Mazel Tov on your blog, but as for the word "Jewess," FEH!!
The word is abhorrent. JB is absolutely right about the problem of reclaiming words, but on top of that, this is one word that should NOT be reclaimed. Maybe it was where and when I grew up, but I never heard it used as anything other than a dual-purpose slur against both Jews and women by gentiles, and a know-your-place putdown by Jewish men. Rather than being reclaimed, it should be buried at a crossroads at midnight with a stake through its antisemitic/misogynist heart.
Mazel Tov on your blog, but as for the word "Jewess," FEH!!
The word is abhorrent. JB is absolutely right about the problem of reclaiming words, but on top of that, this is one word that should NOT be reclaimed. Maybe it was where and when I grew up, but I never heard it used as anything other than a dual-purpose slur against both Jews and women by gentiles, and a know-your-place putdown by Jewish men. Rather than being reclaimed, it should be buried at a crossroads at midnight with a stake through its antisemitic/misogynist heart.