"female" is not derogatory. To say "She is a female" is the exact same as saying "She is a woman". Both are words describing the sex/gender of the person. If that's the case, then people saying "He's just a typical male" is derogatory.
Plus derogatory means to put down. Now had I said "We talked about bitches", yes that would be derogatory. Saying a word that describes the sex of someone is not putting them down.
"Female" is not derogatory if it is used as an adjective to indicate sex, but it is if used as a noun. "She is a female" is absolutely not the same thing as "She is a woman"; "She is a female" could refer to a female bird, a female dog, a female horse, a female rabbit, etc., whereas "She is a woman" clearly refers to a person (because "woman" means a female human being). Calling a woman a female (or a man a male) defines that person by only her or his sex instead of acknowledging her/him first as a human being. It is derogatory to overlook anyone's personhood. It's true that "Saying a word that describes the sex of someone is not putting them down," but you neglected to acknowledge the person, which absolutely puts someone down. And of course calling someone a "typical male" is derogatory; it goes both ways. Anyway, I'm not looking to argue with you, but I wanted to let you know that some people find it offensive to be referred to by only their sex.
After I explain to you that some people, clearly myself included, find it derogatory to be referred to by only their sex, for you to completely disregard my statements and refer to me using the exact words to which I object is nothing if not disrespectful.
Furthermore, this is not about “female empowerment.” This is about appropriate and respectful word usage that is sensitive to labels so as to maintain peoples’ individualities rather than broadly classify them as objects.
I'm not sure that I completely follow your female/feminine assertion, but if I understand it correctly, the problem with it comes down, again, to particle of speech. Consider: “Feminine” is an adjective, so it is appropriate to say “She is feminine,” just as it is appropriate to say “She is female.” However, to say “She is a feminine” is not appropriate-She is a feminine what? Just as She is a female what? The pronoun "she" does not by definition exclusively refer to a human, which you seemed to suggest in your post. If she is a female human being, then she
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Plus derogatory means to put down. Now had I said "We talked about bitches", yes that would be derogatory. Saying a word that describes the sex of someone is not putting them down.
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Furthermore, this is not about “female empowerment.” This is about appropriate and respectful word usage that is sensitive to labels so as to maintain peoples’ individualities rather than broadly classify them as objects.
I'm not sure that I completely follow your female/feminine assertion, but if I understand it correctly, the problem with it comes down, again, to particle of speech. Consider: “Feminine” is an adjective, so it is appropriate to say “She is feminine,” just as it is appropriate to say “She is female.” However, to say “She is a feminine” is not appropriate-She is a feminine what? Just as She is a female what? The pronoun "she" does not by definition exclusively refer to a human, which you seemed to suggest in your post. If she is a female human being, then she ( ... )
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