{"id":875,"date":"2021-04-29T19:19:41","date_gmt":"2021-04-29T19:19:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-englishcomp2\/?post_type=chapter&#038;p=875"},"modified":"2022-07-25T19:31:48","modified_gmt":"2022-07-25T19:31:48","slug":"inclusive-language","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-englishcomp2\/chapter\/inclusive-language\/","title":{"raw":"Inclusive Language","rendered":"Inclusive Language"},"content":{"raw":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\r\n<h3>Learning Objectives<\/h3>\r\nRecognize the importance of using inclusive language\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2>Intersectionality<\/h2>\r\nAt the root of writing with awareness about identity is an understanding of\u00a0<em>intersectionality<\/em>.\u00a0\u201cIntersectionality\u201d is a relatively new word to describe a very old concept. The term was coined in 1989 by Black feminist lawyer Kimberl\u00e9 Crenshaw to describe how the discrimination faced by Black women is simultaneously based on race and gender. In a seminar at the 2001 World Conference Against Racism, Crenshaw used the metaphor of a traffic intersection to describe how women of color must simultaneously navigate multiple forms of oppression:\r\n<blockquote>Intersectionality is what occurs when a woman from a minority group .\u00a0.\u00a0. tries to navigate the main crossing in the city..\u00a0.\u00a0. The main highway is Racism Road. One cross street can be Colonialism, [the other] Patriarchy Street.\u201d[footnote]Crenshaw, K., according to a report of the 2001 World Conference against Racism as cited in Yuval-Davis 196.[\/footnote]<\/blockquote>\r\nRather than cross each road in isolation of the others, the woman of color must navigate them all at the same time.\r\n\r\nWhile the term intersectionality was initially coined to describe the struggles of Black women in the feminist movement, it can be used even more broadly to understand how systems of oppression are interconnected, and how individuals and groups face discrimination based on multiple identities. When intersectionality is overlaid with power imbalances, those with multiple marginalized identities\u2014such as being Black and female in the U.S., or disabled, Queer and poor\u2014experience oppression and discrimination against several aspects of their identity.\r\n\r\nAs you write, consider the ways that intersectionality applies to your topic. For example, if you are writing about salaries in the United States, explore how they intersect with gender (e.g. men make more money than women, gender non-conforming, and trans people), race (e.g. white women make more money than women of color), and ability (people with mental and physical illnesses have a harder time acquiring and keeping jobs than their able-bodied counterparts). At the same time, be careful about highlighting an aspect of someone\u2019s identity if it may not actually be relevant.\r\n<h2>Language Toward Gender Inclusivity<\/h2>\r\nSexism refers to discrimination against individuals based on sex and has historically described discrimination specifically against women. The perceived social and biological inferiority of women has existed for centuries in the West (and also throughout the globe), and although women in the last century have made advances\u2014the right to own property and vote, for example\u2014sexism prevails, especially against women of color and trans women. Women still, on average, earn lower wages than men; women are much more likely than men to be raped or stalked; and women are still underrepresented in positions of power and leadership. Importantly, women of color, at the intersection of race and gender, face each of these challenges to a greater extent than White women. Examples of such intersectional injustices are how, on average, White and Asian American women make about 20% less than White men, while Black and Latina women make about 30 and 40% less than White men respectively. Part of writing with awareness and respect means that you as an author are attentive to the context of historical and current discrimination that women face and cognizant of how the choices you make in writing engage with that context.\r\n\r\nIn English, many words and phrases have historically contained inherent assumptions about sex and gender. When writing, one should avoid using gendered terms. For instance:\r\n<div align=\"left\">\r\n<table>\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>instead of:<\/td>\r\n<td>use:<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>businessman<\/td>\r\n<td>businessperson, executive<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>cleaning woman<\/td>\r\n<td>cleaner<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>congressman<\/td>\r\n<td>congressperson<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>mailman<\/td>\r\n<td>letter carrier<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>Workman\u2019s Compensation<\/td>\r\n<td>Workers\u2019 Compensation<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>manmade<\/td>\r\n<td>artificial, synthetic<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>manpower<\/td>\r\n<td>workers, workforce, staff<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>mankind<\/td>\r\n<td>humankind, humanity<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>middleman<\/td>\r\n<td>intermediary, go-between<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n<\/div>\r\nThe exception, of course, is if you are specifically calling attention to one gender or another.\r\n\r\nPronouns are also an important consideration in using inclusive language.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>If a writer fails to use inclusive pronouns, he risks excluding many of his readers.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nThink about that previous sentence. It\u2019s grammatically correct, in that English has traditionally used the masculine pronoun as a generic, third-person singular pronoun. But in reading it, can you imagine this speaker as anything but a male? Instead, we could try:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>If a writer fails to use inclusive pronouns, he or she risks excluding many of his or her readers.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nThis version is a bit more inclusive, but it leaves out those who don\u2019t identify as male or female (and it sounds clunky). Grammatically, the best solution may be to use the plural here:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>If writers fail to use inclusive pronouns, they risk excluding many of their readers.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nWith the trend toward more gender-inclusive language, you are probably more likely to hear the plural pronoun\u00a0<em>they<\/em>\u00a0used as a singular pronoun\u2014especially in everyday spoken English. For example:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>If a writer fails to use inclusive pronouns, they risk excluding many of their readers.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nWhile the singular\u00a0<em>they<\/em>\u00a0offers the advantage of being gender-neutral\u2014and it may soon become the accepted norm, as it was officially accepted by the APA in 2019\u2014for now there are mixed opinions about it, and you may want to avoid it in your academic writing. When in doubt, consult your instructor\u2019s preferred style guide.