![](\"https:\/\/cdni.rt.com\/files\/2018.10\/thumbnail\/5bbe3e23fc7e934b1a8b45b6.jpg\")
<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
The Wellcome Collection museum in London has been forced to apologize after its efforts to be \u2018inclusive\u2019 by using the word \u2018womxn\u2019 instead of \u2018women\u2019 backfired and caused outrage on social media.<\/p>\n
In promotional material for a four-day programme which aims to \u201cchallenge archives, change narratives and amplify new voices,\u201d<\/em> the museum said it wanted to beginning a conversation about \u201chow womxn can challenge existing archives\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n The choice of word was intended to be inclusive \u2014 but to who? According to a tiny fraction of society, it appears that the word \u201cwomen\u201d<\/em> is seen as exclusively referring to white, straight and cisgender women. In other words it is (apparently) racist and transphobic.<\/p>\n The word \u2018womxn\u2019 seems to be a spin-off from the word \u2018womyn\u2019 which was adopted by some feminists during the 1970s women\u2019s movement. Unfortunately for the Wellcome Collection, however, today\u2019s women (and men \u2014 or is it mxn?) were not too pleased with the new iteration of the word \u2014 and they let the museum know about it on Twitter.<\/p>\n Absolute 100% instablock and an actual hex for anyone using \u201cwomxn\u201d in my vicinity.<\/p>\n \u2014 Juliet (@Jsoosty) October 10, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Nobody outside of a very narrow circle of narcissists and misogynists will even begin to understand what you mean by “womxn.” The word woman doesn’t need to be edited or to apologise for itself. Please compare with your approach to speaking about men and amend.<\/p>\n \u2014 Spook Spookfare 🐒 (@spookwarfare) October 10, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n One of the great lies of our time is that PC language is “inclusive”. It isn’t, it’s exclusive — used exclusively by a handful of cranks who have somehow been elevated to positions of cultural power. Nobody even knows how to say the word “womxn” out loud… https:\/\/t.co\/7y6EFTsJGL<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Fraser Myers (@FraserMyers) October 10, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n How do you pronounce womxn? The same way you pronounce bollocks.<\/p>\n \u2014 suzanne moore (@suzanne_moore) October 10, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n One user noted that in its effort to be inclusive, the museum had strangely divided the world up into \u201cmen and other things,\u201d<\/em> while another suggested that using an \u2018x\u2019 looks like an effort to make woman and women interchangeable, as though some women now \u201cidentified as plurals\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n This would be defensible (if a bit student union) if they\u2019d done Mxn and Womxn.<\/p>\n As it is they\u2019ve divided humans into the recognised classes of MEN and OTHER THINGS. Dumb.https:\/\/t.co\/VdnTjt0vR6<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Willard Foxton Todd (@WillardFoxton) October 10, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Who exactly is this meant to include? Trans women call themselves women, non-binary people don’t call themselves women at all. The only thing that comes to mind is that this could be to include both “woman” and “women”, which implies there are women who identify as plurals.<\/p>\n \u2014 Sam Baxter (@szbnahl) October 10, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n This is bonkers. Women aren’t even allowed to have an undisfigured word to denote them. Please be consistent and refer to men as mxn.<\/p>\n \u2014 Gregory Norminton (@GDRNorminton) October 10, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Responding to criticism, the museum tweeted to explain that \u201cwomxn\u201d<\/em> creates a space for \u201cdiverse perspectives\u201d<\/em> \u2014 but soon realized that wasn\u2019t going to cut it. The Wellcome Collection later released a statement apologizing for having used the word.<\/p>\n \u201cWe should have put more thought into whether this was the right term to use when communicating about the event. We made a mistake, and we should not have used it. We\u2019re sorry that we made the wrong call,<\/em>\u201d it said.<\/p>\n Women\u2019s organization Her Stories, which is sponsored by fashion brand H&M, also came under fire this week for using the word \u2018womxn\u2019 repeatedly in a promotional email about an art exhibition to support refugee and migrant women in London.<\/p>\n Twitter users lashed out at H&M, with one suggesting that what was truly racist was any suggestion that the word women does not include women of color.<\/p>\n I have just received a press release that says \u201cwomxn\u201d 15 times. Christ almxghty.<\/p>\n Did you agree to this nonsense @MaternityAction<\/a> ??@ellashome<\/a>pic.twitter.com\/et5a1LGmqX<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Lucy Bannerman (@TimesLucy) October 10, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n @hm<\/a> – have you seen this and do you support the use of #womxn<\/a>? If so, you have lost me as a customer. I am outraged as an actual #woman<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u2014 Hannah (@Chailatte2020) October 10, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n On top of Wellcome, more of this “Womxn” utter bullshit, this time from H&M. How DARE they suggest that the word “Women” excludes people of colour (for a start)? https:\/\/t.co\/RDIoZOoiag<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Claire King (@ckingwriter) October 10, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Like this story? Share it with a friend!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
\n\n
\n\n
\n\n
\n\n
\n\n
\n\n
\n\n
It\u2019s about a campaign \u201cfor womxn, by womxn\u201d to help refugees, sex trafficking victims + \u201cpregnant womxn\u201d.
It\u2019s sponsored by H&M. @hm<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n
\n\n