The body part that dare not speak its name

A conservative columnist says coeds shouldn't shout about their privates.

Published November 29, 2005 2:29PM (EST)

There are only 26 shopping days till Christmas, but conservative columnists are already hot and bothered about Valentine's Day. In yesterday's Washington Times, Suzanne Fields rails against the evil scourge that invades college campuses every February: "V-Day celebrations" inspired by Eve Ensler's play "The Vagina Monologues."

"'V-Day' has replaced St. Valentine's Day, with romance replaced by a 'celebration' of female body parts, with recitations such as 'My Angry Vagina' and 'Reclaiming [Extremely Vulgar Word for Most Intimate Female Body Part],'" writes Fields. "In fact, participants are encouraged to shout the four-letter word that women have always regarded as the vilest of all four-letter words."

Fields is really riled up about the Extremely Vulgar Word for Most Intimate Female Body Part.

"On one campus the actress Glenn Close exhorts 2,500 young men and women to stand up and chant the word; Wesleyan University has established a '[vilest word] workshop'; Roseanne Barr, who redefines the meaning of vile, performs in her underwear, discussing certain bodily scents, for an audience of 2,000. Devotees can buy this particular body part of the hour sculpted in glass, lollipops and lamps."

Personally, I am way more grossed out by vagina lollipops than I am by the word "cunt."


By Lori Leibovich

Lori Leibovich is a contributing editor at Salon and the former editor of the Life section.

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