5 ms·
> Not to say there can't be girl on girl [sic] sexism. True, but since the "girls" under discussion are both in fact women, that would be sexism by definition.
by lutusp 13y ago
> Not to say there can't be girl on girl [sic] sexism.
True, but since the "girls" under discussion are both in fact women, that would be sexism by definition.
- LockeWatts 13y agoWait, what does the noun change? You completely lost me.
- hluska 13y agoThe term 'girl' refers to a female between birth and when she reaches the age of adulthood. I'm pretty sure both parties in this case are adults, so I assume that's the reason behind the correction.
- LockeWatts 13y agoI mean, while technically true, the interoperability between the gendered nouns isn't complete. Man / Woman Boy / Girl Guy / ??? Some people would say ??? = Gal, but most would find that very informal, especially when writing. The usual female equivalent to guy is girl, which is not referring to a younger age but merely a less formal sex descriptor. Secondly, I STILL don't see how that changes the point any. If the guy is talking about girls, it makes sense, if he's talking about about women, it doesn't? I'm still lost there.
- lutusp 13y ago> I STILL don't see how that changes the point any. Okay, fair enough. Nest time you see a black man over 20 and under 50 years of age, try calling him "boy". See how he reacts. But before you do, write that last will and testament you've been meaning to finish.
- meisterbrendan 13y agoThis girl on girl/woman on woman semantics you are calling out is unnecessary and distracting--even an uncharitable reader would have a hard time ferreting out sexism in the parent comment. And by the way: your insinuation that a black man would automatically kill/cause bodily harm someone who says something racist to him is in and of itself racist and is far more perverse than anything else I've read on this thread by a very, very wide margin.
- lutusp 13y ago> And by the way: your insinuation that a black man would automatically kill/cause bodily harm someone ... You locate where I said or implied this, and I will defend it. "Fasten your seat belt." "Are you implying that I'm an unsafe driver, or that I'm likely to get into a traffic accident?" "Umm, no, I'm just offering some common-sense advice."
- lmartel 13y agoAlright, defend it: >Nest time you see a black man over 20 and under 50 years of age, try calling him "boy". See how he reacts. But before you do, write that last will and testament Still can't see it? Yes you can. >Next time you see a black man... try calling him "boy"... But before you [see how he reacts] write that last will and testament Either your English is pretty limited (in which case, avoid getting into semantic arguments like 'woman' vs 'girl'), or you're being disingenuous. There is no universe in which that does not mean "because he will murder you." You say that he will need a last will and testament after the black man reacts. What the fuck else could that possibly mean. The reason you're being picked on and downvoted in this comment thread, by the way, is because this kind of bullshit is a harmful distraction. There are plenty of serious issues to talk about in this thread. Horvath has revealed some toxic shit going on in a very popular, well-loved SV startup. Using 'girl' instead of 'woman' for 'young female adult' is NOT one of these serious issues. As a young male in tech I know a lot of young females in tech; of the minority who actually give a shit about this petty nonsense, they all prefer 'girl' and feel uncomfortable with 'woman.' EDIT: also, equating "fasten your seatbelt before driving" and "write a will before insulting a black man" as "common sense advice" is SUPER FUCKING RACIST
- hluska 13y agoThose are really excellent points and I think you're right. Thanks for taking the time to explain that to me!
- nailer 13y agoSo HBO 'Girls' is using an offensive term for young women and trying to... reclaim it?
- lutusp 13y ago> Wait, what does the noun change? Are you still a boy? Yes or no? How about a black man? Is he appropriately described as a "boy" or do you value your life?
- MarkTee 13y agoNot sure why you're so insistent to mention race...in 2 of your posts you've specified "black man". What does skin colour have to do with it?
- qohen 13y agoHe's alluding to this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boy#Race https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boy#Race Historically, in countries such as the U.S. and South Africa, "boy" was not only a 'neutral' term for domestics but also used as a disparaging racist insult towards men of colour (especially of African descent), recalling their subservient status even after the 20th century legal emancipation (from slavery, evolved to race segregation, viz. Apartheid) and alleged infantility, and many still consider it offensive in that context to this day since it denotes that men of colour (especially of African descent) are less than men.
- MarkTee 13y agoThanks, that makes a bit more sense. I'm still not sure why he mentions race when the topic at hand is age, gender, and language, though.
- unreal37 13y agoHe's saying calling a woman a girl is equally offensive. (Although it's a complete distraction to the discussion.)
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- lutusp 13y agoThat's easy to answer -- they're all ways to unfairly single out people based on traits that shouldn't be used to distinguish people, ways that are now illegal in some cases -- age, race, gender.