This has kind of stemmed from the argument in the Sexual Preferences topic, so I thought I'd start a topic here because I thought this would get some more opinions being in the Debate Room and this will also hopefully end the hi-jack of the aforementioned topic.

Is it wrong to use the word 'gay' as an insult? Is it homophobic?

Yea sure I guess it is homophobic, but then again it's not really that bad of an insult.

When I hear people say it it's usually used in a casual way, I guess it is homophobic. If i'm honest i've never really thought about it that much, because most people in my school use it all the time, it's lost all sense of potency.

fudge I say it all the time. But then again I use it like, "This is gay." Basically it's used the same way as I use, "This is stupid."

I call people gay all the time. But I think they really are. People call me gay I don't care.

It isn't homophobic, but it's derogatory.
Using it as an insult means that being gay is a bad thing.

I use gay as insult all the time. Not because I'm homophobic I use it in terms of this example;



Just like I would call those shoes crap.

But gay people belive we should think the're normal.

Yuh...

I'm not a homophobe but I say it...

Gay Isn't a synonym for shizzlety.

It is now.


Forgot to add. I'm not a homophobe but they don't need to get their shizzle in my face.

In that case, gay would equal stupid.
In other cases, gay would equal bad, retarded, dumb, crap, etc...

At the surface, "Damn, this is gay!" doesn't sound homophobic. But when you think about it, using gay as a substitute for stupid is kind of offensive. I'll slip up and use the word casually on occasion, but I try not to.

In some ways, it could be considered homophobic, and I think it's a stupid substitute for the word 'stupid'. The way it's used now doesn't mean "happy" anymore, it means homosexual, or in this case, stupid. I never use this word anyway.
This language changes too much.

I haven't used it until I actually thought about what it means

It's used as an insult, and as a typical derogatory term, and who gives a shizzle? I mean seriously. OMG HE SAID GAY? No, not really. It's not a big deal, and people who treat it as such.. meh.

I don't think the people who use it use it in a homophobic way, but I don't think it's at all right to use it as an insult or as a synonym for stupid. It's like saying "Those shoes are so black!" You don't mean it to be offensive or insulting, but it kinda is.

It's easier to say "gay" then "homosexual" and no one says homo sexual anymore. I honestly don't see how this could be considered offensive unless the person is a homo

Obviously calling a gay person gay isn't insulting. It's using the word gay to mean stupid or uncool that's the debate here.

No, just no.

People are talking about saying that's so gay.

But gay is a euphamism for homosexual, and a synonym for gay.

So if I call you gay, I'm either calling you stupid (most often) homo(maybe) or both, but people use f*g for that.

Is it right to associate homosexuals as stupid?

No, but I do it anyways.

Oh ok. Well there are some idiots at my school, and, to save my time, I call them gay. No one gets mad so no it's not insulting. Can start fights though

I should also mention "f*g", yeah. That's much different than "gay". I think that "f*g" is simply an insult. It's an insult to call a homosexual that, and it's insulting to call a straight person that. Homosexuals need to disconnect from "f*g", because it's nothing but an insulting name.

Vera, aren't you aware that there are only two groups of people who say that?

12 year olds playing Halo and British people.

No, not really/



yeah because you're like 8.

Gay as an insult is just stupid, in my opinion, and people who say it look just as dumb.

Now, let's get our facts straight. As early as the 1630's brothels used to be called "gay houses" and the word would be used to define any kind of sexual immorality. It then became used to describe a type of outlook: carefree, and happy( such as in the song "When Johnny Comes Marching Home"). It wasn't until the 1900's when gay started being used to describe homosexual people's lifestyle, and even then not really widely used as a "positive"(of sorts?) name until the mid 50's to 70's.

So to say I'm insulting "gay" people when I say something is gay is just bull. that's just the one people tout the most because it's the most controversial.

It's wrong because it classifies it as being a bad term.

A kid at my school calls everything that's bad either gay or jewish. He doesn't have any friends.

I would be fine with that if that's what people meant when they said it. Ask 100 people what they truly mean when they say it, and I can guarantee 99 will answer "homosexuals".

Homophobia doesn't even apply here. Homophobes are scared of gay people. People that use racial slurs are racists, not negrophobes or whatever it would be.

Whenever someone calls my friend Karl (featured in my blog) a homophobe since he hates gay people, all I say is Karl isn't scared of gays, he beats them up.

It isn't homophobic, its just hating the gays.

Yes, but sexualityists or whatever the hell the real term would be just sounds ridiculous and stupid >.>

That's what 'homophobia' literally means but the actual definition is "irrational fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against homosexuality or homosexuals."

