A New England town is facing backlash after it released a poster for an upcoming sporting event for girlx.
The city of Cambridge, Massachusetts, last week released a flyer for its “Cambridge Sports Night for Girlsx,” which includes everyone who identifies “as a girl or being a girl” and is in kindergarten through fifth grade.
The tweet immediately drew the attention and anger of some, who cried out against the term and mocked the city for its “awakened” invitations and policies.
“Count the Wegex, this can go wrong,” joked one person, quoting the city’s tweet.
This is the flyer for the event that sparked backlash online
The post was immediately mocked by Twitter users, who called it “absurd” and “silly.”
A flyer says the Jan. 18 event will be for “families with Girlx (anyone who identifies as a girl or girl)” and will give the group a chance to “discover new sports, learn more about existing teams and prizes, pizza, games and hands-on demonstrations,” according to the city.
The term in question is meant to be broader and follows the idea of other hot-button words like “Latinx” and “womxn”.
The flyer points out that “girls” who play sports at a young age tend to have higher self-esteem, get better grades in school, develop critical thinking and have a larger circle of friends.
The event offers “girlx” the opportunity to try out sports such as basketball, cheer, soccer, lacrosse and soccer, among other things.
Some on the social media app pointed out that they think the flyer is strong compared to some of the famous institutions the city is home to.
The renowned universities of Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are located in Cambridge.
The event is sponsored by the Cambridge Commission on the Status of Women, the Cambridge Office of the Mayor and the Cambridge Department of Human Services Programs
The event offers “girlx” the opportunity to try out sports such as basketball, cheer, soccer, lacrosse and soccer, among other things
The tweet immediately drew the attention and anger of some, who cried out against the term and mocked the city for its “awakened” invitations and policies
Cambridge is home to two of the country’s most prestigious schools, Harvard University (left) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (right).
The city’s original tweet did not go down well on the platform.
“Count how this can go wrong,” one person joked on the social media app.
‘What the hell is that? What are girls?’ wrote one Twitter user.
“”Girlx”… the absurdity is the point,” said another.
“Who on the management team came up with this nonsensical excuse for a label? It’s either for GIRLS or for GIRLS & BOYS…there’s no sex class like Girlx…” one person wrote.
“‘Girlx’ instead of ‘girls’ because ‘Latinx’ worked so well,” said one Twitter user.
A Twitter user asked, “What are Girlx?” in a tweet
Another person criticized the term, calling it “nonsensical”.
One user said the term will go down just as well as “Latinx.”
Backlash has been constant since the tweet was first posted last week
“Latinx” is another example of inclusive language that has been ruthlessly criticized and ridiculed around the internet in recent years.
Last week, Arkansas governor-elect and former White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee-Sanders made headlines for banning term in official government documents.
The governor called the term “ethnically insensitive and derogatory language has no place in official government documents or state employee titles.”
All state and local government agencies now have 60 days to replace “Latinx” with “Hispanic,” “Hispanics,” “Latino,” “Latinos,” “Latina,” or “Latinas.”
Arkansas Governor-elect Sarah Huckabee Sanders is a politician opposed to the term “Latinx.”
Sanders, seen here with her family on her inauguration day, recently banned the use of the term “Latinx” on government documents
However, this isn’t the first time the city of Cambridge has faced a backlash for its “inclusive” ways.
In 2021, the city hosted a Let Trans Athletes Play event that drew attention from community members and those across the country.
“This event is a space for #LGBTQ+ youth to exercise and play games with their friends and to protest anti-trans laws being rolled out across the country,” Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui said in a July tweet 2021
The post was proclaimed by opponents who expressed their belief that sports teams should only be differentiated on the basis of biological sex and nothing else.
reached out to officials at Cambridge City Hall for an explanation of the backlash, but have received no response at the time of publication.
In 2021, Cambridge Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui and the city hosted a Let Trans Athletes Play event.