{"id":4511,"date":"2016-11-23T21:59:26","date_gmt":"2016-11-24T03:59:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/richyrocks.com\/?p=4511"},"modified":"2017-05-26T20:51:16","modified_gmt":"2017-05-27T02:51:16","slug":"is-putos-a-slur-revisited","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/richyrocks.com\/coolenglish\/is-putos-a-slur-revisited\/","title":{"rendered":"is ‘putos’ a slur? (revisited)"},"content":{"rendered":"
a few media outlets in the u.s. were offended by\u00a0mexican fans shouting ‘putos’ during the monday night football game in estadio azteca this week, referring to it as a slur.<\/em>\u00a0i wrote the following\u00a0during the 2014 world cup when the grito de putos<\/em> first caught the attention of the american press.<\/span><\/h5>\n
\"t-rex
a dinosaur\u00a0contemplates\u00a0the mexican classic “whoever reads this is a puto”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

there isn’t a good translation\u00a0in mexican spanish for the word\u00a0slur<\/span><\/em><\/strong>. considerably stronger than\u00a0insult<\/em><\/span>, slur<\/em> is usually used to indicate a mix of hate with racism, sexism or homophobia. so despite the insistence in the american media that the chant of\u00a0putos!<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>by\u00a0mexican fans during\u00a0mexico’s\u00a0world cup games in brazil is a homophobic\u00a0slur,\u00a0<\/em>i\u00a0don’t believe that it is. understanding mexico\u00a0through the politcially correct filter that has developed in the united states as a reaction to\u00a0its own intolerant history is misguided and awkward because like\u00a0slur<\/em>, american politcal correctness doesn’t really make sense in mexico.<\/p>\n

<\/h4>\n

mexicans commonly \u00a0refer to each other\u00a0by skin color in a way that would make a modern american squirm. \u00a0negro, moreno<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0prieto<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>are all common nicknames and terms of affection (and insults) used to refer to people who have darker complexions. \u00a0but they are not slurs.<\/p>\n

my first few weeks living in mexico,\u00a0i was blown away\u00a0to hear the word\u00a0mojado<\/span><\/em><\/strong>\u00a0(the best translation for the racial slur\u00a0wetback<\/em>) used as everyday speech. but it is used to differentiate entering the united states clandestinely without the necessary documentation from other alternatives of entry, and it would be ridiculous to call it a slur.<\/p>\n

\"no
warning<\/strong>: this shirt does not serve as a visa. not available in english.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

on the other hand, i have never liked the mexican use of\u00a0indio<\/span><\/strong><\/em>\u00a0(indian) as\u00a0an insult. indios (frequently\u00a0pinches<\/span>\u00a0indios<\/em>\u00a0to give it\u00a0a little more sting) are believed to be stupid and lacking in culture. it feels like a\u00a0slam<\/a>\u00a0that was handed down directly from nueva espa\u00f1a, and the original idea clearly was to underscore\u00a0the superior intelligence of the colonial\u00a0\u00a0power vs the native. \u00a0but given the fact that almost all\u00a0modern mexicans have an\u00a0ancestral connection to both spanish and indigenous cultures, most of the time it’s probably not a slur.<\/p>\n

\"12
indio<\/strong> is also a popular brand of beer.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

i felt uneasy the first few times\u00a0i heard thousands of football fans shout\u00a0putos!<\/em>\u00a0in unison. \u00a0the argument that\u00a0puto<\/em>\u00a0is used in a multitude of ways that don’t have anything to do with sexuality\u00a0is true, but keeping it real, the shout\u00a0can’t totally be separated \u00a0from the word’s origin either. \u00a0over time it would be fine\u00a0to replace\u00a0putos!\u00a0<\/em>with something different; it’s not like mexicans will\u00a0have trouble coming up with something more creative. but\u00a0putos!<\/em>\u00a0isn’t hate speech\u00a0yelled\u00a0with\u00a0the intention of threatening<\/a> individuals based on their sexuality and it shouldn’t be considered a homophobic slur.<\/p>\n

i am an american (expat, immigrant, whatever) who has lived in mexico for many moons (& world cups). i welcome your comments. please post them\u00a0under leave a reply<\/strong><\/p>\n