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I am calling for help from the members here. I have been deleting posts and threads that use the word Jewess as I was made aware that some Jews find it to be an offensive racial slur.
On a personal basis I agree with that and find that in the vernacular usage it is intended to be a racial slur.
Since this is your forum. I am looking for your input about the word. Do you oppose the use of the word Jewess on this forum?
It can be a slur, but many Jews are trying to reclaim the word. In fact, one of my favorite Jewish blogs put out by the Jewish Women's Archive is called Jewesses with Attitude. One of my Jewish ex-boyfriends with whom I am still close refers to me as "the perfect Jewess to bring home to mom", also with no negative implication. I think for the younger generations, we are removed enough from the negative use of the word (which probably peaked in the first half of the 20th century) that it does not hold those same negative meanings.
But it's tricky. Each person finds different things offensive. For instance, using the word "Yid" will never, ever, ever be OK to me, but others in this forum use it freely in their communities with no other connotations. To me, it has the same level as seriousness as the n-word in both English and Russian.
No, but thank you for checking. It's just like Jew. It can be used derogatively, or not. It depends on how it's said.
(As a side note, I find shiksa and shegetz offensive, though. I believe shiksa means an abomination, a thing that crawls on the ground. I would never call anyone that.)
Thank you all for your input. As it seems the majority do not find it to be offensive, I will stop deleting post for using it. However, if I get reports of it being used offensively in a post I will take any needed action for that individual post.
I don't find it offensive myself as it suggests to me someone with style and elegance -perhaps because it sounds a bit like 'princess', but I would be chary about using it as I could imagine Jews could be offended by it.
Just happened upon this TV series and just had to post this dialog.
Came immediately upon this convenient thread.
What if the office was a woman? What would you say. Fiddled around a bit and then admitted "my mistress".
Think about it Golda Meir was a Jewess and Mistress
Even take Silent Night Holy Night, first verse, if you replace Virgin with Jewess it becomes an every night peaceful Jewish lullaby about every infant. Actually using "almah" when translated into Hebrew.
Just remember secretaries originally were all males. Actresses were all males.So were sopranos. It was pc to castrate but not to circumcise.
What's in a name? A whole lot!! What's in grammar, a whole lot. It was applying the Greek grammar rules to the oral Old English that gave us all the Lingua Franca. They did that when they translated the Bible into English IIRC.
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Yes, Minister
