Opinion | You can say woman and we can say person

In her recent column, Rosie DiManno laments the fact that the word “woman” is becoming a bad word, one that can no longer be pronounced. However, few of the examples he gives are of people who are not allowed to say “woman.” No, rather, they are cases where other words were chosen.

Take your admonition to Congressmen Cori Bush and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for using the words “birth persons” and “menstruating persons.” How is it that your decision to use more inclusive terminology prevents you from saying that you are a mother or a woman? Nor do their words imply that they would never use the word “woman” where they think it is most accurate.

Ocasio-Cortez’s own declaration about menstruating people what’s more he spoke about women, saying “a woman, a woman, or the body of a menstruating person.” She explained that the abortion ban in Texas was not about life, but about “controlling women’s bodies and controlling people who are not cisgender men.” He also explicitly referred to the misogynistic ideology that underpins the Texas abortion ban: misogyny is a form of contempt or prejudice towards women.

None of these erase women or suggest that the word “woman” is bad. By using the word “menstruating,” Ocasio-Cortez was simply acknowledging that anti-abortion laws affect countless women. like the tens of thousands of trans men and non-binary individuals living in Texas who may also have unwanted pregnancies and seek an abortion.

Given the scarcity of inclusive abortion services for trans people, that recognition is of great importance.

What’s wrong with wanting to acknowledge the fact that there are trans men and non-binary people? What exactly is it like to acknowledge its existence as “crazed trans activism”? What is it like to “erase” women, as Rosie DiManno claims?

It would certainly be worrying if the word “woman” were banned, but there is no risk of that happening anytime soon.

Yes, there is a drive to use more inclusive and accurate terminology. When a group doesn’t just include women, it’s best to use terminology that reflects that fact. But that does not mean that the word “women” cannot be used to refer to women, or expressions such as “mothers and other biological fathers” can not be used to make women visible and at the same time acknowledge the existence of trans fathers.

Wanting to acknowledge the existence of trans men and non-binary people does not mean that we can no longer say the word “woman”. I must admit that I am confused as to why Rosie DiManno believes that. No one is trying to stop her from saying “woman” so why is she trying to avoid U.S to say “people”?