Opinion

Are we worried about being too politically correct?

The notion of “political correctness” entered the public domain in the late 1970s and ever since has left the general public unsure on which words are acceptable to use by society and which are not – especially when considering the terminology regarding race.

For instance, when referring to a person with black skin color, is it more appropriate to use “black” or “African American”? According to Rinku Sen, the publisher of national race and politics magazine “Colorlines,” African American is generally used by those who are highly educated non-blacks because they are unsure of which word to actually use. However, in 1988, the Rev. Jesse Jackson specifically asked the public to begin using the term “African American” over “black” because it better acknowledges black peoples’ ties to Africa. In other words, the more politically correct you are, the more likely it is that you will only use the term “African American.”

As far as “Asian” and terms describing people of Latin background go, Sen said “Asian” is the correct term for anyone of Asian ancestry, but when speaking specifically of an Asian American, the correct way to state it is by country of origin first, for instance “Korean American.” When referring to a person born in America but also of Mexican descent, the correct term is “Chicano,” which was popularized during the civil rights movement. But the word “Hispanic,” still used by many, is considered offensive to Mexicans born in the United States. However, Spanish descendants in the American Southwest tend to prefer the use of the word over other terms.

When it comes to the gay community, the proper words to use are also confused often. The word “dyke” used to be used in a derogatory manner but many lesbians are reclaiming the word as their own. The word “fag (faggot)” has had a shady history, especially within the last year, when Isaiah Washington, a former actor on the television series “Grey’s Anatomy,” called fellow “Grey’s” actor and gay man T.R. Knight the term in public. Washington was fired for the controversy the insult caused. As far as politically correct policies go for the term, at least as of now, the word “fag” should only be used by gay people to describe other gay people.

There are many options when considering which words are more accurate to use with which groups, but maybe the best idea to remember is the fact that the terms we call groups should not matter as much as our overall treatment of them.

If we allow ourselves to get too wrapped up in what is politically correct and what is not, we will soon be too afraid to speak for fear of offending everyone. The important concept to remember is that we shouldn’t get so caught up in what we name minority groups because, at that point, we begin to lose sight of the entire reason for political correctness in the first place – treating each other with equality.

—Includes information acquired from “A Politically Correct Lexicon” by Joel Bleifuss for the publication “In These Times” (Feb. 21, 2007).