Calling people homophobic is as derogatory as calling them a p*ssy, if not the same

[Miramonti]

Homophobe and homophobic are ridiculous pet terms the mainstream has adopted to derogatorily label and (and sometimes intimidate) people who use a derogatory gay term, even tho using gay slurs generally have nothing to do with being afraid of gays/being gay. (perhaps dislike/discomfort/ignorance toward gays/being gay is relevant, but not 'fear'.)

So how is this derogatory 'phobic' reference different from calling someone a pussy?

The same tactic many of us as kids would use to call friends and enemies a pussy and other interchangeable gay-referencing slurs is now being turned around and used in the same way, yet mainstream finds it acceptable.

 

[sixone]

Same applies to "racist".

It's a way to dehumanize someone who doesn't agree with you. People need to do it, when they feel insecure about their values.

 

[Miramonti]

Same applies to "racist".

It's a way to dehumanize someone who doesn't agree with you. People need to do it, when they feel insecure about their values.

Often that's very similar indeed.

 

[shortylickens]

Capital troll sir!

 

[pontifex]

shut up homophobe

 

[Miramonti]

Capital troll sir!

haha, another similar tactic. (not sure if serious but good one )

 

[gevorg]

If you don't agree with me, you're a bigot!

 

[Dumac]

Bend over and let me in.

If you refuse, you are a damn homophobe!

That said, I haven't really seen what the OP is talking about. Usually when someone gets called a homophobe, they truly are one but usually are in denial about it.

"Hey man I'm not a homoephobe. Gays are cool as long as I don't have to talk to them and they stay out of my life and I can pretend they don't exist. Stick to the shadows, fags. Of course, I say i love you in an endearing way that has nothing to do with sexual orientation."

Also, homophobia encompasses not only fear.

Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT). It can be expressed as antipathy, contempt, prejudice, aversion, or hatred, and may be based on irrational fear.

 

[Platypus]

this thread makes no sense at all, I'm not sure what point you're trying to make.

Does calling someone a 'lovely human' instantly make them a homophobe? Not by that extremely isolated example alone, no. Does it indicate that they value that person less as a human being by using a knowingly degrading word? Sure. Which is really the crux of the issue, why else would you need to tear someone down if that person did not threaten you or repulse you? What is the motivation for using such a word if not to elevate yourself above them?

To use another example, if you called someone a 'n i g g e r' but want to then follow up with .. but I'm not a racist, one would assume you were unless you could somehow come up with a valid reason for using a hateful slur against someone. In other words, justify to me why you think you can do that but avoid that label.

Is the term 'homophobe' thrown around a lot? Absolutely, as is racist, but I want a particular use case from you OP in which you think it's ok to use such slurs but avoid the term. I would argue that discomfort is fear manifesting itself in a different way. It may not LITERALLY mean you are afraid of them, but you are afraid of or hate what they represent or stand for. Why else would you need to tear it down?

I've never heard anyone make the correlation between 'pussy' and 'homophobe' in my life, and being a gay male I've been called basically everything you can think of for little to no reason and the majority of the time, it stems from fear. Perhaps you're taking the phobic part of the word a bit too literally and ignoring the shades of grey in between.

If the media is overusing or misusing a term, how does that surprise you at all? Since when does the 'media' ever really get it right? I think it's important to call out misuse of words though. People say lovely human or gay as if they mean stupid or annoying. I'm at a point in my life where I couldn't care less what someone calls me.. but I'm not the norm. There are kids who haven't even come out yet who grow up their entire lives hearing these terms to denounce or tear something down, even if the context isn't even appropriate. How do they make the distinction? How can you be ok with yourself if you ARE gay and you grow up surrounded by people who use that term to dispairage anything and everything? Do you see the danger in that?

Sometimes a spade is just a spade...

 

[Atomic Playboy]

The etymology of the word is easy to decipher since it entered the vernacular relatively recently. It was first used in the 1960s to describe heterosexual men being afraid of being perceived as gay. People started using it to describe not just the fear of being perceived as gay, but any negative feelings or actions towards homosexuality in general. So while it originally made sense to term it "homophobia," literally, the fear of being perceived as homosexual, as the term expanded to cover any negative feelings toward homosexuality, it started making less sense when interpreted literally. Obviously there are homophobic actions or terminology that are not based out of any fear of gays or the fear of being perceived as gay, but that term is the common vernacular now. As long as you don't interpret it using it's literal early definition and treat it with the understanding of what it has become, it's easy to ignore the "phobia" part of the term, and simply treat it as synonymous with "anti-gay bigotry."

