The appropriation of words have been used to shun or shame people from their community or their individuality. I can list a bunch of words that have been used as slurs against people to dehumanize them like, nigger, queer, fruit, fag, bitch, slut, tranny, and the list goes on. There is something important about a community reclaiming a word that has been used to shame them for just being themselves. It creates resistance from the oppressor without violence. It’s simply taking the word and using it towards themselves but in a positive way. It may be weird for the first couple times but grab a group of your gay friends and call each other queers, beautiful queers that run the world. For African Americans reclaiming the word nigger has changed the way black people communicate with each other. By reclaiming the word nigger they changed the last two letters with just an “a” for the more laid back and stylistic approach. African American’s didn’t just reclaim a derogatory word but revamped it to give it a little more flavor. The act of reclaiming a word that has been used to shun a group is also means of survival and learning how to change or adapt to the given environment. It allows humans to take control of an issue and use it for their benefits instead it being against them. I’m proud to know that these words have such great meaning and history behind them and that these words are more than just words but experiences that people have with them.
Unruly Bodies 