{"id":1111,"date":"2016-11-01T09:57:34","date_gmt":"2016-11-01T14:57:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/?p=1111"},"modified":"2016-11-01T09:57:34","modified_gmt":"2016-11-01T14:57:34","slug":"nasty-women-and-the-reappropriation-of-stigmatized-labels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/2016\/11\/01\/nasty-women-and-the-reappropriation-of-stigmatized-labels\/","title":{"rendered":"Nasty Women and the Reappropriation of Stigmatized Labels"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Nasty<\/a>
Nasty Woman Tote Bag<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Donald Trump\u2019s \u201cnasty woman\u201d comment during the third presidential debate has ignited a veritable \u201c<\/span>nasty woman economy<\/span><\/a>.\u201d Just two weeks later, there are <\/span>numerous<\/span><\/a> hashtags<\/span><\/a> and a growing diversity of merchandise, including a <\/span>tote bag<\/span><\/a>, that reclaim \u201cnasty woman\u201d as a positive and empowering label. Elizabeth Warren capitalized on this at a recent Clinton rally when she said, \u201c<\/span>nasty women are tough, nasty women are smart, and nasty women vote<\/span><\/a>.\u201d As <\/span>The Atlantic<\/span><\/i> details in their <\/span>feminist history<\/span><\/a> of the word, \u201cnasty\u201d was reappropriated as a \u201cbadge of honor\u201d some time ago, and they point to songs like <\/span>Janet Jackson\u2019s <\/span>Nasty<\/span><\/i><\/a> as an example of women using the word in a positive way. The reappropriation of stigmatized labels is not new, though social scientists find that this strategy has both strengths and weaknesses.<\/span><\/p>\n

Psychologists have found that when a group reclaims a derogatory label, perceptions of that group\u2019s power increases. And once a group is perceived as powerful, individuals feel more empowered to self identify with that reappropriated label. However, this strategy only works for derogatory<\/span> terms like \u201cqueer\u201d and \u201cbitch,\u201d not for descriptive terms like \u201cwoman\u201d or majority-group terms like \u201cstraight.\u201d <\/span><\/h5>\n