For your edification, the entire TUC guide to politically correct language. There’s all sorts of entirely unobjectionable stuff here:
However, while many women now use ‘Ms’, others still use ‘Miss’ or
‘Mrs’. If a woman’s preference is known, it is courteous to respect her
preference. If it is not known, the simplest solution is to ask.
Stuff that I didn’t know:
The term ‘West Indian’ was used in this country as an
all-encompassing phrase to describe first generation settlers from the
Caribbean. It is an historical term and although still used in some
circumstances (for example, the West Indian Cricket Team) in most
contexts it is inappropriate and may be found offensive.
Both
‘Afro-Caribbean’ and ‘African-Caribbean’ are used in official
documentation to refer to Black people. However, they may well be
offensive to people who were born in Britain. The term ‘Afro-Caribbean’
is generally now deemed to be unacceptable even though it continues to
be in fairly common usage. The term ‘African-Caribbean’ may be used,
but only when referring to specific geographical origins. Otherwise,
‘Black’ is a more appropriate term to use.
"Afro Caribbean" is now verboten? And there are parts that, at least to me, seem excessive:
People who use equipment to improve their hearing (e.g. hearing aids
or amplifiers) are known as ‘people with hearing loss’. People who lose
their hearing completely, especially in adult life, are ‘deafened’ or
‘deaf’.
People who are born with no hearing and who use
British Sign Language are ‘Deaf’ with a capital ‘D’. Deaf people are a
community in their own right. They have their own culture and most do
NOT consider themselves as disabled or as having a disability. However,
because of their communication support needs their rights are protected
under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.
No doubt this handy guide will provide fun for all the family. There are times when one can track the influence of one specific pressure group (see both disabled and deaf) on the language recommended.
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