece — which additionally appears to be a letter to the editor — appeared in the Guardian this week … and the headline merely learn, “Please don’t use the Q-word.” It’s written by a fella named Karl Lockwood, who says he is a homosexual man of almost 7 many years.
Please don’t use the Q-word | Letter https://t.co/qaJ7umZ6sb
— The Guardian (@guardian) January 13, 2023
@guardian
In the 113-word editorial, Lockwood hones into a Guardian piece written final week, which notes that England and Wales had began to depend trans and nonbinary folks in their census for the primary time ever — whereas stating solely 15,000 ID’d particularly as queer.
He provides, “I believe that most of the others, like me, take into account the time period to be insulting and derogatory, and definitely not ‘reclaimed’. I’m a homosexual man of 66 years with many associates and acquaintances, and know nobody who would consult with themselves as queer. It would appear a small minority of activists has inspired the media to make use of the phrase with out contemplating its offensiveness to many individuals. You wouldn’t use the N-word, so don’t use the Q-word.”
In different phrases, he is referring to a time when “queer” was used to bully others — which he feels qualifies it as hate speech … and thus, warrants its censoring in public discourse.
It’s an fascinating argument, however most of Twitter appears to strongly disagree with this man … with a lot of oldsters on the chicken app calling it cloaked “TERF” discuss that solely serves to erase queer folks from the bigger dialog. Some additionally suppose it targets transgender people.
The transfer to ban “queer” would possibly seem to be a noble mission to older gays who might have first heard the phrase as a slur, nevertheless it’s basically a part of a mission to exclude trans folks from the group, and it’s not significantly delicate. https://t.co/gqOd2TIrpN
— Louis Peitzman (@LouisPeitzman) January 14, 2023
@LouisPeitzman
Of course, there’s additionally the problem of evaluating using “queer” to the n-word, which actually has folks fired up. Many say the juxtaposition is apples to oranges — and that conflating the 2 is a large disservice to Black folks, to not point out LGBTQ+ folks of colour.
The bigger context right here appears to lie in generational variations on this concern … the person who wrote that is clearly of an older demographic, which a handful of customers acknowledge and respect, however simply as many really feel like he should not impose his views on a whole subculture.
