Saying ‘women’ is not allowed, but ‘men’ and ‘white’ are OK? I’m (not) shocked

‘I guess this is where we are now: Republicans aren’t just banning books, they’re policing words.’ Photograph: Abaca/Rex/Shutterstock

From banning books to policing words

Thanks to the intolerant left, nobody can say the word “women” any more! Do you remember when that was a major talking point in certain quarters? Prominent columnists wrote endless pieces declaring that the word “women” had “become verboten”. The thought police, these people claimed, were forcing everyone to say “bodies with vaginas” and “menstruators” instead. Even the likes of Margaret Atwood tweeted articles with headlines like: “Why can’t we say ‘woman’ anymore?”