5// Learning the influence of language and word choice
It
was the Halloween haunted house at my high school and I was in the
medical ward room with a group of my friends. This haunted house took
up several hallways and the gym of our school and was a really popular
weekend event. In-between tour groups, we would sit on the medical cot
and around that area and talk about life. We were talking about
something and I said, "those shirts are gay." Immediately my friend
Keith punched me in the arm and just stared at me. I then realized that
I had "slipped" and used the word gay in a derogatory fashion in front
of a dear friend who is gay. I put slipped into quotation marks because
before that I don't remember necessarily being aware of what I was
saying. People tend to be cautious around others to monitor their
language when it affects that person but otherwise they don't
necessarily care. It was in that moment that I realized that it
absolutely was not okay to use a harmful word. I wasn't trying to be
politically correct, I just wanted to be a good friend. It is never ok
to let degrading or demeaning words into your vocabulary because they
carry a history of harm and cruelty.
In
the high school example I used earlier, their words and actions hurt me
and they believed it was ok. Hurting other people for your gains and
amusement is bullying. I choose not to use words like gay and retarded
because it puts people in a box, instead of celebrating who they are.
If you liked this post, share it with others! If you feel particularly moved by it, leave a comment because I love feedback and discussion.
Social media links are provided below and thanks for reading!
No comments :
Post a Comment