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Q. for gays and lesbians here... | by Illiad | 2004-12-14 09:11:21 |
| Man, I'd love to help you |
by thewrongcrowd |
2004-12-14 10:31:18 |
...but I'm not sure I have an answer. Hell, I'm not sure there is an answer. The closest to a short answer I have is anything except "gay", "lesbian" and "homosexual" (and maybe "queer", depending on where you are) is probably best left to members of the culture. "Man", "woman" and "person" are always applicable. ;)
For me personally, it's generally a matter of intent, tone and context. Any of the common terms can be pejorative, including gay, which is the most innocuous of the terms and the most difficult to make into a pejorative. There are, however, lesbians who object to it because they define "gay" as relating to men only and see it as a non-inclusive term.
Some of the terms that were clearly pejorative several years ago, e.g. queer, are much less so now. And at first it was most certainly a matter of the term being acceptable only when used in-group. Now? Not so much. Maybe. On the other hand, "queen" seems pejorative unless in-group, or at least close enough that you'd be considered a friend. Unless it's being used as a descriptive for someone who's proud of being a queen.
Obviously some of the terms are not interchangeable. Some gay men would never be considered queens. Some women are definitely not lipstick lesbians. :) But it doesn't seem that the strict definitions of the past apply as much anymore. Then again, different communities have different rules of thumb, so, like the rest of us, you're pretty much on your own on this. :)
Does that help? :P
Oh, and "pansy" is always good to start a bar fight. ;P |
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