Democratic Representative Cori Bush, a new addition to "The Squad" group from Missouri, is facing an online backlash after referring to women as “birthing people” during her address to Congress on Thursday.
Speaking to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committees about her own tragic experience of nearly losing both her children after being neglected by doctors, Bush, 44, has vowed “to protect Black mothers, to protect Black babies, to protect Black birthing people, and to save lives."
Sharing her emotional address on Twitter, the first-year lawmaker reiterated the much-hated term:
“Every day, Black birthing people and our babies die because our doctors don’t believe our pain. My children almost became a statistic,” she wrote.
Despite receiving strong support from the left camp, the lawmaker’s choice of language has angered many, with netizens complaining that Bush has downgraded the role of women to “birthing machines” with her attempt of inclusiveness.
Steve Cortes, a Hispanic Trump supporter, then pointed out with sad irony that upcoming Mother’s Day could be re-named "Birthing Peoples’ Day" following Bush's comments.
The use of gender-neutral terms remains a hot topic in the US, with liberals often called out for being too quick to dismiss more conservative views on the issue. Following the online storm, Bush has tweeted to her critics, accusing them of “racism and transphobia."
According to the Democratic politician, “Republicans got more upset” about her use of “gender-inclusive language” than about her “babies nearly dying.” But some have disagreed – the issue has nothing to do with GOP members, several users have pointed out, calling the use of the phrase “really dumb."