Political Correctness Help

[JollyRoger]

Some of the PC brigade insists on "Merry Christmas" rather than "Happy Holidays"

 

[emzie]

If you have to look around to finish a sentence, it's probably not PC.

 

[Camikaze]

I seen ATSI used as an abbreviation a fair bit in the last couple of years, which I hadn't seen before. Not sure if this is actually new or not, or if I just haven't been paying attention.

My grandparents like using the phrase 'new Australians', as a conscious effort to not just call people 'Asian', 'Indian', 'Lebanese', etc, or to at least distinguish between Asian-Australians and, for example, Asian international students or tourists.

With what Arwon was saying about the use of 'Aussie', I always find it interesting that people my age, born or at least raised in Australia, will still say "I'm Vietnamese" or even "I'm Italian" or something, whilst Anglo people like me don't say "I'm British". To that extent, if someone asked "where are you from?" (and I'm not really sure there's a PC way to phrase this question) and I said "I'm Australian" and my friend said "I'm Sri Lankan", that's not intending to mean that I'm more of an Australian citizen than my friend, but rather that I'm anglo and my friend isn't. Or perhaps it's more reflective of the fact that they grew up in a Sri Lankan household (e.g. speaking Sinhalese, eating Sri Lankan food, vocally supporting Muralitharan, etc.), whilst I grew up in a household generally considered more stereotypically Australian (e.g. speaking English, eating western versions of Chinese and Italian food). That's probably not the best use of language, really, but it's how things are.

 

[Arwon]

It's all part of the fun of navigating our brave new post-ethnic future yo.

 

[Quintillus]

An interesting one right now is the use of the word "Jew". It kind of occupies a murky grey area in US parlance right now. It's an ok word to use but it makes many uncomfortable or squeamish. You can see people kind of grimace when you use it. Generally Jewish or Jewish Person is considered more acceptable.

This is true in the midwestern U.S., too. For example, if I'm being asked about the religion of a Jewish deli owner, the question will almost always be, "Is he really Jewish?", not "Is he really a Jew?" Whereas, "Is he really a Lithuanian?" would be just as acceptable as "Is he really Lithuanian?"

"Happy holidays" is a good politically correct example. "Winter break/winter holiday", along the same vein, is fairly common. I'm a bit confused by JollyRoger's post. In the midwestern U.S., "Happy holidays" is the politically correct term, and "Merry Christmas" is either the common informal term or the already-know-the-audience-is-Christian term. "Holiday party" for a festive gathering is also used to be politically correct, though you do still have Christmas parties by Christians (whether practicing or culturally), as well as by non-Christians who think the political correctness is silly.

"Socially challenged" is another fairly common one to refer to someone who is socially inept. This would be used to describe people who are breaking social norms due to being oblivious to them when most people would be aware of them, not to describe people who like to spend lots of time alone (also known as "loners"). "Loners" could simply like to spend time by themselves but be perfectly socially capable when they so chose.

"Mentally challenged" is along the same line, and "challenged" in general is a common politically correct modifier. Ex. "vertically challenged" for short people.

Politically correct terms for fat people include "well-built", "muscular" (if they have muscles as well as general mass), and the feminine-only "curvy". These can also be used to describe people who aren't fat, so it somewhat depends on context. More politically correct than "fat" but probably less so than the previous would include "hefty".

I feel like there's probably a politically correct term for "hillbilly" and "redneck", but the closest I can come up with are referring to them by their places of residence (ex. "residents of Appalachia", the over-inclusive "West Virginians" (who don't all qualify as hillbillies, but the state has that reputation), etc.). Again, these would depend on context - if you ask "What's he like?" about someone you don't know, and the first reply is, "Oh, you know, he's from West Virginia" or "Oh, you know, he's a NASCAR fan", it might be hinting at them being a hillbilly/redneck. But if the reply is, "Oh, he's a cool guy, we went to college together, occasionally took a trip to a NASCAR race" then NASCAR is probably just one of his interests, and he's not necessarily a redneck. But someone else might know a better general-purpose politically correct term here.

Also, in the midwestern U.S., "Asian" is not particularly politically correct. It's not necessarily offensive, however, and it's still used commonly. If a restaurant serves Chinese, Indian, and Thai food, no one's going to object to calling it "Asian". But "Asian" is tricky, because a lot of time Americans use it because they don't know enough about Asia to be more specific. "Is she Korean?" is a fair question. "Is she Asian?" implies you are unaware of the vast differences in culture in Asia, although it's still more politically correct than "Is she oriental?" "Where is she from?" would be a more politically correct way to ask if you really don't know if she's from Korea, Japan, or China, for example. Similarly, people probably won't look at you funny if you recount a story about "some Asian guy" you encountered any more than they would if it were "some Chinese guy". (Also, in the U.S., "Asian" generally refers to Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and to a lesser extent southeastern Asian in this informal context)

 

[bhsup]

person-hole cover instead of manhole cover.

 

[ace99]

Casino's now use African-Americanjack rather than blackjack. Similarly African-Americangammon instead of Mandingo fighting.

 

[Masada]

I seen ATSI used as an abbreviation a fair bit in the last couple of years, which I hadn't seen before. Not sure if this is actually new or not, or if I just haven't been paying attention.

It's fallen out of favor at least in academic circles.

