One of the more noticeable language isms in NYC, at least in the areas we work in, is the term 'Mami' (sp?) used to refer to any young woman. It's kinda like saying "hey you" or "girl" to get someone's attention or when talking to a stranger. It took me a while to get used to because I didn't understand why everyone was calling each other "Mommy". It was especially striking because I was working with so many abortion minded people and coming to understand what a lost sense of motherhood most of these women have who were being called "Mommy" on a regular basis.
Then it kinda struck me. Almost like a desperate cry for help, it felt like all of broken, deprived parents going about the city were expressing their sense of lost motherhood. As if there was a great loss of mothers in their city because of the great loss of children.
Now, I know that's not what anyone is thinking, but it's incredibly ironic that both the tragedy of abortion and the common usage of "mami" and "papi" exist so prominently within the same population.
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