4 ms·

Speculation: There may be more news articles, TV segments, and online comments complaining about "Latinx" than there are people who have ever used the term to r

Speculation: There may be more news articles, TV segments, and online comments complaining about "Latinx" than there are people who have ever used the term to refer to themselves or others. It's never been a popular term among any group, not even among people who want Spanish to be more gender-neutral ("Latine" and the -e suffix seems to be more popular among them, probably on account of it being pronounceable.) Plus, it's worth pointing out that there are some Latin Americans who prefer the term "Latinx" and use it to describe themselves. Not many, of course, but not zero. So accusations that it's only used by Anglophones are wrong.

Mountain_Skies 4y ago
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has used her position to push use of the term so it's not exactly fringe.
- dekhn 4y ago
  it's not fringe, it's a subsection of progressives. I'm glad there were so many articles about this; it made clear to a lot of people who thought they had to say "latinx" to be inclusive, didn't actually need to do so (it seems like lots of people want external guidance about what they can and cannot say and somehow there was a message that latinx was inclusive).
  - chitowneats 4y ago
    "it seems like lots of people want external guidance about what they can and cannot say" Could this be because they've seen others socially ostracized or persecuted at work for unknowingly, innocently, violating whatever taboo progressives invented 5 minutes ago? They're afraid. I don't blame them.
    - dekhn 4y ago
      Yes, exactly. It was a lot worse about 5 years ago, at least now you can push back politely and not get insta-cancelled.
barelysapient 4y ago
It seems to me the majority of the group should get to pick the labels used to describe the group. And since that hasn't happened yet with latinos, it’s unfair to use ‘Latinx’ without their permission. The analogue is the F and N words for people in those communities. Both of those words were forced on those communities by people outside those communities. Forcing this label on latinos, without their consent, is an act of violence and furthers the long-standing marginalization of that community.
- a_shovel 4y ago
  It seems hyperbolic to compare slurs to a word for a group that's merely unpopular. The framing of Latinx as a word unwillingly forced onto Latin Americans by outsiders is exactly why I brought up that some people use it to describe themselves.
  - int_19h 4y ago
    Thing is, there are also many Latinos who are complaining about it being forced on them and/or treat it as a form of cultural imperialism (not necessarily in these exact terms, but e.g. "anglos are mutilating my language"). So it can be offensive either way, and it's down to how many people you're willing to offend.
  - barelysapient 4y ago
    I think its far to early in the etymological lifespan of words to make that claim.
- quattrofan 4y ago
  [dead]
basch 4y ago
It appears to be a popular word in styleguides. It has been adopted by journalists, thus you mostly see it from people with authoritative voices.

Mountain_Skies 4y ago

Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has used her position to push use of the term so it's not exactly fringe.

dekhn 4y ago
it's not fringe, it's a subsection of progressives. I'm glad there were so many articles about this; it made clear to a lot of people who thought they had to say "latinx" to be inclusive, didn't actually need to do so (it seems like lots of people want external guidance about what they can and cannot say and somehow there was a message that latinx was inclusive).
- chitowneats 4y ago
  "it seems like lots of people want external guidance about what they can and cannot say" Could this be because they've seen others socially ostracized or persecuted at work for unknowingly, innocently, violating whatever taboo progressives invented 5 minutes ago? They're afraid. I don't blame them.
  - dekhn 4y ago
    Yes, exactly. It was a lot worse about 5 years ago, at least now you can push back politely and not get insta-cancelled.

barelysapient 4y ago

It seems to me the majority of the group should get to pick the labels used to describe the group. And since that hasn't happened yet with latinos, it’s unfair to use ‘Latinx’ without their permission. The analogue is the F and N words for people in those communities. Both of those words were forced on those communities by people outside those communities. Forcing this label on latinos, without their consent, is an act of violence and furthers the long-standing marginalization of that community.

a_shovel 4y ago
It seems hyperbolic to compare slurs to a word for a group that's merely unpopular. The framing of Latinx as a word unwillingly forced onto Latin Americans by outsiders is exactly why I brought up that some people use it to describe themselves.
- int_19h 4y ago
  Thing is, there are also many Latinos who are complaining about it being forced on them and/or treat it as a form of cultural imperialism (not necessarily in these exact terms, but e.g. "anglos are mutilating my language"). So it can be offensive either way, and it's down to how many people you're willing to offend.
- barelysapient 4y ago
  I think its far to early in the etymological lifespan of words to make that claim.
quattrofan 4y ago
[dead]

basch 4y ago

It appears to be a popular word in styleguides. It has been adopted by journalists, thus you mostly see it from people with authoritative voices.