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Is there a website that can tell you the new names to I guess "classify" people? Like the R word, or the N word or skin color or nationaility? For ex. Is African American still acceptable and so forth (lemmy.world)
submitted 2 months ago by to c/nostupidquestions@lemmy.world
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I got my shit handed to me because I said someone is mentally challenged. But apparently where I work that is considered hate speech. Is there a place where I can read the new terms? Like do we call all people from South America something or is it like Spanish American or Mexican American and so forth?

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[–] 16 points 2 months ago (13 children)

I'd use

Black instead of African American

Native instead of Indian

Indian for someone from the country of India

[Nothing] for someone with a mental disability unless it was required in the context of the conversation. And then I'd hopefully know what the specific condition is (ie downs syndrome or fetal alcohol syndrome)

Not an exhaustive list. But a start.

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  • [–] 3 points 2 months ago (4 children)

    I met a guy with Indian parents, but he was born and lived in the USA. I asked if that meant he was an American Indian. Nobody would answer me.

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  • [–] 5 points 2 months ago (2 children)

    I've heard a way to disambiguate "Indian" is to ask "dot or feather?" which is, alas, at least mildly racist. But I remember reading about it a few years ago because someone of - wait for it¹ - native and Indian heritage who worked at a casino on a reservation as tech support - was asked this question and got to answer "BOTH!" (and we were all amused at their job and its location) lol

    It sounds made up, and who knows, but at the time I remember the discussion seemed to support that they weren't lying. :shrug:

    ¹ but I won't make you wait long. In fact, if you had skipped this footnote, you'd already know!

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  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago* (1 child)

    in swedish it's "indian" for native north american, and "indier" for someone from india.
    I feel like one could come up with a similar distinction in english but the best i can come up with is "indie" which is unfortunately already taken and slightly sounds like a slur when used for an ethnic group.

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  • [–] 0 points 2 months ago (6 children)

    I think its better to just bypass all of that unless you actually know where they are from and just say, dark skinned fellow. Light skinned woman. There is nothing wrong with using a descriptor.

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  • [–] 8 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (4 children)

    Given the history of racism and colorism in the US, reducing a person of color to just their skin color can sometimes cause upset. Using a non-skin-tone related descriptor is generally safer, if possible.

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  • [–] 3 points 2 months ago (3 children)

    Sure I get that. I'm thinking just in a situation where I am describing a stranger. Like "hey front desk person, a dark skinned man with a blue hat dropped his keys but I didnt see what room he went in. I have to leave so I'm leaving them with you"

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  • [–] 7 points 2 months ago (2 children)

    I'm probably being overly semantic but perhaps saying "A person with a blue hat and dark skin" would be the least abrasive way of putting it? That said, obsessing over endless semantic refinement and searching for a flawless alternative that does not exist for fear of hypothetical offense will lead to recursive over-correction ad nauseam

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  • [–] 3 points 2 months ago

    The best way of saying it would probably be a black person with a blue hat, which is probably also what most would say. Never heard someone think that black is offensive, unless you are saying a black, which is definitely not acceptable.

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