If stigma is the problem, using different words may not help
New terms can take on the pejorative undertones of the ones they replace
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (ap) style book’s Twitter feed is not often a source of hilarity. But the wire service recently tweeted: “We recommend avoiding general and often dehumanising ‘the’ labels such as the poor, the mentally ill, the French, the disabled, the college-educated.” After the tweet went viral, the AP deleted it and apologised for dehumanising “the French”.
This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition under the headline “By any other name”
Culture February 18th 2023
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