Offensive or not ?

[Binks]

I work in an automotive parts store as an 2nd assistant manager. I hear it day in day out and you know what even when the word is used in a derogatory manner I still ignore it. This word of course is ->-bleeped-<- granted of course in our shop its slang for transmission not transsexual and pretty much none of our customers outside of the five or six regular trans women that come in for parts know about me. I am fully open and out to all my coworkers and even my regional manager. But our shop is odd considering women out number the men by margin of fifty percent. I wonder though if being around the word in one sense truly has desensitized me to it?   

[tekla]

We had a highly popular and very hip weekly drag show/dance night called ->-bleeped-<-Shack for over a decade, and a much loved woman who helps people with presentation is called 'the ->-bleeped-<- mechanic'.  So I'd say no.

[Janet_Girl]

It took me a while to figure out, when I began hearing the word "->-bleeped-<-", that it was being used to refer to a Transsexual.  I have been in the auto trade for a long time, and I still have to look at the context of the usage.

To me, a ->-bleeped-<- is attached to the engine and transmits the power to the differential.  Guess I am just a grease girl at heart.


Janet

[Binks]

Yay for us grease girls!!!

[Lachlann]

Words and slurs aren't always universal anyway. So I'd say that it isn't.

[Valerie Elizabeth]

It's all about context to me.

I think you can use it offensively as well as not offensively.

Just my thoughts.

[Alyssa M.]

Wait, what?

Are they saying things like, "Looks like that Honda that came in this morning is gonna need a ->-bleeped-<- rebuild."*
Or are they saying things like, "Did you see that ->-bleeped-<- freak who brought in that Honda this morning?"**

I couldn't conjure from your post which one they are saying, or which one you're asking about. I think all the run-on sentences fried my brain.     






* not offensive
** offensive

[tekla]

Did you see that ->-bleeped-<- freak who brought in that Honda this morning?"*

You qualified '->-bleeped-<-' with the world 'freak' which most people would take as being derogatory, even without the word '->-bleeped-<-' in the sentence.

[Binks]

Oh sorry about the sentence structure I tend to run on when I am having a manic episode.  I guess what I meant is that I do hear hear the word ->-bleeped-<- used in a negative sense and I ignore it as nothing more. In fact use it when talking to my trans friends about there cars and some of them find it offensive even though I so mean their cars transmission. I really just was curious if I was insensitive because to me this word is benign even if it was used in a way that attacked me. Or if my other trans friends were overly sensitive?

[Alyssa M.]

You qualified '->-bleeped-<-' with the world 'freak' which most people would take as being derogatory, even without the word '->-bleeped-<-' in the sentence.

Well, I was being a bit cheeky. But if they are talking about trans people in a derogatory manner, then it's offensive, regardless of their word choice. Because that's what "derogatory" means.

--

If your friends are offended by the standard abbreviation for "transmission," then it's offensive, sort of by definition. But I'd say they're being overly sensitive.

As for your coworkers, if you are not offended, then there's no problem. Except that if you think they're using it in a "negative sense" and attacking you, that's kind of a problem. I mean, isn't that offensive on it's face? If they are just using "->-bleeped-<-" to refer to a trans person, but aren't being negative otherwise, you might want to tip them off that a lot of people see that as just about as offensive as the "n-word." I see it that way, myself.

[june bug]

i dont care for the word at all.

Yeah... not a fan... and even amongst my trans friends it's used in a derogatory / sarcastic way the same way gay guys use the word ->-bleeped-<-.

Can't think of a positive way anyone I know has ever used that word, so it's hard to feel good about hearing it, even when it's from people who use it simply as a substitute for trans with out any bad meaning behind it... which I have heard from time to time, but usually from people who aren't very educated as to the whole trans experience.

... so yeah, even then to me it's like them saying to a gay person : So what's it like being a ->-bleeped-<-?  Even though they really don't mean anything negative by it... ya know?

Maybe a cultural thing, but once again, never heard it used in an educated, good way.

[Silver]

No it's not.

[V M]

I've heard worse things. The term ->-bleeped-<- doesn't really grind my gears much

And if you want to call me a freak I'll take it as a compliment after viewing what's considered "normal"