What do we know about the term Latinx?
(Photo : Reuters)

The term Latinx has sparked over the years since it was first used online in 2000. But is it appropriate to use the term 'Latinx'?

What does the term Latinx mean?

The term Latinx is a word used to avoid gender bias among the LBGTQ-Latino community. The replacing of the suffix -o for male and -a for a female to the suffix -x. However, this term is not yet included in the leading dictionaries in the world, including Merriam and Webster.

For years, debate whether or not the use of the term is discriminatory among the Latino community, has continued. It is a word that is both embraced and scorned by members of the Latino community. But the question that lies is do Latinos need a new word to better describe themselves?

There have been many articles published in different news outlets about the use of the term, however none of these published articles have shown the statistical data as to how many agree or disagree with the term's usage. On the other hand, Hispanics are already a community with different identities such as Nuyorican, Tejano, and Cuban-American to name a few.

In a report from NBC, they asked educators and experts about the term, Latinx. As we are already aware the ter is used to empathize with gender-neutralilty among the Latin American community. This means that this term encompasses those who identified themselves outside the binary gender. 

According to Mark Hugo Lopez from the Pew Research Center, they have discussed and talked about using the term Latinx in their surveys, but has not been implemented as of yet.

"Latinx fits within our broader history in the U.S. of using various terms to describe our identity and it is pan-ethnic like Hispanic, and political in a sense like Chicano," said Lopez.

Meanwhile, the Merriam and Webster dictionaries editorial teams have found the emergence of the word but according to them they have been watching for the entry of the word in their dictionaries but it has not yet been added. On the other hand, the Oxford dictionary has been tracking for the possible inclusion of the word in the future. In 2016, the term Latinx was included in their shortlist for the Word of the Year. 

What are the two most important reasons why the term is still used today?

According to the proponents of this word, there are two arguments why this term must be used. First, some people do not see themselves as part of the Latino or Latina community. This means that this term can be used to refer to their association with any group. And second, the term is gender-neutral and does not give any masculine or feminine identifiers. 

Robyn Moreno, editorial director for Latina Magazine, said: "I don't think people always understand what it (Latinx) means at first. My initial response was, 'I am a proud Latina, I don't want to be something else,'" she also added that "Then my younger staff explained it to me - and now I get the power and purpose behind the word." 

Moreno also said: "This is another term which moves the identity conversation forward. It promotes fairness and inclusivity, which I think is a good thing. It is not about taking away identity; it is about giving more identity to more people." 

What are the views of those who resist the use of the term Latin?

Gilbert Guerra and Gilbert Orbea, in their much-shared column in The Phoenix which is an independent campus newspaper of Swarthmore College, wrote: "We are not arguing against gender-inclusive language and we see, however, a misguided desire to forcibly change the language we and millions of people around the world speak, to the detriment of all."

They also asserted that if all Spanish language will be degendered, there are words that will be changed like "Hermanx" for siblings and "Ninx" for children. However, this misses the point on the used of the term Latinx according to Roy Perez who works as an associate professor of English and American Ethnic Studies at Willamette University.

"No one is out to neutralize the whole Spanish language, and it would be impractical to do so," Perez said. "This is an English-language and Spanglish debate that can get blown out of proportion, "

This simply means that the debate around the use of the term Latinx stems from an underlying resistance of inclusivity. He said: "The underlying gender critique is what fuels hatred towards Latinx but why should we only have one word to describe ourselves? Latinx is just one solution to the complexity and slipperiness of labeling Latinos. And it doesn't have to supplant other words." 

When was the term Latinx first used?

It is very difficult for the experts to trace the origin of Latinx but it was first used online in 2000 and it was also used in 2014 by the Latino LGBTQ community. Meanwhile, the term is widely used in Latin America based on its anecdotal record. It is also used in the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, University of Iowa, and Princeton University. 

In 2016, there was a spike on the search of the term Latinx in the Google trends search following the mass shooting at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida. 

Is there a misconception about the use of the term Latinx? 

Maria Sharron del Rio, an associate professor at Brooklyn College, said: "By using Latinx, nobody is telling you how to identify. It's up to you if you want to be Latinx, Latino, or something else and it is a way to be inclusive. For people who are traditionally marginalized, that milli-second of politeness and recognition towards someone who is genderqueer, tells them that you see them, that you are an ally." 

Scharron also said that as Latinos the pride of ourselves is based on the strength of our family ties and the users of the term Latinx is to bring closer Latino and Latina people who identify themselves as part of the marginalized group and those who have not taken care as part of the family.

Meanwhile, Natasha Pongonis, co-founder and co-owner of The Nativa- a multicultural communications agency that mainly focuses on the Hispanic market- said that they do not have the consensus yet among the Hispanic groups about the use of the term Latinx so it would be hard for the big corporations to embrace it. It is also important to note that the terms Latino and Hispanics are the two most popular words used by big corporations to attract them to the largest minority group in the country.

Pongonis sees the debate of the use of the term Latinx as part of the evolution of language and identity. It is not surprising anymore why many college students and Millenials are using the term. She also said that even the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are using the term also. This helps to bring awareness regarding the term.