The Power of a Word

WARNING: EXPLICIT CONTENT AND OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE!

Dyke: –noun Slang: Disparaging and Offensive.

1. a female homosexual; lesbian.
2. Derogatory term used to refer to a lesbian; commonly towards a lesbian with more masculine physical characteristics/mannerism

Origin: 1940–45; earlier in form bulldike (with a variation of bulldagger); of obscure origin; claimed to be a shortening of morphodyke (variation of morphodite, a reshaping of hermaphrodite)

Allow me to recount a conversation that was directed at me. The context is that I had just stepped in for a male classmate of mine in playing a male role for a play I'm part of. Note that my original part is also a male part.
Dickhead1: Oh my god, Emily is more of a man than MaleClassmate!
Dickhead2: Dyke Alert!! Dyke Alert!! Dyke Alert!!

The very word "dyke" is so loaded with prejudice and degrading tone that the skin on my fingers is crawling as I type it. Just like how the word "nigger" was socially banned*, I think "dyke" should be the next word to be socially banned. *"Socially Banned" in this context means that the word in question is forbidden from polite speech for respect of a certain group of people.

The only time you hear the word "nigger" being used is when an African American is using it and only if they have identified as one, called themselves one, or called another African American one. If a white person DARED to use it in public, they would instantaneously be subjected to some form of punishment. Anything from being virtually shunned to getting gang-beaten in the alleyway could, more likely would, occur. "Nigger" is generally accepted as a horrible racial slur that is too offensive to be said in polite society. Why isn't "dyke" treated the same way? "Dyke" is another horrible homosexual slur and is almost ALWAYS taken offensively if the person using it hasn't identified as one or called themselves one.

I contend that "dyke" and "nigger" should be handled the same way in that they should not be spoken on account of their unique degree of offensive and derogatory tone.

The word "dyke" is so offensive because it was CREATED to offend. It was, as my sources claim, derived from a derogatory word for hermaphrodite. So not only is it attacking women who dress and act more like men, it is also attacking people with a medical deformity (for lack of a better word) who have no choice that they have similar attributes of both genders. This makes the degree of intensity twofold!

One of the main qualities that America is known for is its broad acceptance and equal treatment of its citizens. Clearly America is not abiding by its moral principals. It is IMMORAL for citizens of a country founded on such principals to treat a group of legal and law abiding citizens with contempt and hateful words. If American and its people are worth their salt at all, then they, WE, will band together to get this word socially banned. When Dickhead2 called me a "dyke," I felt so sick I thought I was going to cry. I wanted to kill him for using such derogatory and offensive words in my presence. I wanted to kill him for his clear lack of respect for the lesbian community. I wanted to kill him period.

Please help stop the pain and disrespect by placing "dyke" in the same category that "nigger" was placed in long ago.