The "L" Word?

[and1grad]

What do you guys think of this article? Should this change the whole dynamic of what to call gay women? I think that would be interesting.
Discuss!!!
Lesbos islanders dispute gay name
By Malcolm Brabant
BBC News, Athens

Campaigners on the Greek island of Lesbos are to go to court in an attempt to stop a gay rights organisation from using the term "lesbian".

The islanders say that if they are successful they may then start to fight the word lesbian internationally.

The issue boils down to who has the right to call themselves Lesbians.

Is it gay women, or the 100,000 people living on Greece's third biggest island - plus another 250,000 expatriates who originate from Lesbos?

The man spearheading the case, publisher Dimitris Lambrou, claims that international dominance of the word in its sexual context violates the human rights of the islanders, and disgraces them around the world.

He says it causes daily problems to the social life of Lesbos's inhabitants.

Injunction sought

In court papers, the plaintiffs allege that the Greek government is so embarrassed by the term Lesbian that it has been forced to rename the island after its capital, Mytilini.
An early court date has now been set for judges to decide whether to grant an injunction against the Homosexual and Lesbian Community of Greece and to order it to change its name.

A spokeswoman for the group has described the case as a groundless violation of freedom of expression, and has pledged to fight it.

The term lesbian originated from the poet Sappho, who was a native of Lesbos.

Sappho expressed her love of other women in poetry written during the 7th Century BC.

But according to Mr Lambrou, new historical research has discovered that Sappho had a family, and committed suicide for the love of a man.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/7376919.stm

Published: 2008/05/01 09:53:14 GMT

© BBC MMVIII

[meatwad]

I heard the Dutch are moving to trade mark one of the alternatives. Beware of Dutch boys with wet fingers. :eek:

[twentyfive]

:D Co-worker showed that to me, looky there, Lesbians are suing the Lesbians! :rolleyes:

[meatwad]

:D Co-worker showed that to me, looky there, Lesbians are suing the Lesbians! :rolleyes:

We're all fucked if the Turks sue us over thanksgiving.

[PenforPrez]

I can fully understand why the Lesbos residents would want to take such a course. However, I don't think this is going to erase several millenia of etymology. They'd never be able to remove the sexual connotation of "lesbian" in several generations of effort. (The actual use of the term "lesbian" dates back at least to the early 18th century.)

Another example: The word "vandal" was rooted in a Germanic tribe who attacked the Roman Empire. The Vandal leader Geiseric sacked Rome in A.D. 455. That's a word that's never going away.

Words like that become fundamentally etched into language. Granted, that's not their goal at this point, but that's what they're after. They can legislate and adjudicate a lot of things, but words are not one of them.

Paul

[twentyfive]

I can fully understand why the Lesbos residents would want to take such a course. However, I don't think this is going to erase several millenia of etymology. They'd never be able to remove the sexual connotation of "lesbian" in several generations of effort. (The actual use of the term "lesbian" dates back at least to the early 18th century.)

Another example: The word "vandal" was rooted in a Germanic tribe who attacked the Roman Empire. The Vandal leader Geiseric sacked Rome in A.D. 455. That's a word that's never going away.

Words like that become fundamentally etched into language. Granted, that's not their goal at this point, but that's what they're after. They can legislate and adjudicate a lot of things, but words are not one of them.

Paul

And it's not just words either that get etched into language, it's symbols that get etched in too. :) But I see where the residents of Lesbos is coming from but I also understand how "lesbian" has been etched into our language.

[and1grad]

I can fully understand why the Lesbos residents would want to take such a course. However, I don't think this is going to erase several millenia of etymology. They'd never be able to remove the sexual connotation of "lesbian" in several generations of effort. (The actual use of the term "lesbian" dates back at least to the early 18th century.)

Another example: The word "vandal" was rooted in a Germanic tribe who attacked the Roman Empire. The Vandal leader Geiseric sacked Rome in A.D. 455. That's a word that's never going away.

Words like that become fundamentally etched into language. Granted, that's not their goal at this point, but that's what they're after. They can legislate and adjudicate a lot of things, but words are not one of them.

Paul
Not that I believe it'd be the right thing to do in this case but you actually can legislate language. Its really not uncommon. It'd be like opening up your own sandwich place and calling it "McDonald's." Remember the WWF situation? Instances like that. But in this case, its more of a sweeping change b/c if associations and centers are no longer allowed to use the word "lesbian," it essentially kills any reason for using it at all. I dont think the impact would be immediate but I do think eventually the word would no longer be used to reference gay women. Some other word would probably take its place.