Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site umcp-cs.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!decvax!genrad!mit-eddie!godot!harvard!seismo!umcp-cs!mangoe From: mangoe@umcp-cs.UUCP (Charley Wingate) Newsgroups: net.singles Subject: The Racial Pejorative Message-ID: <257@umcp-cs.UUCP> Date: Sat, 6-Oct-84 15:54:15 EDT Article-I.D.: umcp-cs.257 Posted: Sat Oct 6 15:54:15 1984 Date-Received: Sun, 7-Oct-84 21:25:17 EDT References: <266@whuxl.UUCP> Organization: U of Maryland, Computer Science Dept., College Park, MD Lines: 27 Maybe I'm imagining this, but I think I'm seeing the "duck the pejorative name" phenomenon again. Having southern relatives on one side, I've noticed that the acceptable term for people with a majority of African ancestors seems to change regularly. Negro, Black, Afro-American [thankfully that one was short-lived], etc. My theory is that the new name is acceptable for only as long as it takes to transfer the pejorative image from the old name to the new one. Now we are supposed to say "Asian" instead of "Oriental". Well, I won't, on three counts: (1) It's inaccurate; Indians are asian too. (2) I see little evidence that oriental is pejorative. (3) It doesn't alter the fact that a lot of oriental immigrants exhibit behavior which I don't like, regardless of who does it. (I might add that I find the the common behavior of a lot of white southerners to be offensive too; I'm an Equal Opportunity Offendee.) I have no answers, merely observations. Charley Wingate UUCP: {seismo,allegra,brl-bmd}!umcp-cs!mangoe CSNet: mangoe@umcp-cs ARPA: mangoe@maryland "My wings are like a shield of steel."