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Title: Obama Signs Bill Banning Government Use of ‘Negro,’ ‘Oriental’
Source:
Breitbart
URL Source: http://www.breitbart.com/big-govern ... s-bill-banning-negro-oriental/
Published: May 23, 2016
Author: Jerome Hudson
Post Date: 2016-05-23 08:46:42 by cranky
Keywords: None
Views: 9173
Comments: 46
President Barack Obama signed a bill into law Friday banning the federal government from using the terms “Negro” and “Oriental,” making the official terms African-American and Asian-American. The measure, H.R.4238, was an amendment to the Local Public Works Capital Development and Investment Act of 1976 to modernize terms relating to minorities. The legislation passed unanimously in the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate earlier this year. The law also updates the terms the U.S. federal government uses to describe minorities. American Indians will now be referred to as Native Americans, while, according to the law’s language, a “Spanish speaking individual of Spanish descent” will be referred to as Hispanic. “Many Americans may not be aware that the word ‘Oriental’ is derogatory,” said Rep. Grace Meng of New York and one of the bill’s original sponsors. “But it is an insulting term that needed to be removed from the books, and I am extremely pleased that my legislation to do that is now the law of the land.” “The term ‘Oriental’ has no place in federal law and at long last this insulting and outdated term will be gone for good,” said Rep. Meng. Rep. Meng pushed through similar legislation in 2009, while working in the New York state legislature. A bill mirroring the law Obama signed Friday is being backed by Washington State Senator Pramila Jayapal. Last month, the Library of Congress began revising its official use of terms like “illegal alien” and “alien” on its subject headings after a group of college activists and the American Library Association protested the agency’s use of those phrases. “Our country is a rich tapestry of cultural backgrounds, and Americans of all backgrounds deserve to be treated with dignity and respect,” said California Republican Rep. Ed Royce, an original cosponsor of the bill. 
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#20. To: cranky (#0)
What does the bill designate using as a term for Jamaicans or native Australians (Aborigines) who look totally black? I don’t think they can be called “Africans.” One problem with the term "African-American" is that many people get so accustomed to using it to refer to any black person that they'll misapply it to all black people. Is the word 'black people' offensive in other English speaking countries? What are black people called in other countries? In the Netherlands, usually it's 'zwart' (black) or 'donker' (dark). The word 'neger' (sort of like negro) is also still fairly acceptable. A problem with "African-American" is that is sounds like a euphemism. Euphemisms usually imply that what you are talking about is of some lesser value, so you have to give it a better name, so when you say "African American" as opposed to just "black" you are implying that it's somehow bad to be black, but ok to be white.
In France, the standard term is just "Noir" - black - or "metisse" for pretty mixed-race people.
#25. To: Vicomte13 (#24)
I have often times said that it is not the "word" that's the problem ... it is the "sentiment" of the person using the word. If I were a racist, I could say "African-American" with so much disdain and contempt and with a such a horrendous scowling face that I would immediately be named the Grand Wizard of the KKK. To defeat racism, you need to change attitudes and not words. You would think that Obama and others afflicted with PCitis should know all of this ... you would think.
Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/LatestPresident Barack Obama signed a bill into law Friday banning the federal government from using the terms “Negro” and “Oriental,” making the official terms African-American and Asian-American.
#24. To: Gatlin (#20)
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