First off, until this week, pussy hasn't exactly been my favorite word. In fact this is the first time I've ever used it in writing. Up until today, I've passively applauded those who used pussy in an empowered way to reclaim women's sexuality. But for me, I couldn't get around the use of "pussy" conjuring up memories of bigoted remarks from people who found humor in equating female genitalia with weakness.
However, there is just too much misinformation about sex, sexuality, and women's bodies for me to blindly go forth with mis-using the word vagina. The term vagina is thrown around to mean all sorts of misnomers. (Psst, the vagina is the muscular canal connecting a women's outer genitalia to her cervix, which is the opening of the uterus.) If we want a proper term for what many of us tend to think of as outer "lady parts" then we're left with the underused and even more under-recognized word vulva. But we just don't have a word to wrap up all the inner plus outer of lovely ladydome... until alas, we accept pussy.
So, the biology reminder is over. From it appears that even in 2016, truly the best word to encompass the beautiful complexity of the sexual and reproductive inner and outer goodness of a woman is the word "pussy."
However, this pussy business is a lot more complex than just that. If you're using the word pussy to champion women, hurrah! If you're using it to demean, demoralize, and demote a fellow human being, than I ask the controversial question: how is that any different than using other historically bigoted and hateful terms?
My acceptance of pussy is because it's the best and most truthful word we've got for a celebration of women's sexual power. However, the history of that word can still be used against women and men alike. We've seen and felt the deep wounds created by bigoted slang. Words carry meaning and messages; they can only truly be re-claimed when they can be used to empower and never evoke hate and violence.
A leading candidate in the race to the most powerful political office in the world smirking and applauding to the word pussy in the context of denigration, there is a powerful message: the stronghold of our nation's sexism is REAL.
So I do vote with my pussy, and proudly so, thank you very much. My pussy pretty rad. It gives me pleasure and great insight too (hello, there are neurotransmitters down there people!). It's also part of my body and being. Therefore, I would like my leaders to value, not mock, the importance of my pussy.
I vote with my pussy because it is a piece of me that I trust to guide me to my best understanding of progress. Voting with my pussy doesn't mean I only vote for people with pussies. Rather voting with my pussy means I vote for people who champion and create policy in support of pussies.
I'm not my belief that my pussy should vote for you and yours. But I do think it's effing bonkers for you not to make your choice without consulting yours first. (And if you don't have a pussy, maybe consider that you love a heck ton of people that do.)