#misuse of language

[rrcraft-and-lore]

Credit to: Ian Sanders for the post.

I love this

[magnetothemagnificent]

Instead of misrepresenting terms that were created to describe intersex variations and infertility (Six sexes, not genders), as queer Jews we should come up with new, inclusive terms that are inspired by the gender nonconformity and non-heteronormative people and ideas in Judaism, in the same way Native Americans came up with the modern word of "Two Spirit" as an umbrella term. Language is always evolving and we don't need to and shouldn't misgender and misrepresent intersex people to try and find words for ourselves.

I like the term "נברא בי�� השמשות" ("Nivrah Bein HaShmashot")-"Created between the suns", which refers to the concept in Midrash of the liminal time between the end of the Sixth Day of Creation and the Seventh Day of Creation. It is said that during this time certain important objects, creatures, and concepts were created. The entities created during this time mostly follow themes of not fitting into certain binaries and/or not being able to be fully explained or rationalized, hence they were created "Between the suns", because they did not fit neatly into one category or another.

I've talked about this idea before and how I relate it to my transness, and I think it would be a perfect umbrella term for Jews whose gender and/or sexuality is outside of societal cishetnormativity.

Another term I like is "עוברים" ("Ovrim") ("Those who cross over"). Jews are known as "עברים" because of how we stand out and may seem to be transgressive or rebellious when we cross over boundaries, and this shares a root with "עברים". The term melds Jewish identity with gender nonconformity and/or transitioning and sexuality that isn't heterosexual.

Or maybe we can come up with another term! But regardless, it's important that we don't misappropriate terms that were created to describe intersex people (who still face mountains of stigma and discrimination and shouldn't be silenced or spoken over by trans people). And anyway, I think it's far more meaningful and beautiful to come up with our own terms rather than misuse centuries old terms that never had us in mind.

The Queer Jewish community is a thriving, invaluable community, and we deserve to create and use our own words.

[gur0hana]

hi reminder that using kemonomimi to mean “someone who dresses up as an animal with ears, tails, collars, etc.” is cultural appropriation! Unless you’re actually an alterhuman who is kin/hearted/therian/kith/linked with kemono/kemonomimi, do not call yourself a kemonomimi! They are not just people who dress up! They are spirits in Japanese folklore that have influence culture practices into the modern age. -sincerely, an indigenous Japanese person

[puppyeared]

who up seeing their disorder in a fictional character but feel like its not their place to put a name on it

[marcsnuffy]

no thanks twitter I don't want to see that guy shirtless, beefed up and sweating. I do want to see him scampering like a mouse or writhing in pain though thanks for that

[uncanny-tranny]

I think a lot of people forget that the toxic part of the "toxic masculinity" phrase is an adjective - something that describes a noun (masculinity).

So, for example, how there are tall women, but that doesn't mean that all women are tall women. There are short women and medium-sized women, but the specific existence of tall women doesn't negate that there are other-sized women.

I see this on both sides - both in the idea that all masculinity is inextricably linked to toxicity, and also in the idea that, because there are healthy forms of masculinity (or, healthier versions), there can be no forms of toxic masculinity. These conversations are too complex to slap either label onto the premise.

[tired-fandom-ndn]

I don't usually give a crap about grammar but I DO think it's important to try to show the bare minimum of thoughtfulness and respect when using words from languages that are from marginalized ethnic groups or often appropriated from in your own culture, especially when those words are often misused in harmful ways.

[vampelune]

i kinda hate now that the like? homophobic excuse for hating/disliking gay ships of "i see them as friends" "i see them as brothers" "i see them as a teacher/student relationship despite them being close in age" "i see the older one as fatherly to the younger one" has become, like, "woke" way of dismissing gay ships in fandom. esp on tiktok

like the fact that ive seen new overwatch fans say roadrat's age gap is too large and men should just be able to be friends/i think roadhog is fatherly to junkrat so its "icky" is. Wild.

and its always from someone who instead ships those characters in a mediocre het pairing instead

[nomsfaultau]

Case files (as edited by Tommy and Tubbo)

Special guest appearance by the ‘‘‘lovely’’’ Dr. Blake. Additionally, this is only what the Foundation is aware of, which is a rather important distinction.

