What should we call "honour killings" instead?

[classical_hero]

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jun/23/stop-honour-killing-murder-women-oppresive-patriarchy

In this struggle, words are indeed weapons. We need to find the right words – the right weapons – to fight this violation. "Honour killing" is not it. There is no honour in murder.

I just quoted the last paragraph of the article since it shows how important the usage of words are. Right now the term "honour killing" isn't accurate because there can never be honour in any murder. My favourite is 'family femicide" since most of the crimes are committed by family members against women.

But put frankly we need to give a new term since we need to be accurate in our usage of language. Honour is not something that we should ever have connected something as vile as murder. It is not a prestigious act and we shouldn't be using a word of prestige to describe it.

 

[NovaKart]

They are killed because they have violated the family's honor. Maybe reputation is a better word but reputation killing sounds stupid. I don't personally believe this but that's what people who do this believe. I don't think they call it that because the killing is itself honorable.

 

[Borachio]

I think it could be good to call them honour killings since this will in time devalue the word honour.

Honour is about reputation, pride, and machismo. I suppose there's some value in having a good reputation, but not much in the other two.

I don't know, though. It's a difficult subject, now I come to think of it.

 

[JollyRoger]

Murder.

Anything alse smacks of political correctness in one form or another.

 

[Borachio]

So you'd make no distinction between murders?

You'd call them all murders?

So, we can't talk about drive-by shooters, suicide bombers, or... people who rape women and then kill them, or those who murder their own daughters, i.e. honour murderers.

They're all just murderers?

Fine. I'm fine with that, tbh.

 

[JollyRoger]

If you start to changing the language, the next thing you know, you are calling something a hate crime and asking for punishment above the baseline level for murder.

 

[Kyriakos]

'Closure killings' is nicely PR-friendly

 

[Borachio]

"Closure terminations" is more clinical.

And has the added advantage that no one will know what you mean.

 

[Tahuti]

family femicide

For some reason, this sounds very satirical.

They are killed because they have violated the family's honor. Maybe reputation is a better word but reputation killing sounds stupid. I don't personally believe this but that's what people who do this believe. I don't think they call it that because the killing is itself honorable.

Actually, even in cultures that condone honour killings, killing defenceless people is often considered unhonourable, which includes honour killing. The consideration is whether it is worth the dishonour that is inherent to killing defenceless persons over the dishonour that particular person has brought upon by whatever act the honour killing is considered justified.

Honour includes reputation though is much deeper than reputation, since honour also includes notions of self-worth. It is not just outward reputation, it is also what one thinks of oneself. If you do not sincerely believe that the reputation of dishonour is something to care about by the act itself, it is just mere reputation and no longer honour.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

They are killed because they have violated the family's honor.

The women and girls are killed because they failed to obey some man - father, brother, uncle, husband, or because they were deemed to have failed in some other way - or were simply considered worthless.

Honor has nothing to do with it. That's just the excuse the men use and their society lets them get away with it.

 

[Borachio]

"Honour killings" can also refer to the murders of those girls who have been raped and murdered and hanged from trees, can't it?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2664421/Pakistani-woman-20-gang-raped-killed-hanged-tree-say-police.html

An unmarried woman's "honour" used to be (or still is, I guess) her virginity. These guys seem to think once they've raped a woman, she no longer has her honour and can/should be disposed of.

Seems a tad extreme to my way of thinking.

 

[Mise]

"Filicide" or "sororicide" would be the Latin terms for daughter- or sister-killing.

Murder does it for me.

 

[Manfred Belheim]

I think we should just call them honour killings. People know what the term means, and it's not as if it's widely condoned because of the choice of words. I think people can get too hung up on the "subliminal effect" of words, when in some cases (like this) it's just not really a factor. Changing the name to make a point is just a waste of time and energy, and would just lead to confusion and pointless arguments. "Honour killings" does just fine.

 

[Tahuti]

"Honour killings" can also refer to the murders of those girls who have been raped and murdered and hanged from trees, can't it?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2664421/Pakistani-woman-20-gang-raped-killed-hanged-tree-say-police.html

An unmarried woman's "honour" used to be (or still is, I guess) her virginity. These guys seem to think once they've raped a woman, she no longer has her honour and can/should be disposed of.

Seems a tad extreme to my way of thinking.

Maybe that's the reason why Roman Catholicism considers rape victims with no previous consensual sexual activity to be virgins.

 

[Cutlass]

Barbarian murder.

 

[JollyRoger]

Delegated smiting

 

[Goodfella]

"A different cultural practice that we, as westerners who observe the world through a Judeo-Christian lens, should be mindful of."

JK, I like Cutlass's answer.

 

[Arwon]

Honour killings work fine as a term, but they're one of the more extreme worldwide examples of patriarchal violence.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Why would you even consider calling murder honorable? Killing a woman or girl who is your wife, daughter, sister, niece, cousin, or even neighbor has NOTHING to do with honor!

Shafia murders

The youngest victim in the above case was 13 YEARS OLD. Three sisters and their father's older wife, drowned. And may their murderers - their father/husband, mother/co-wife, and brother/son all rot in prison for the rest of their disgusting, worthless lives.

I challenge you, Manfred Belheim and Arwon, to read about the Shafia family and still claim there was anything "honorable" in what happened to these four women.

 

[Masada]

I'm cool with murder.