This whole Grey's Anatomy FaggotGate has opened up a whole can of worms.
Much of what I've read and heard has "Faggot" censored to "the F word" or "F*****" similar to what's been done to the word "Nigger" (no offense intended) having morphed into "the N word" or "N*****". Faggot is being referred to as a "slur." In my opinion, that only gives the word more power. And it sets back decades of struggle, coming-out days, therapy, parades, and marches that have declared that being a faggot is to be celebrated.
I'm not African-American so I can't comment on the latter, but I firmly disagree with the gay community following in this approach. Years ago, a great therapist and I had an interesting conversation about this. We were talking about how someone had called me a "fag" and that it bothered me (walking in downtown San Francisco, no less). My therapist's response, "So what, you are," really opened my eyes.
The only way these words have any power is if there is a negative connotation to them. Guess what? I am a faggot. I'm a queer. I'm gay. I'm everything you want to call me. Not only am I okay with it, I think it's great. And I'm pretty great, too, despite that and because of that!
So, those who try to bring me down with words, you're gonna have to find something new, 'cause any incarnation of faggot just ain't going to work. Now what?
In the case of FaggotGate, I'm more concerned that Mr. Washington used the word in a negative way against a co-worker and that constitutes a hostile work environment. I wouldn't want to work in such a place and I think that the producers should take some sort of action that affords everyone on the set a positive environment. I've been in jobs where I wake up in the morning and dread going to work so that must be remedied. Everyone has the right to earn a hassle-free living.
Friday, January 19, 2007
So I'm A Faggot; Now What?
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3 comments:
While I agree that by taking back epithets from our opressors we can empower those words with our own meaning. In the case of "queer", yes, that's true. There was an actual movement to do just that. Things like "Queer Eye for the Str8 Guy" and "Queer as Folk" are evidence that we have indeed turned that meaning around and it no longer has the same negative connotation.
We haven't gotten there yet with "faggot" though--not by a long shot. At best we're at that place where it's okay for us (gays) to say it but not other people. Sort of like the N word in the black community.
Also, you point out the context in which the word was used which was negative and hostile. So no matter what the word, context and intent are factors that cannot be discounted. The important message to get across here is that it's not okay to talk like that anymore and if you do there will be consequences. Maybe someday we'll get around to taking back the meaning of that word for our own empowerment but for right now it's still off limits.
Michael--
Thanks for the viewpoint. This is a great debate!
I guess that I am already there with "faggot" as I am with queer. Perhaps all those years of therapy paid off!
We all bristled about "queer" when QEFTSG first came out. I remember the discussions with friends, but now queer is a no brainer. That happened within weeks after the show debuted.
What I'm saying is that we can choose to go down the same road with faggot as with queer, or go down the same road as the African American community did with "the N word" where the word is such a taboo is has more power than ever.
Calling someone a n***** has never had more power than now and I think that is due in part to the black community itself. Now the word can't even be used by news journalists in a serious and respectful reporting of facts. ie. in a story on a hate crime, the word is still scrubbed.
In the case of the negative connotation of FaggotGate, I think that T.R. would have an equal claim to a hostile work environment whether the word(s) were faggot, ugly pig, stupid asshole, jerkface, useless piece of trash, etc. because of the hostile nature of IW's intent.
Lets hope we all get to a point where name calling is a reflection of the caller instead of the callee.
BTW, I've never called anyone a faggot nor been called that by friends. Girlfriend, maybe. Faggot, no! :)
A little background on the "queer" movement. The groudwork was well laid for the acceptance of the word "queer" LONG before QEFTSG ever hit tv, otherwise Bravo (an NBC affiliated station) would never have gone near it. There was an actual movement to reclaim that word back in the early '90s along with the ACT UP movement. It took a grass roots organization to unite the gay community on that issue. A simliar campaign has not been started for "faggot". But maybe it's time someone did. But, as we are still not there yet the word remains a devisive epithet that is used to harm more than than anything else. One person's choice not to accept it as a negative term is admirable but does not speak for an entire community.
In terms of the negative context of the word, it most certainly does make a HUGE difference what word was being used. The law determines which crimes are considered hate (or biased) crimes based on the language used during the crime. If someone is attacked, happens to be gay and the word "faggot" (or any other gay epithet) is used by his attackers, it can be ruled as a hate crime which carries different penalities in most cases than an ordinary crime.
The same is true in the work place. Calling someone a "jerkface" in no way refers to someone's sexuality--faggot does. While both words are hostile, one is considered biased and discriminatory based on one's sexual orientation. That falls under the category of sexual harassment and most companies have a different policy for that than they do for "jerkface."
In the case of ABC's dealing with the situation, they have to make a decision on what the current connotation of the F word is right now in mainstream society-- not what they (or you) hope it will be someday down the line. The decision they make sends a message to their advertisers, viewers, employees and the gay community.
By the way, Isaiah could have said "queer" or "gayboy" neither of which are as negative a faggot, but because he was using those words during a hostile, violent confrontation, they would and should still be considered biased based on sexaual orientation. Context makes a big different.
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