How Low Can the Hateful Right Wing Anti-LGBTQ+ Smear Machine Go?
If there’s a worse allegation than “groomer,” I don’t know what it is
“… grooming occurs when adults take advantage of a child’s vulnerability to manipulate and coerce the child into sexual abuse. Now that meaning has been warped and corrupted to broadly smear the motives of LGBTQ people and those who oppose anti-LGBTQ legislation.”
I’m a writer. Words are the tools of my trade. So, they matter to me. A well-chosen word or cleverly crafted phrase can connect with millions, delivering a powerful message of inspiration, comfort, and/or solidarity.
But, like every other human innovation, words can also be used in negative, destructive ways, to deliver harmful, even hateful messages. And, when a word or phrase is deliberately perverted and co-opted, especially when it’s weaponized to further marginalize and dehumanize already marginalized folks, the acid in this queer writer’s belly starts eating away at… never mind, I could go into more vivid detail, but I think you get the picture.
Context
Certainly, a word’s connotation can evolve over the course of time, as context changes. On the flip side, a cultural trend can turn the meaning of a word…
