From Yemen: A lexicon on hate speech terms by PeaceTech Lab, Peace Track Initiative, and Development Transformations:
حويث / Houthi
- Other spellings and related references: رافضي / rafidi (English meaning: someone who rejects correct Islam); ساللي / salali (English translation: dynastic); مجوسي / magusi (English translation: fire worshippers / infidels); سيد / sayed (English meaning: upper class in Yemeni society); قنديل / qanadil (English meaning: descendant of the prophet); هاشمي / hashemi (English translation: descendant of the prophet); شيعي / Shie’i (English translation: Shiite); عميل / eamil (English translation: operative); ايراني / Irani (English translation: Iranian); قبيلي / qabili (English translation: tribal)
- Definition: ‘Houthi’ is the term commonly used by people inside and outside of Yemen to refer to the Zaidi Shia political movement whose official name is Ansar Allah; it is also the name of a tribe from northern Yemen, concentrated in Saada Governorate. Houthi is the family name of the brothers who founded the movement, which is currently led by Abdul-Malik al Houthi. Since the conflict in Yemen began, the word has come to have several connotations associated with it, including a link to Iran and the use of violence to achieve goals.
- Why it’s offensive and inflammatory: As with the term ‘Hashemi,’ ‘Houthi’ is not always
considered offensive and inflammatory given that it is the actual name of a tribe. As one of the focus group participants in Sana’a stated, “The word alone is not considered an offensive word. But, after 2012, the word started to be used as a discriminatory word. Why? Because people started to use it to refer to an armed group that is accused as being traitors and responsible for the coup.” The term is inflammatory when it is used to discriminate against or denigrate people from the north (where the Houthi are concentrated) or someone who may sympathize with some Houthi viewpoints but who is not necessarily involved in the conflict or in the Houthi political system. It is used to target those who are believed to be at fault for the conflict or beholden to an Iranian agenda. Many of the focus group participants in both Aden and Sana’a described the Houthis as traitors to Yemen who are responsible for the current violence. - Non-offensive alternative terms: اخي / akhi (English translation: brother); يمني (English translation: Yemeni); أنصار هللا / Ansar Allah