Title: Real Talk: Should We Just Stop Using the Word 'Latinx?' | BeLatina
Headings: Real Talk: Should We Just Stop Using the Word ‘Latinx?’
Real Talk: Should We Just Stop Using the Word ‘Latinx?’
What is Latinx?
So, What’s the Debate Around Latinx?
What is the Solution?

Content: But that’s really the point of Latinx. It is inclusive for everyone, and people have a right to identify themselves however they wish. And it is a common misconception that, by embracing the term Latinx, people will have to abandon other forms of self-identification. Latinx and Latino and Latina can all co-exist, and at the very least, there will finally be more options for those who feel they have been excluded or marginalized in the past. This is definitely not the last you have heard of Latinx. While it is still a new word, and some people are slow to adopt it or hesitant to embrace it, others, especially college students and Millennials are using this new term to replace the gender-specific terms. If you ask María R. Scharrón-del Río, a professor of psychology at Brooklyn College, “we need to see more and that’s part of what the ‘x’ does — it makes visible the fact that people aren’t included within the ‘a’ or the ‘o.’” In The Washington Post she explained that “it’s really a linguistic intervention” that makes you consider those who have felt a lack of inclusion when discussing their own identity in the past. Ruby Corado, a transgender activist and founder of Casa Ruby, an LGBTQ bilingual and multicultural organization in Washington D.C., is a bit more hesitant to embrace Latinx, despite her mission to support transgender rights. Her old-school upbringing runs deep, and she grew up fighting to be seen as a Latina. While she’s not ready to let go of that term, she recognizes the importance of using the term Latinx, especially among younger generations who are finally feeling seen by their culture.