In the interest of full disclosure, I would like to start with how much I hate this word. For some reason, this word has always been the word that I cannot stand to hear, the word that makes my skin crawl, and one that I never, ever say. I have the same response to it that many folks have to the word “moist.” I am kind of wondering how many times I will say this word in the next essay, let alone have already said it over the weekend. This week, apparently, is the week in which Kristin Daley will overcome her revulsion for the word pussy. I have actually found myself cringing if my children enter the room while I am watching the news, and we had to order our young daughters out of the room so that we could watch some political news discussion Sunday morning. I am hoping to delay their exposure to that word as long as possible.
The week of pussy started with the recording of Donald Trump in which he revoltingly described the privilege he experiences as a wealthy and famous man: he can kiss whomever he wants, and it is fine for him to grab ladies wherever he wants. Let’s be frank, folks, the fact that he is even in the running for president is probably the cherry on top of many privileges he has experienced as a wealthy and famous man! His violations of ladies provide an excellent comparison to the violation he is hoping to take over our whole country. He has built a campaign based upon hatred of “others” and even answered a question about Muslim inclusion with explanation as to why Muslims need to blame themselves for others’ fears! Ladies and gentlemen, he is trying to also grab America by the pussy.
His defense of the recording is the fact that men speak this way in locker rooms, and it is really just childish behavior. I have been known to be childish at times, and I have definitely told a few stories that might mock the opposite sex, but I am struggling to imagine an evaluation of even my most intimate, drunken ramblings ever being even half that offensive. Professional sports groups have come out in defense of locker room talk, lest any female be concerned that all men talk about grabbing them when they are in the locker room. Thank goodness ladies don’t have to live in fear of every person who works out! Here in NC, they have tried to protect us from transgender folk using the bathroom, but these protections do not apply to wealthy white men, so I really have to watch out for my daughters (trust me, I have never felt the need for protection for anyone from the trans community and actually feel pretty ashamed that the law ever passed, but that is another rant).
My hope is that November 8th will arrive and all of the pussy talk can start to back down. Prior to its recent gain of attention, aside from the infamous “Octopussy,” this word tended to be only found in raunchy movies. It would be refreshing to see that decorum could return to some news programs, and we can start to use proper terminology for genitalia again. I am guessing the word count of news utilization of vulva or vagina has been lagging, but my daughters know these words and their meaning well. Please, please put pussy back in its box.
Great article!