Emma
What are the negative connotations of the words ‘gay‘ and ‘homosexual‘ and is there a difference?
‘Gay’ is a word that once before would refer to ‘being merry, cheerful and in a lively mood’ however it has evolved
over time to first describe someone’s sexuality and has since become something to describe a person or subject as
being stupid or useless.
So, what I am trying to find out is, how has something so natural, which has been recognised in species other than
our own, become so stigmatised?
The word ‘gay’ has more recently become a term to define something that is disliked or stupid, and as it is used
more frequently in everyday language, young gay people are beginning to feel increasingly targeted. This is because,
if they are growing up surrounded by people using the term “that’s so gay” and phrases alike, they can often feel
that it reflects on them; that they are somehow disliked or stupid. If you look at the statistics, 23% of young gay and
bisexual people have tried to commit suicide and a further 56% have self-harmed. Now, these statistics may not be
directly linked to someone using the term ‘gay’ as a discriminatory term, however, it will not be helping the situation
that young gay people are in. And whilst the person who uses the phrase or term, often does not mean to cause
offence, it can still be seen as homophobic. However, this does not mean that the person is a homophobe. It could
well be, that the person is under-educated and therefore does not know that the term they are using could be
viewed as degrading to some of their peers.
According to a survey, by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), ‘gay’ is the most commonly used insult of
the current generation, alongside ‘slut’ and ‘b*tch’. However, it is not always used as a term to mean ‘bad’ or ‘lame’,
as it can also be used as a form of homophobic bullying.
Many people do not recognise that the use of the word ‘gay’ as a derogatory term is homophobic and therefore do
not understand that what they’re saying could be hurting or offending someone. However, when it’s used as a way
of bullying someone for being gay, bisexual or whichever sexuality the individual recognises themselves as, it is
deliberate, and said specifically to degrade someone for their sexuality.
Many homosexuals would rather refer to themselves as ‘gay’ as opposed to ‘homosexual’ because the latter was
once used by Victorian scientists who regarded being gay as having a mental illness, a disorder or a moral deficiency
diagnosed in the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), which is why so many people in the
LGBT community nowadays try to distance themselves from the term.
In some cases, however, there are people who prefer to go by the term ‘homosexual’ as they feel that it describes
their sexual orientation better than ‘gay’ does, and this is perfectly fine too. It solely depends on the individual’s
opinion and if they dislike the term ‘homosexual’ then they probably would rather go by the term ‘gay’ and vice
versa.
In a blog written by a transgender writer, they said that calling something ‘gay’ as a derogatory term is “just about
the most obvious way that you can tell us you dislike us” and “if it isn’t what you meant to convey, then you need to
stop using language in such a way that you openly associate the very names of minorities with everything you
dislike”. This is completely true of everyone who uses the term to degrade and denigrate, and even if that isn’t the
way in which they meant the statement, it doesn’t immediately right their wrongs. It still has the same knock-on
effect even if they did not set out to intentionally offend someone in the LGBT community.
She then continues to talk about how people often think it’s okay to use the word ‘gay’ as a belittling term for a
homosexual, but not to use n**ga to describe a black person, as this is seen as highly offensive and racist, so why is
there a difference? Why is one used in everyday conversation when the other is not? Is that fair? I do not think so by
any stretch of the imagination.
“According to prevalent scientific and medical understanding, sexual orientation is not a choice. It is in fact a
complex interplay of biological and environmental factors. Many believe that homosexuality is unnatural; however,
research has shown that homosexuality is an example of normal and natural variation in human sexuality. In fact,
Emma
homosexual behaviour has also been noted in many other animal species. So, in fact it is quite an ordinary and
normal occurrence in nature
It is clear that there are many negative connotations of both the terms ‘gay’ and ‘homosexual’ but many would
argue that the two words do not necessarily relate to sexuality. How do people think these terms came about? They
aren’t just a random development of the English language; they developed because people held feelings that being
gay was something to feel ashamed of, that if they were gay they had no worth, were weak or inferior. That may be
why people began using ‘gay’ as a derogatory term, to describe things that are lame or stupid as being gay.
Every time I now hear the word gay being used as an offensive adjective, it reminds me that people have these
views. Whether or not you personally have them, using these words reinforces the stereotypes that gay means
worthless or inferior, and that therefore gay people are worthless and inferior.
It has absolutely nothing to do with context. It has everything to do with respect.