As it's no longer indicative of a specific fear, it makes no sense to conflate it with calling someone a pussy. And this sentence just makes my head spin: "Homophobe and homophobic are ridiculous pet terms the mainstream has adopted to derogatorily label and (and sometimes intimidate) people who use a derogatory gay term..." How is it derogatory labeling to point out when someone has said something that could be perceived as a specific bigotry? "I'm not the bigot, you're the bigot for not supporting my hatred of gays!" That's asinine logic based around the faulty conclusion that intolerance of intolerance is intolerant, and it's been exposed as idiotic so many times I can't believe people still drag it out.

 

[Platypus]

That's asinine logic based around the faulty conclusion that intolerance of intolerance is intolerant, and it's been exposed as idiotic so many times I can't believe people still drag it out.

A thousand times this.

 

[SMOGZINN]

So how is this derogatory 'phobic' reference different from calling someone a pussy?

Well, for one it is not using female genitalia as a insult.
And second, as others have pointed out it does not exactly mean 'fear of' although I think you would be hard pressed to defend any action worth of calling someone a homophobe over as not fear based.

 

[Pray To Jesus]

what if they are a real homophobic slur deleted


and yes, I used the term deliberately.
admin allisolm

 

[SMOGZINN]

what if they are a real slur deleted?

You mean a bundle of wood or a cigarette?

 

[Mixolydian]

I'm not allowed to use the "G" word on these forums anymore.

(Not a homophobe)

 

[Chops McGandhi]

Just because a comedian says something sometime, it doesn't mean it is appropriate material for posting here.

admin allisolm

 

[Rakehellion]

Homophobe and homophobic are ridiculous pet terms the mainstream has adopted to derogatorily label and (and sometimes intimidate) people who use a derogatory gay term, even tho using gay slurs generally have nothing to do with being afraid of gays/being gay. (perhaps dislike/discomfort/ignorance toward gays/being gay is relevant, but not 'fear'.)

So how is this derogatory 'phobic' reference different from calling someone a pussy?

The same tactic many of us as kids would use to call friends and enemies a pussy and other interchangeable gay-referencing slurs is now being turned around and used in the same way, yet mainstream finds it acceptable.

Cliffs: Guy is tired of getting called homophobic so he tries to put a positive spin on it.

 

[OverVolt]

What derogatory words am I allowed to use OP?

 

[zinfamous]

Homophobe and homophobic are ridiculous pet terms the mainstream has adopted to derogatorily label and (and sometimes intimidate) people who use a derogatory gay term, even tho using gay slurs generally have nothing to do with being afraid of gays/being gay. (perhaps dislike/discomfort/ignorance toward gays/being gay is relevant, but not 'fear'.)

So how is this derogatory 'phobic' reference different from calling someone a pussy?

The same tactic many of us as kids would use to call friends and enemies a pussy and other interchangeable gay-referencing slurs is now being turned around and used in the same way, yet mainstream finds it acceptable.

hey, everybody! look at the homophobe!

 

[sandorski]

Overused? Sure, but very often it is an accurate assessment.

 

[zinfamous]

Same applies to "racist".

It's a way to dehumanize someone who doesn't agree with you. People need to do it, when they feel insecure about their values.

yes, I tend to not agree with racists. Inasmuch, I tend to let them know what I think about them.


....wtf is your point?

 

[OverVolt]

hey, everybody! look at the homophobe!

More like a sexaphobe. Way too picky. Who cares really. I don't dwell on this crap. It affects my life naught.

 

[Miramonti]

Homophobe is a bullying term and used as a tactic, similar to calling someone a pussy. It's the wrong word to use. The term racist can be used in a bullying manner but isn't by definition a bullying term. To suggest anyone who uses a gay slur has fear of gay people is over the top and inappropriate, just as using a gay term in a derogatory manner is. However it's an accepted way of fighting ignorance, with more ignorance.

 

[Craig234]

The term homophobe literally means 'person afraid of homosexuality' - which is a pretty good description of a lot of people who don't want to be gay; it's literally inaccurate to use it as a term for many bigots whose hatred of hoimosexuality is not based on fear of it, but the meaning is no longer just literal, it's expanded to include bigotry more generally.

I used to object to the inaccuracy, but get over it. Accept it for what it is used for.

The larger issue is not whining about the accuracy of the word, but the bigotry that it's describing.

Funny enough I never see anyone whining about the word express bigotry concern.

 

[olds]

Homophobe is a bullying term and used as a tactic, similar to calling someone a pussy. It's the wrong word to use. The term racist can be used in a bullying manner but isn't by definition a bullying term. To suggest anyone who uses a gay slur has fear of gay people is over the top and inappropriate, just as using a gay term in a derogatory manner is. However it's an accepted way of fighting ignorance, with more ignorance.

Are you a grammarphobe?