Because culture is so deeply
embedded in language, it is often important that we spend a little time
thinking very specifically about the words and phrases we choose to use, and
under what circumstances. While some might bristle at the thought of adapting
our language to accommodate the latest trends and thinking, I see it
differently. For the change isn’t with our trends or thinking, but with a
greater awareness of inequities that have always existed.
This
recently became very clear to me when my 9th grade daughter got very irritated
with the novel she was reading, To Kill a Mockingbird. She was
disappointed in the character of Atticus, who was supposed to be the moral
compass of us all-- defending those who can’t defend themselves, standing tall
in the face of adversity, acting on his moral courage. But she was
extremely angry when Atticus made light of putting women on the jury. He
states, “I doubt if we'd ever get a complete case tried—the ladies'd be
interrupting to ask questions." You know, I’ve read the book myself
once a year, on and off, for the last two decades, and I never really thought
twice about this passage. But hearing her read it, I suddenly saw it a
little differently. For years I have given Atticus a pass, justifying his
beliefs on gender by thinking of him as a product of his time and place, and by
the fact that he seemed to be so entirely wonderful in every other way.
But, as my daughter pointed out, this really seems to establish a double
standard, where we would be morally outraged by issues of race but let them go
when they related to gender.
And so
our goal isn’t to jump onto the next passing fad of buzz words or acceptable
terminology, but rather to raise an awareness of language and how it can
potentially perpetuate stereotypes or marginalize members of our community.
The idea is that we work harder to avoid the “but I didn’t know” category
of mistakes. And better yet, to help our students figure them out as
well.
Here is
a case in point. Earlier this winter, some type of meme was circulating
through social media that inspired some of our students to call one another
“boy.” Imitating the video, they would often say it as a jeer, which
might seem relatively harmless. However, the moniker of “boy” has a
rather disturbing past. It was a derogatory term used by the white
community in interactions with Black men throughout the days of slavery and Jim
Crow to establish their subordination within a given social exchange.
Many of our students have no idea of this history, and it is important
that we help them to see how they need to be careful of the things they pull
from pop culture and the things they see around them.
There
are many other examples, far too many to cover in a one page newsletter. But
I will offer a few that can be hurtful to people within our community.
If you do use some of these, but have never considered them to be
hurtful, you might look them up and learn a little more about their origins and
what they connote for some people. For example, you might hear someone
say they got “gypped” when they mean, “swindled” or “tricked”, but doing so
ignores the ethnic culture of the Romany people and how they have often been
targeted and persecuted by the dominant culture throughout history. Or
the phrase “cotton pickin” which has been associated to a racial slur for
African Americans who were referred to as “cotton pickers.” We have also
become more aware of ableist language, like “crazy” and “insane,” used to
describe things that are unusual or odd. But in a country where one in
five people suffer from a mental health condition (the vast majority of which
go untreated because of the stigma around seeking help), these adjectives
minimize and reduce the very real mental and emotional struggles that they face
everyday. Yet, we frequently use them to describe the world and people
around us.
Again, we don’t need “language” police
to tell us what words to use and not to use. It’s more about becoming
aware of what other people might be hearing when you use certain words and
phrases. Change does happen. In fact, it is remarkable to see how
much the language has shifted as we became more aware of how certain words
impacted people, even in just the last few decades. Try watching Goonies
today, and you will probably squirm a little as they refer to each other as
“gay” or “retarded.” Your jaw will probably drop when you go back and
watch John Travolta’s classic Saturday Night Fever as they talk to and
about women in language that is clearly out-of-bounds today. It’s just an
interesting comment about how much the language changes over time, and what it
reflects about us. And yet, we must also be aware of the fact that
changing a few words does not address the larger issues they represent.
Replacing, “guys” with “people” or “folks” doesn’t fix our problems with
gender discrimination or gender norms. But it can open up a discussion
about why those terms exist in the first place and how they might inadvertently
position people.
Language matters. It represents so much about what we value, so
it is important that we become a little more intentional about the words we use
and how they impact those around us.
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