Origins of “Faggot”

“Why can’t they have gay people in the army? Personally, I think they are just afraid of a thousand guys with M16s going, ‘Who’d you call a faggot?'”
-Jon Stewart
 
In its most basic sense, “faggot” is a slang word used to describe a gay man. It is an offensive, derogatory word to use in the context of a person and while its origin is partially unclear, the harm its use has induced is blatantly apparent. The word “faggot” has actually had many meanings in history before it officially became what it is today. In the 16th century, it was thought to mean “old or unpleasant woman” which some believe helped to derive the word to its current status. As with other slang words for homosexual men such as “nancy”, “queen”, and “sissy”, “faggot” may be another word originally associated with a woman that became a reference to effeminine men.
 
Yet the more common understanding of the word comes from its earliest origin. During the Inquisition of Europe, “faggot” meant “bundle of sticks”. This was specifically used when witches were being burned at the stake and many sticks were used to produce the fire. “Among those sought out for burning were gay men. When the faggots (sticks) were running out, gay men were thrown on the fire to keep it going for the witches. Faggot came to mean gay man to force them into the closet for fear of death (Fortunecity, 1).” This horrendous derivative of the word is echoed by many others who either believe it to be an urban legend or the most obvious explanation. In his book, The Nature of Homosexuality: Vindication for Homosexual Activists and the Religious Right, Erik Holland states: “The origin of ‘faggot’ is obscure; it first appears in America in 1914, when ‘faggot’, i.e. ‘sissies’ are described as going to a ‘drag ball’. Similarly, it is not clear how ‘queer’ came to be associated with homosexuals (357).” Interestingly, Holland starts this discussion because he is trying to disprove the idea that all gay slang originates in the homosexual community for the purpose of “cultural solidarity”. “Such facts about gay slang undermine the argument of social contructionists that homosexual culture is determined by the structures and labels imposed upon it by mainstream society (357).” If any of the origins of “faggot” are to be accepted, all would have the word deriving from hate speech on the part of the heterosexual community, not from homosexuals trying to feel any type of solidarity.
 
Perhaps though, the term “faggot” has taken on new uses in the modern age. While it is a derogatory word to call anyone, it has become a word the people whom it meant to harm occasionally reclaim for themselves. Pulitzer Prize finalist and Obie winner, Larry Kramer, a man renowned for his writing on the gay lifestyle, even wrote a book entitled Faggots about his own life as a gay man in New York and managed to interview many others for the controversial tale of a man doing drugs and picking up other men in discos. The book even starts with the controversial line, “There are 2,556,596 faggots in the New York City area” and goes on to break down what borough each of the “faggots” resides. While there were many outraged by the title and context of the book, it is natural to assume that the backlash would have been even stronger if Kramer was heterosexual. As with many other slang words, it does seem that the group in which the word is speaking of does own it a bit more than people on the outside. This is not to say that many within the group would still be offended regardless of who was doing the name calling. Christie Keith of the Gay and Bisexual Commentary site, After Elton, mentions that in a 1999 episode of the popular television series, “Will and Grace”, Jack, an overtly flamboyant gay character, overhears Will, his gay friend, saying he wasn’t comfortable being seen with him sometimes because he is “such a fag” to which Jack later tells Will, “I’d rather be a fag than afraid.” 
 
As with many other slang words, popular culture has done much to mold the word into other forms and even make it an acceptable part of speech in other parts of the world. The song, “American Triangle”, by openly gay musician Elton John contains the line, “God hates fags where we come from”, referring to the Matthew Shepard case in which a young man was killed in Wyoming because he was gay. The popular Dire Straits song, “Money for Nothing” contains the word “faggot” but is often replaced with a different word when performed lived, and endless film and television programs have used the word exclusively to mean a homosexual man. While occasionally the word is still used as an old fashioned term for cigarette, its obvious meaning is solidified. “According to the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network, ‘It is clear that ‘faggot’ is the product of a long legacy of violence and sexism, and carries the pain of that legacy even when used as a general insult (Keith 1).” This deep, troubling pain associated with the word is a good indication of why it is deemed a serious cultural crime to use the word in everyday life.
 
Two examples of inappropriate, derogatory behavior in recent headlines come from actor Isaiah Washington and ultra-conservative author Ann Coulter. During an argument with another actor on set, Washington referred to his gay castmate, T.R. Knight as a “faggot”. As the online website Wikipedia states, “According to Knight, the incident led to him publicly coming out of the closet. Washington then made another outburst using the epithet, this time backstage at the Golden Globe Awards. In January 2007, Washington issued a public apology for using the word ‘faggot’ and went into rehab to help him with what the show’s creator Shonda Rimes referred to as ‘his behavioral issues’.” In Coulter’s case, she managed to call the former Vice President of the United States Al Gore, a “total fag” while being interviewed by MSNBC’s Chris Matthews. “It did not matter if she was suggesting the former vice president was gay (she says she was not) or just using fag as an all purpose insult. There is no question her intent was pejorative – not just to Gore, but to all GLBT people, for whom the term carries such negative connotations (Keith 1).” While these cases got much attention because of the celebrity names being brought into the debate, the sad reality is that this type of behavior goes on in all parts of the world all the time.
 
Just as recently as April 6, 2009, an 11 year old boy in Springfield, Massachusetts hung himself because of daily anti-gay slurs from classmates. Although he did not identify himself as being gay and was an athlete and a boy scout, he was attacked for the way he dressed. Ari Bendersky, a gay man himself, wrote an article regarding this case in which he says the boy’s mother, “pleaded often with the school to do something about the bullying, but they didn’t. He is the fourth known middle-school aged suicide victim caused by anti-gay bullying this year. In fact, about 86 percent of LGBT students reported being verbally harassed at school in the last year, according to GLSEN, the Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network (1).” All children get bullied in school but due to the extreme hate and embarassment involved with words such as “faggot” and “queer”, the receivers of this particular type of bullying must feel even more pressure to fit in and probably even more fear.
 
Slurs referring to one’s sexual orientation should be a thing of the past. In 2009, a time when gay marriage is now allowed in five states with the number growing quickly, it has become apparent that everyone deserves the same rights and goes through the same struggles. This is a time when everyone must come together to fight the economic recession, terrorism, and other global situations that involve everyone on the same level. Worrying about whether a man loves another man or a woman wants to marry another woman seems incredulous. Using words such as “faggot” is inconceivable. As Bendersky states, referring to the taunting of the young boy, “I mean, daily taunts? What is wrong with these kids that they have to push someone that far, every day? And for what — to make themselves feel better? (1)” It sounds absurd. As the famous Nietzsche quote says, “Is life not a hundred times too short to stifle ourselves?” There is no time to focus on atttacking others when our own clocks run out so fast. “While only sticks and stones can break your bones, words like ‘faggot’ are often part of hate-motivated violence. Trivializing offensive terminology is in itself offensive and no amount of spin can change that (Keith 2).” Something has to change.