You are reading The Mandate / Hot takes on topics that men don’t like to talk about / Written by LA-Based Writer, Cultural Strategist, and Olympic Medalist Jason Rogers
I thought we’d tackle this one because it’s in the news today.
The term "Latinx" originated in the United States in the early 2000s as a gender-neutral alternative to "Latino" and "Latina." These terms are traditionally used to refer to people of Latin American or Hispanic origin, but they are gendered in Spanish, with "Latino" being used to refer to men and "Latina" to refer to women.
Use of "Latinx" is intended to be more inclusive and respectful of individuals who do not identify within the gender binary of male and female. The term has gained popularity in academic and activist circles, particularly among younger generations of Latin American and Hispanic people in the United States.
While it has always sparked debate, the political energy around the term has been heating up. Yesterday, the NY Times published a piece with the headline “Some Republicans Want to Ban ‘Latinx.’ These Latino Democrats Agree.” The article unpacks several legislative efforts to bar the term from governmental use.
Republican Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders (former white house press secretary for Trump) has been particularly outspoken about the term, calling it “pejorative language.” However, you need not be a keen observer of politics to know that this is part of a broader culture war game plan that includes railing against Critical Race Theory and anti-LGBTQ bills like Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay.”
Democratic state representative Ruben Gallego of Connecticut has introduced a similar bill and used analogous language to describe the term (“offensive”). However, his motivations are seemingly more history-related than Huckabee Sanders’s. He argues that it’s “unnecessary” because the usage of gender in Spanish has been a custom for 1,500 years.
The piece also notes other less-culture-y war arguments. Some have said “Latinx” is a word imposed on the community by outsiders. Others feel it applies English (i.e. white) semantic norms to the Spanish Langauge. (This is similar to Reyes’s qualms). It should be noted that there are other variations of the term, like “Latine” and “Latin@,” but they invoke similar scrutiny.
The publishing of this article occurs at an interesting moment, considering the current relationship between the trans community and the NY Times. Recently, hundreds of NY Times contributors signed and delivered a letter to the paper of record accusing it of pushing coverage that is anti-trans.
This most recent piece ran on A1 (i.e., the front page) and will likely anger non-binary and trans activists. Although there are numerous politicians who vehemently support the use of “Latinx,” a quick read of the headline could suggest significant bipartisan support for the idea that gender-inclusive terms shouldn’t be a thing.
We’re likely to see a rhetorical gun battle on Twitter later today or tomorrow as the article draws responses from activists and becomes bait for right-wing commentators like Tucker Carlson, Ben Shapiro, and Matt Walsh. If the NY Times is forced to respond, they’ll likely reissue a similar (seemingly emotionless) statement to one offered internally to the open letter.
According to Vanity Fair, Carolyn Ryan told staff, “We don’t do our work in an effort to please organizations, governments, presidents, activist groups, ideological groups.”
Note: this post includes elements created by OpenAI tools