Fic is Fault by CookieNomNomCrunch on AO3

[lemongrablothbrok]

I don't know what I'd consider to be the number one most irksome common vocabulary blunder in the English language, but the misuse of the word "penultimate" would have to be number two.

[stormy-talks]

Please learn the difference between a mistake versus malicious intent. Not everyone is trying to cause harm on purpose. How do we get anything done if we assume the worst all the time? Save that energy for actual bigots, hold each other accountable, and maybe we can get things done.

If someone I directly told my pronouns to is misgendering me, I'm going to call it out. If it's clear that the person is doing it because they're a bigot, they're obviously being transphobic. If some rando didn't read my blog and is replying to one of my posts and misgenders me? That doesn't indicate malice at all. Tumblr allows interaction without visiting people's blog, just like any other social media platform. I'm not going to assume you're misgendering me because you don't think I deserve dignity or because you're transphobic.

Also, weaponizing activist language because you want to cause drama in your own community is not okay. You don't get to call it de-gendering when someone uses they/them in place of otherwise known pronouns. De-gendering actually hurts us. You don't get to throw that phrase around.

[thethingything]

I can't pinpoint exactly why, but something about the misinformation generated by large language models being referred to as "hallucinations" makes me really uncomfortable. (I know the term includes stuff other than that but what I've been seeing it used for the most online lately).

it might just be because I'm so used to hearing language related to psychosis being misused and this feels kinda reminiscent of that even if it's not the same thing, but I just wish there was a term for it that wasn't also the name of a symptom I experience that's already misunderstood by a lot of people.

realistically this probably isn't actually a huge issue and it probably is just me getting weirdly uncomfortable, but at the same time I feel like there's got to be a better term that could be used for it that would also more accurately convey what the computer is doing instead of conflating "hallucinating" with "making shit up"

[hypaalicious]

Y’all absolutely need to touch grass if you’re policing the sanctity of a fictional character and that goes double if you are harassing real people over it.

It’s alright if you’re uncomfy with other people’s characterizations or projected desires onto your smol bean-ified comfort characters. There are more things than I can count that weird me out in fandoms. But to react as if you are morally superior than someone else because of your preferences or act as if you being offended is equal to actual real-life harm is absolutely wild.

Fictional characters are a conglomerate of flattened personality traits and aesthetics, nothing more. In most cases, everything is arbitrary. In all cases, everything is make-believe.

So, like… maybe take a breather.

[waterberry-strawmelon]

i hate feeling ashamed.

[mariocki]

"We should stop thinking in terms of 'compensatory education' but consider, instead, most seriously and systematically the conditions and contexts of the educational environment.

The very form our research takes tends to confirm the beliefs underlying the organization, transmission and evaluation of knowledge by the school. Research proceeds by assessing the criteria of attainment that schools hold, and then measures the competence of different social groups in reaching these criteria. We take one group of children, whom we know beforehand possess attributes favourable to school achievement; and a second group of children, whom we know beforehand lack these attributes. Then we evaluate one group in terms of what it lacks when compared with another. In this way research unwittingly underscores the notion of deficit and confirms the status quo of a given organization, transmission and, in particular, evaluation of knowledge. Research very rarely challenges or exposes the social assumptions underlying what counts as valid knowledge, or what counts as a valid realization of that knowledge."

- Basil Bernstein, Education Cannot Compensate for Society, in Education for Democracy (2nd ed., 1972)

[postmanlinksbootyshorts]

ngl i love interacting with nonblack ppl who don't quite understand aave bc it's funny when they misuse it