To ask you not to tolerate the term "pregnant people"

[flashbac]

It might seem harmless and kind but it is not harmless. I'm seeing the term alot at the moment due to the horrid state of affairs across the pond.

Pregnancy, abortion, menstruation, menopause. These are issues that affect women and reasons why men have sought to control us, to control our bodies. We are seen as vessels, chattels, playthings, property, servants, and then, when we can no longer get pregnant, as useless rubbish. All due to our biological function. If you tolerate language change so these things are seen as 'people' rights issues that affect both 'men' and women we lose the truthful and valid argument that bad and oppressive practices, laws, policy decisions etc, e.g. banning of abortion, are rooted in misogyny, which of course they are.

Abortion bans are because of misogyny. Especially in countries where there is no free maternal care, no statutory maternity leave or pay, no shits given about the children once they are born. This is a women's rights issue, a sex based one. And we, as a sex class, must never take any rights we have for granted.

YANBU. I absolutely hate this sort of language.

Because it’s normal to call women people. It’s not a statement in the way you think it is.

Well pregnancy is about as sex exclusive as it gets. There's no need to say 'pregnant people' unless you're talking to a trans man directly. It doesn't need to be, otherwise

I agree the conflation of sex and gender has resulted in the most ridiculous bollocks in terms of understanding of basic concepts and clear expression. This thread being a shining example.

Agree with this.

I've pointed out numerous times as well that fina have been the first sporting body to come out and say sex in sport matters and male biologically cannot compete against woman.

Except on the swimming.org rankings list you still select gender for the athlete. I've never understood why it doesn't state sex because that's what you register under.

Sex is defined by your body, just as height is or weight.

The statement that you are a different sex to your body has no meaning. You are your body, nothing more.

Because it’s normal to call women people

Not when referring to a sex specific condition. What benefit is there in talking about pregnant people rather than women when no one who isn't a woman will be pregnant?

It’s not a statement in the way you think it is.

You don't get to tell people what they think is a statement. You personally may not mean it as such, but the people encouraging the use of this language in place like the nhs are doing it for a reason. If you don't see the implications of that, you should wake yourself up, but at the very least don't tell others they can't push back.

Subconscious sex is the most sexist bollocks I have ever heard.

And trans women do not experience misogyny.

If you are male but believe yourself to be female then there is an error in how your brain processes information. It is not your brain recognizing that you are the wrong sex, it is your brain making an error.

If you believe that there is a dragon under your bed, there is an error in how your brain processes information, there is not really a dragon under your bed.

Why would you think a psychological issue changes physical reality?

Do you believe that if someone with no athletic ability believes that they can run a ten second 100m that they therefore can?

How is that any different to someone believing that they are not “really” their sex?

The most interesting thing to me about 'subconscious sex' is that surely that opens the door for 'subconcious' anything? Sex, race, disability, height, weight, species. The world's your oyster now.

If you are going to redefine words like this how can anyone have a sensible conversation?

Why do you terrorists* do this?

*terrorist means person.

I’m not telling anyone not to push about anything. I was just giving my perspective because I do use the term pregnant people sometimes.

I’m not telling anyone not to push about anything. I was just giving my perspective because I do use the term pregnant people sometimes.

You're telling people it's not the statement they think it is. You don't have the right to tell them what it is, they can decide that for themselves.

I do use the term pregnant people sometimes.

You might want to reflect on the message this is actually communicating. Do you think men can be pregnant for example?

Ten or twenty years ago you would NEVER have heard someone describing pregnant humans as "pregnant people".

It's all part of the insidious capturing of language to blur the lines between what it is to be male and what it is to be female.
And there IS an agenda for that.
Clue - it's mainly NOT coming from trans men.

Dismantling our descriptors and language makes it easier for "people" to identify as anything they want even when that is a factual, legal, biological impossibility.

Hmm, I get what you are saying and I agree with you for written documents, especially public ones. However, I often use the word "people" for things that only affect women, not to be inclusive to transpeople but because, for me, women are the default people. So women=people and people=women.

Just me?

I don’t think men can be pregnant.

I think it’s ok to use the word people to describe women so I occasionally say pregnant people. From me at least it doesn’t mean any more than that.

How incredibly patronising. Who are you to tell people what is and isn’t a statement?

I don’t think men can be pregnant.

okay, good.

So why do you think there has been a creep in the term pregnant people being used instead of pregnant woman?

As a PP pointed out, it would have been an unheard of phrase 10 years ago. Why would you see it as preferable to the much more long established 'pregnant women' when men can't get pregnant?

It would mean more than that if you used it on me.
Maybe as a HCP you should consider that many of your clients might find it offensive, and be a bit more considerate to their feelings.

I wouldn’t call anyone something that upset them. I’m sorry i upset you, you’re right my wording was patronising to begin with.

I haven’t been working long enough to notice creeping changes in the language used in healthcare. Calling women people has been something I’ve been familiar with all of my life.

Calling women people has been something I’ve been familiar with all of my life.

Is 'pregnant people' a term you've been hearing all your life?

the term pregnant people doesn’t seem new to me no. I don’t hear it as much as pregnant women but it doesn’t seem like people have suddenly started saying it.

Then why are you avoiding the more obvious and accurate word?

If it doesn't mean anything, why do you avoid it?

the term pregnant people doesn’t seem new to me no.

Really?

And regardless of that, you've never given any thought as to why you'd use a much less accurate/precise term, when a more accurate, precise and very strongly established term is already in the lexicon?

There's a significant difference between agreeing that women are people (duh) and specifically avoiding the word for adult females when discussing female-specific issues.

It's only in the last two or three years or so that people suddenly stopped knowing what a woman is and found the concept ever so puzzling. Historically, when deciding who to deny a vote or an education or an abortion, we've worked it out just fine.

I just find it natural to say people sometimes. It’s not because I’m confused about biology.