 

[Lone Wolf]

Third-person ungendered pronouns. Ze or hu, hir, zir (her/him).

 

[Winner]

Anti-social behaviour as a synonym for crime.
I would say gypsy has aquired the status Owen has spoken about.

Oh oh oh, I want to hear more about how the term "gypsy" is perceived in contemporary British English

In Czech, this term is increasingly seen as politically incorrect*; the preferred variant is now "Roma". I've noticed that BBC and some other English-language media are also transitioning toward the use of "Roma", sometimes with "gypsies" in brackets so that their audience knows who that is.

Is there perhaps a dichotomy, so that you call the natively British members of this minority "gypsies", whereas the immigrants are "Roma"?

(* - In fact, just like with the N-word, Roma people tend to use it when talking among themselves. It's only offensive if non-Roma use it for them.)

 

[Mise]

That dichotomy mostly holds, but that's also to distinguish them from Irish travellers (who are also colloquially referred to as "gypsies"). EDIT: The English word "gypsy" pretty much just describes a nomadic group of travellers, irrespective of their ethnicity or origin. Specific terms like Roma or Irish travellers in place of gypsy is preferred because (a) the distinction is sometimes important, and (b) gypsy is widely used pejoratively.

 

[Borachio]

I've not heard gypsy (vulgarized to gypo) used in a long time. I think, if they're culturally aware, they'll refer to themselves as Roma. And any outsider anxious not to offend their sensibilities would do the same.

More frequently, though, those who live in caravans and travel about a lot looking for scrap metal (and tarmac laying opportunities etc) are of Irish extraction and referred to as travellers. But they do get lumped in with gypsies, too. Still, I don't know. I'll prove myself wrong now:


Link to video.

I think "true" Roma are exceedingly rare in the UK.

 

[Quackers]

I think it is on the slide to "oh this may be offensive" which puts off people who want to be all sensitive. As always there are other effects, for instance channel 4 did a few documentaries about the gypsies in Britain: My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding with a few others about their worklives and education. The people on the left grumbled and some marketing was banned but I think in aggregate the word is still acceptable and commonly used but moving toward "insensitivity".

..and yeah we have Irish travellers who don't have anything to do with mainland Roma but we kinda ignore that and lump'em into the same group
Our "gypsies" are mostly hated, especially if you're a landowner anywhere they will literally park up for a few days (often cutting through your fence or removing your gate) and they will not move creating a great big mess. You willl probably find loads of your stuff gets nicked too. They don't care about anybody outside the community; so stealing off anybody isn't considered doing wrong. Also, if you can watch that Big Fat Gypsy Wedding documentary, do it, there is some very, very weird stuff when the young men and woman "pair up" its medieval style.

 

[Antilogic]

An interesting one right now is the use of the word "Jew". It kind of occupies a murky grey area in US parlance right now. It's an ok word to use but it makes many uncomfortable or squeamish. You can see people kind of grimace when you use it. Generally Jewish or Jewish Person is considered more acceptable.

You definitely shouldn't drop a j-bomb as a verb or an adjective, but that's probably never politically correct no matter the ethno/religious/racial/sexual subgroup involved.

Third-person ungendered pronouns. Ze or hu, hir, zir (her/him).

I have seen some use of "vertically-challenged" for everyone from persons with dwarfism/little people (I think the second is the preferred term nowadays, dwarf just has too much fantasy connotation) to petite girls. Not sure if serious, depends on the person using it.

 

[Mise]

You definitely shouldn't drop a j-bomb as a verb or an adjective, but that's probably never politically correct no matter the ethno/religious/racial/sexual subgroup involved.

I think the PC verb is "Britta'd".

 

[Domen]

An interesting one right now is the use of the word "Jew". It kind of occupies a murky grey area in US parlance right now. It's an ok word to use but it makes many uncomfortable or squeamish. You can see people kind of grimace when you use it. Generally Jewish or Jewish Person is considered more acceptable.

What about Slav and Slavic or Slavonic?

 

[Leoreth]

German police lingo for "Sinti and Roma" is "mobile ethnic minority".

 

[Ajidica]

Undocumented Immigrant is a term I've seen replaced illegal immigrant, or the particularly abominable "illegal alien".

On the subject of PC terms, I will never forgive my 2nd grade teacher for forcing us to write out "African-American" on our essays on MLK rather than 'black. (She also made us write out in full 'The Revered Doctor Martin Luther King Junior'.) Also, never use 'Afro-American'. As it was explained to me, "Afro is a hairstyle, Africa is a place".

 

[sophie]

What about Slav and Slavic or Slavonic?

I really haven't found any sort of connotation in these terms. They certainly aren't dirty words in common American parlance. To be frank it's not a word I hear very often except when I hear college students who think very highly of themselves make incorrect generalizations about language, ethnicity, and "race".

For me they have a bit of a negative connotation (or at least implication) but that's mainly a product of being around here for 4 years.

 

[_random_]

Slavonic makes me think of antiquated liturgical language, whereas Slavic sounds more modern, but that could just be me.

Third-person ungendered pronouns. Ze or hu, hir, zir (her/him).

I've never understood why people who don't feel comfortable in binary gender roles can't just stick with the singular "they." It's already a pretty widespread part of colloquial English, which puts it streets ahead of weird constructs.