I think calling something inanimate gay like the example Whitey gave with shoes is alright.
Calling somebody else gay or making fun of somebody because they're gay is a step too far.

Sorry everyone


I agree with you Vera.


Using gay to mean stupid means that it's derogatory to gay people.

ie. "I'm gay" would mean"I'm stupid"
If you use it to mean that, you are either homophobic or stupid.

Firstly, that's not true. Secondly, f*g is not an insult in Britain, or at least very few people would consider it so. Vera was talking about the use of f*g as a derogatory term, you can't really compare the two usages because the meaning of each is so different.

Actually it is an insult

Referring to a cigarette as a f*g is not insulting, obviously, but referring to a person, straight or gay, as a f*g is an insult as it is a derogatory term.

Yes, but what I meant is that the sentence, "there's f*g ends everywhere" for example, would not be considered insulting because it is another use of the word. I've never actually heard f*g used as an insult in real life, only online, so I assumed that it wasn't a commonly used insult this side of the pond

If gay means, "stupid, retarded, idiotic, crap, etc." doesn't that show how we feel about gays?

Sure, when people use it, they might not think of that, but it kinda does show how we think?

I didn't say that the British use it as an insult, so I don't know what you're talking about.

Like I said before, all I meant was that the meaning is very different in either case (in general anyway), so you can't really lump them together as one usage.

Changes too much? It meant homosexual in the '70s!



Wow. Using 'Jewish' as a derogatory expletive? That's sad and disturbing.

if gay people are offended because someone says ''thats so gay'' or ''dont be a smiley face'', people with buttholes should be offended when someone calls them an goosedown
(i dont know how much word filtering will make of this, but i think you get my point)

swear words are not literal
if you dont treat other swear words literal, you shouldnt treat the word ''gay'' as an insult literal
(unless its against a homosexual, then its just plain old naughty.)

and i dont get the deal with people calling other people homophobic

i am grossed out by 2 men kissing, like 90% of men.
i think gay people should have the right to get married, have kids (eventhough those kids wont survive high school with 2 fathers, lets be real.) and have lots of anal sex
just not anywhere where i can see it

It's an insult in the sense that it could be rude to gay people, if you're using it as an insult and therefore saying it is a bad thing.

Most people I know (although I honestly dont), refer to things as being gay, just casually say "this is so gay", generally meaning "this is so stupid".

i use the word gay like that
i am pretty sure gay people would be offended by it

but i dont really care
dont get me wrong, i dont have anything against gay people

but let me put it this way
in holland (where i live) we use cancer the way ''f**king'' is used (did i evade the word filter?! AWESEOME!)
not everyone ofcourse
but some people get mad at me and say ''you shouldnt use that word, my grandpa died of cancer''
i love it when they say that, my grandma also died of cancer (although thats not the part i love about this), so i get to explain to them that theyre taking the word too literal
ofcourse if i know the person, and like the person, and they request that i dont use the word in that way, i wont.

you have to pick your battles
if i go to america, and say ''thats so gay, dude'' to someone
and some gay guy comes rushing up to me telling me that thats offensive
....ill probably react in a very innapropriate way, because i wasnt really prepared


maybe get into a fight with a gay guy
and get my ass handed to me
thatll teach me

Reading the topic, I see that about half of the people seem to use the word "gay" as an insult, but they say that they aren't homophobic or something.
Firstly, homophobic means that you're afraid of homosexuals. Like they're going to hurt you or something. I don't think many people in the world are actually homophobic.

Secondly, I think that it's pretty clear that using the word "gay" as a substitute for the word "bad" is clearly linking gays with badness. It's like linking the word "stupid" with "bad" becuse they're both very similar.

Wrong. Homophobia also means you have an aversion of homosexuals and you strongly dislike them, in very little cases homophobia has überhaupt anything to do with being scared of homosexuals. Then why is it a 'phobia'? The aversion you feel implies you have a feeling that homosexuals will want to abalienate you from your sexual preference. It's a primitive instinct that humans feel insecure around people with another culture (in this case their sexuality).


How is homosexuality linked to 'badness' in your opinion?

I simply find it interesting to note that most people who think things are gay have things being gay on their mind too mcuh, honestly, what is that about? lol

People who are they are, I care not one jot what you like or what you dont like, I take people as they are.

I don't think it's an insult, if you are one, but if you aren't, then it is. My school mates always call me gay if I say something inappropriate, something they call "gay"... I don't like that, but I just laugh, because of their stupidness.

In my opinion it is linked to 'badness' often, maybe It's more apparent in North England, or possibly Leeds, but being gay is definitely a bad thing here. And being one, your going to accept a hella' lot of abuse. Similarly gay is a negative derogatory world.

That's pretty much how it is in most places, not just North England.