Serious Do People Even Use "Gay" as a Derogatory Term Anymore?

[BenTheDemon]

When I was growing up, people would often refer to things that are of bad quality or inconvenient as "gay". And I specifically remember an old commercial saying "When you say "that's gay", do you know what you say?". Was that effective somehow? Or is it perhaps that I'm simply an adult now, and we don't really use terms like that anymore?

Either way, I have noticed that it is extremely uncommon now for me to hear the word "gay" used in a derogatory manner. I sometimes wonder if it's related to the passage of Marriage Equality in 2015 and people's overall acceptance of LGBTQ+ culture. I personally never really used the term in a derogatory way, but I notice I hear it less and less in everyday life.

Has anyone else noticed this?

 

[vonFiedler]

Ben... you're using the internet right now

 

[dice]

yes? i've heard it used colloquially quite a lot. f aggot too.

i never even attempt to reclaim it anymore just because i can't move past the fact that some slurs destroys so much conversation, especially in today's sociopolitical climate. honestly i still react really viscerally whenever i hear certain slurs and my face shows it rly badly. it totally outs me at times.

microaggression 101 tho

 

[dice]

^and 'ironic' statements like this happen irl too and people think that it's Totally Ok + Just Jokes and this engenders offense + damages people after repeated use.

it's still pervasive in our culture, esp among edgy teens.

this is just another struggle for ppl who aren't cis neurotypical white men.

context: post was 'lol gay'

 

[Eo Ut Mortus]

http://bit.ly/2dBDzfh
http://bit.ly/2eIvnL5

Also, try living in the midwestern United States.

 

[Bughouse]

yes. yes they do.

 

[KM]

a girl can dream but no it is still absolutely used all the time

 

[Ash Borer]

I think it's falling out of fashion because our society has been becoming, and continues to be more welcoming to gay people. It's equating gayness to badness in some way, so I don't see why you would want to do that if you think there's nothing wrong with being gay.

 

[BenTheDemon]

Ben... you're using the internet right now

I mean in everyday non-internet life. I don't call people plebs irl, but I do on the internet.
Obviously SOME people still use it, but is it part of our vernacular as much as it used to be? From my experience, the term is dying as a derogatory term.

 

[Adamant Zoroark]

I mean in everyday non-internet life. I don't call people plebs irl, but I do on the internet.
Obviously SOME people still use it, but is it part of our vernacular as much as it used to be? From my experience, the term is dying as a derogatory term.

Yeah, they do. I've found it's not as common as it was even five years ago, though.

And yes, I've even heard it here in Southern California.

 

[Martin]

Being someone in a north London school I can promise you that this is used on a regular basis regardless of which age group you look at. That said I have noticed that it gets used less the older people are, so idt it's so much a matter of it being used less now than 5 years ago and more that the people that you're around aren't quite as big a set of jackasses as they were five years ago.

 

[fairytale]

Maybe it's because I'm not in high school anymore but I hardly ever hear it used like that anymore? Seems like I might be in the minority but I just don't hear it. I mean that could be PARTIALLY or maybe even entirely because most of my friends are LGBT+ but even in school (uni) and at work where I'm not so surrounded by homosexuality I don't really hear it used. I can't remember the last time I heard someone say "that's gay" to refer to something they didn't like. not that I'm saying it doesn't happen

 

[Oglemi]

I've actually heard it used far less than when I was growing up. The climate has definitely changed but it's still used derogatorily about as much as "retarded" is. I also hear it less in Madison than back home.

 

[Jordanious]

Yes. We can safely assume it's the work of the LGBTQ+ culture.
But if you're a clown, you're immune.

 

[destinyunknown]

Some years ago in the spanish competitive pokemon forum the word 'gay' was used so much that the google ads of the forum ended up being all: 'best gay X movies', 'meet the best men', 'most handsome guys in your town'. In fact, if you searched 'gay' in google the 4th result was that pokemon forum.

In the end, the word 'gay' had to be banned from the forum and substituted by the triple asterisk.

 

[jrp]

flaming homosexual here

i still catch myself using gay slurs as insults from time to time

 

[Rowan]

I barely hear the word gay used derogatorily anymore. I think this is since leaving high school though. People have grown up a bit, and also I wouldn't tend to associate the people who use it derogatorily. I still feel like it has decreased a lot since like 2007 though, but that's just a feeling, not sure if I'm actually right.
I use it in an ironic sense, often saying to my gay friend 'you're so gay lol', or call him a (BAN ME PLEASE), but we're good mates, he takes it well and I wouldn't say it in public.

 

[aVocado]

the word gay itself, I think I replaced using it with cancer

ex: "mei is so gay" became "mei is so cancer"

I think I use (BAN ME PLEASE) too sometimes

 

[Icing On Da Cake]

the internet and cunts like me have used gay to mean something is dumb, terrible, annoying, bad, etc., to the point of actually becoming another definition

i know quite a few people who use it in a derogatory manner, though, mostly old, religious people in my experience

 

[Kawaii Kyouko]

I mean in everyday non-internet life. I don't call people plebs irl, but I do on the internet.
Obviously SOME people still use it, but is it part of our vernacular as much as it used to be? From my experience, the term is dying as a derogatory term.

I use it fairly frequently along with fuckboy when I'm mad at my apprentices. Sorry about that everyone.

 

[pikacu221]

I got to high school in arizona and people definitely use it in a derogatory way a lot still

 

[Drew]

I'm a teenager and can confirm people do use it, just less common than other moronic derogatory terms like retard.

 

[religiousjedi]

Two words: Xbox LIVE.

 

[Divine Retribution]

Depends, are we talking banter or are we talking actual discussions here? If I'm shitposting or bantering with someone there's nothing I won't say, but in anything resembling a serious discussion of course not. Even disregarding the subjective points about homophobia, it's still inconducive to rational discussion to toss slurs around like that.

 

[Saz Chan >^-^<]

I have a t-shirt that says "that's gay". And I don't think it is intended to be positive. I have had gay people come up to me and say they are offended by it. Even a supermarket employee stated his distress while I was trying to buy some food.

Hey man I just want some muesli.