It’s rare when local conservative entertainment media goes after an LGBT personality. They usually have bigger fish to fry and more tangled webs to weave. But recently their smug tirades seemed warranted. It started when a UW-Milwaukee program director created an awareness campaign. Laid out like a game board, it defines “micro-aggressive” vocabulary with explanations of why each word is offensive. Micro-aggressive words are those spoken without much consideration of their inherent insult that pack a not-so-subliminal negative punch. “Lame,” for example, refers to those with handicaps and hence insults people with special needs. Also included are the pejorative “gay” and the “N” word in all its variations, whether familiar address among friends of color or a local color racial slur. Even the phrase “politically correct” is deemed politically incorrect (as is “politically incorrect,” oops), because it implies a set standard that calls attention to difference (or something). It all seems reasonable enough when engaged in civil discourse. We should be aware of the impact of our words.
Apparently, though, the same individual who created the campaign took to Twitter in response to an inane homophobic utterance for which the Republicans are well known. In this case, it was Mike Huckabee’s. Granted the tweet was indelicate (but it did rhyme). That’s when the local right wing cried foul. A friend of mine writes heartfelt, expletive-laced essays on social media from time to time. They’re raw with unfettered honesty and, with their natural poetic cadence, rise to literary heights. He should be published. One can’t fault his style because it’s exactly who he is. And, when he’s not in an explosively expressive emotional moment, he’s not finger wagging, correcting the verbal micro-aggressions of others. So, at first, I too thought it a proverbial case of pot and kettle. But, there is a difference.
Admittedly, I’m sensitive to today’s free use of expletives. Back in the day, getting one’s mouth washed out with soap as punishment for swearing was a reality. Believe me, although that practice may now be illegal, it worked. Besides, raised by my pious mother who could barely say “damn” unless things had really reached the breaking point, I learned the art of nuance. When she said “damn,” she meant it. Meanwhile, after years of common usage, “Damn right!” even served as a de facto slogan of Sen. Tammy Baldwin’s last campaign. But it has also become a gateway curse. Today, one hardly uses the now diluted “damn” in deference to the hard stuff. So it should have been of no surprise when the UWM director used an f-bomb in a tweet.
Mind you, I still hold to well-considered discretion when articulating my emotions, usually. So, I’ll concede, it’s really not a double standard. I’ll relegate the conservative reaction as just their tried-and-true strategy of deflecting attention from the real issue. I hope I’m not insulting the moon when I say it, but calling out Republicans for their lunacy is justified, even with four letter words. But I do think we LGBTs should maintain our dignity and mind our language. We’re better than they are.
