August 7, 2007 Itâs a Female Dog, or Worse. Or Endearing. And Illegal? By MICHAEL M. GRYNBAUM The New York City Council, which drew national headlines when it passed a symbolic citywide ban earlier this year on the use of the so-called n-word, has turned its linguistic (and legislative) lance toward a different slur: bitch. The term is hateful and deeply sexist, said Councilwoman Darlene Mealy of Brooklyn, who has introduced a measure against the word, saying it creates âa paradigm of shame and indignityâ for all women. But conversations over the last week indicate that the âb-wordâ (as it is referred to in the legislation) enjoys a surprisingly strong currency â and even some defenders â among many New Yorkers. And Ms. Mealy admitted that the cityâs political ruling class can be guilty of its use. As she circulated her proposal, she said, âeven council members are saying that they use it to their wives.â The measure, which 19 of the 51 council members have signed onto, was prompted in part by the frequent use of the word in hip-hop music. Ten rappers were cited in the legislation, along with an excerpt from an 1811 dictionary that defined the word as âA she dog, or doggess; the most offensive appellation that can be given to an English woman.â While the bill also bans the slang word âho,â the b-word appears to have acquired more shades of meaning among various groups, ranging from a term of camaraderie to, in a gerund form, an expression of emphatic approval. Ms. Mealy acknowledged that the measure was unenforceable, but she argued that it would carry symbolic power against the pejorative uses of the word. Even so, a number of New Yorkers said they were taken aback by the idea of prohibiting a term that they not only use, but do so with relish and affection. âHalf my conversation would be gone,â said Michael Musto, the Village Voice columnist, whom a reporter encountered on his bicycle on Sunday night on the corner of Seventh Avenue South and Christopher Street. Mr. Musto, widely known for his coverage of celebrity gossip, dismissed the idea as absurd. âOn the downtown club scene,â he said, munching on an apple, the two terms are often used as terms of endearment. âWe divest any negative implication from the word and toss it around with love.â Darris James, 31, an architect from Brooklyn who was outside the Duplex, a piano bar in the West Village, on Sunday night was similarly opposed. âHell, if I canât say bitch, I wouldnât be able to call half my friends.â They may not have been the kinds of reaction that Ms. Mealy, a Detroit-born former transit worker serving her first term, was expecting. âThey buried the n-word, but what about the other words that really affect women, such as âb,â and âhoâ? Thatâs a vile attack on our womanhood,â Ms. Mealy said in a telephone interview. âIn listening to my other colleagues, that they say that to their wives or their friends, we have gotten really complacent with it.â The resolution, introduced on July 25, was first reported by The Daily News. It is being considered by the Councilâs Civil Rights Committee and is expected to be discussed next month. Many of those interviewed for this article acknowledged that the b-word could be quite vicious â but insisted that context was everything. âI think itâs a description that is used insouciantly in the fashion industry,â said Hamish Bowles, the European editor at large of Vogue, as he ordered a sushi special at the Condé Nast cafeteria last week. âIt would only be used in the fashion world with a sense of high irony and camp.â Mr. Bowles, in salmon seersucker and a purple polo, appeared amused by the Council measure. âItâs very âParis Is Burning,â isnât it?â he asked, referring to the film that captured the 1980s drag queen scene in New York. The b-word has been used to refer to female dogs since around 1000 A.D., according to the Oxford English Dictionary, which traces the termâs derogatory application to women to the 15th century; the entry notes that the term is ânot now in decent use.â But there is much evidence that the word â for better or worse â is part of the accepted vernacular of the city. The cover of this weekâs New York magazine features the word, and syndicated episodes of âSex and the City,â the chronicle of high-heeled Manhattan singledom, include it, though some obscenities were bleeped for its run on family-friendly TBS. A feminist journal with the word as its title is widely available in bookstores here, displayed in the front rung at Borders at the Time Warner Center. Robin Lakoff, a Brooklyn-born linguist who teaches at the University of California, Berkeley, said that she despised the word, but that enforcing linguistic change through authority âalmost never works,â echoing comments from some New Yorkers who believed a ban would only serve to heighten the wordâs power. âIf what the City Council wants to do is increase civility, it would have to be able to contextualize it,â said Ms. Lakoff, who studies language and gender. âYou forbid the uses that drive people apart, but encourage the ones that drive people together. Which is not easy.â Councilman Leroy G. Comrie Jr., the Queens Democrat who successfully sponsored a symbolic moratorium on the n-word that was adopted Feb. 28, said he supported Ms. Mealyâs measure, but acknowledged that the term had many uses. âWe want to make sure the context that itâs used is not a negative one,â Mr. Comrie said yesterday. Back at the West Village piano bar on Sunday evening, Poppi Kramer had just finished up her cabaret set. She scoffed at the proposal. âIâm a stand-up comic. You may as well just say to me, donât even use the word âthe.â â But at least one person with a legitimate reason to use the word saw some merit in cutting down on its use. âWeâd be grandfathered in, I would think,â said David Frei, who has been a host of the Westminster Kennel Club dog show in New York since 1990. The word is a formal canine label that appears on the competitionâs official materials. But Mr. Frei said he worried about the wordâs impact on some viewers, especially younger ones. âI think we have to take responsibility for that word on the air. The reality is itâs in the realm of responsible conduct to not use that word anymore. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/07/n...&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss&pagewanted=print
How typical of a Democrat politician to try to make a law to outlaw a word she doesn't like. Good grief! Does the arrogance of these politicians ever stop?
Stop bitching about elected representatives you elected yourselves and elect less incompetent ones next time.
Marvin, Show an example where a Republican tried to make a word illegal. If there is one, which I doubt, I'd like to know about it.
You never heard of the FCC, headed by a republican, Mike Powell? Ask Howard Stern about it... Typical ignorant klannish apologist you are...
I thought they had no time for such nonsense. Aren't they too busy trying to introduce an "alternative" to evolution in the nation's science classrooms? (But, hey, I agree that legislation rendering the use of a word as illegal is fairly stooopid.)
I love it. I can get in my car and not buckle my seat belt, talk on the cell phone and drive, stop at the store and smoke within 50 ft of the entance and ta da, break three laws in 10 minutes. This is not good.