\r\n\r\nIn the case of individuals who use\u00a0<em>they<\/em>\u00a0as a singular pronoun to refer to themselves, it is grammatically correct to use\u00a0<em>they<\/em>\u00a0as a singular pronoun (per the Chicago Manual of Style, one of the predominant authorities on grammar and style). (The University of Chicago Press. \u201cGrammar &amp; Usage: Singular \u2018they.'\u201d\u00a0<em>Chicago Manual of Style<\/em>, 2017, p. 241.)\r\n<div class=\"textbox examples\">\r\n<h3>Strategies for Writing with Gender Inclusivity in Mind<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Mix up the order.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>If you refer frequently to men and women, husbands and wives, sons and daughters, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, etc., mix up the order to avoid putting one gender continually ahead of the other. In fact, unless gender is a central facet of your discussion, it's better to avoid perpetuating gender binaries by using alternatives such as \u201cdistinguished guests,\u201d \u201cpeople,\u201d \u201chuman beings,\u201d \u201cchildren,\u201d \u201cadults,\u201d \u201cindividuals,\u201d and \u201ccouples.\u201d<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Refer to women in the same way you would men.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>If you wouldn't say \u201cMr. Faulkner\u201d when writing about Faulkner, then don't say \u201cMs. Austen\u201d when writing about Jane Austen. Similarly, if a woman holds a title like \u201cDr.,\u201d then refer to her as Dr. in the same way you would refer to a male M.D. or Ph.D.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Avoid sexist descriptions and terminology.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Consider the historical usage of words.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Numerous English words are rooted in sexist ideas about how women should act and live. Terms like \u201cbarren,\u201d \u201cspinster,\u201d \u201cfeisty,\u201d \u201ccoy,\u201d \u201cshrill,\u201d \u201cemotional,\u201d \u201chysterical,\u201d \u201cfrumpy,\u201d \u201cexotic,\u201d \u201cditzy,\u201d and \u201ccatty\u201d can all convey implicit judgments about women.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Be conscious of gender stereotypes.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Pay attention to where you're using certain pronouns. Saying, \u201cA lawyer should listen to his client\u201d or \u201cA nurse left her clipboard in the breakroom\u201d are also forms of sexist language because they perpetuate gender stereotypes (i.e., the assumption that lawyers are always men and nurses are always women).<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Be conscious of heteronormativity.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Women don't always marry men. People don't always marry. To this effect, statements such as \u201cHe needs a girlfriend\u201d or \u201cShe should get married\u201d perpetuate heteronormative expectations.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2>Language Toward\u00a0<abbr class=\"initialism\">LGBTQ+<\/abbr>\u00a0Inclusivity<\/h2>\r\n<abbr class=\"initialism\">LGBTQ+<\/abbr>\u00a0spans a wide and complicated range of sexual orientations, gender identities, and diverse bodies. The acronym itself stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer\/Questioning and others. Even this list does not cover the full range of identities represented by the acronym. The language of the\u00a0<abbr class=\"initialism\">LGBTQ+<\/abbr>\u00a0community is ever-evolving, so it may not always be clear to you which term to use.\r\n<div class=\"textbox exercises\">\r\n<h3>Terms<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li><strong>Sex\u00a0<\/strong>is the classification of people (usually as infants) as male, female, or intersex based on biological, chromosomal, and anatomical features.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Gender identity\u00a0<\/strong>is the internal, personal sense that people have of their own gender, and<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Gender expression\u00a0<\/strong>encompasses the ways in which individuals choose to express their gender based on sociocultural ideas of masculinity and femininity.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Cisgender\u00a0<\/strong>refers to individuals whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Gender non-conforming\u00a0<\/strong>refers to individuals whose gender does not neatly fit into the dominant notions of gender within their particular cultural context.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Genderqueer\u00a0<\/strong>refers to people whose gender is outside of the male\/female binary and who therefore challenge the idea that gender is a static binary.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Intersex\u00a0<\/strong>refers to individuals who were born with components of both \u201cmale\u201d and \u201cfemale\u201d sexual anatomy or chromosomes.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Transgender\u00a0<\/strong>is an adjective and umbrella term that describes individuals whose gender identity is different from the sex they were assigned at birth. Many people take hormones and some undergo surgery, but neither of these medical treatments is requisite for a transgender identity.\r\nIt is inappropriate to use transgender as a noun (e.g., a transgender) or to use the term transgendered.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Transsexual\u00a0<\/strong>is an older term that is not an umbrella term and is preferred mostly by individuals who have changed (or seek to change) their bodies through medical procedures. It is best not to use this term unless someone has indicated it as their preference.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Trans or trans*\u00a0<\/strong>are shortened versions of \u201ctransgender\u201d and the spectrum of identities that accompany that term. The asterisk in trans* represents the multitude of identities that \u201ctrans\u201d encompasses. Be careful when using this term around audiences that may not understand exactly what it means.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Transgender woman and transgender man\u00a0<\/strong>are ways some transgender individuals choose to identify themselves. MTF\u00a0stands for male-to-female, and\u00a0FTM\u00a0stands for female-to-male. Only use these terms if the individual has indicated their preference for them, as some people choose to identify as man or woman without any modifier.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Transition\u00a0<\/strong>refers to the period of time in someone's life during which they make an inward and outward transition to the gender with which they identify. This period and what occurs within it differ from person to person. Do not use the term \u201csex change,\u201d as it obscures the difference between sex and gender and does not represent all transition experiences. \u201cSex reassignment surgery\u201d (SRS) and \u201cgender-affirming surgery\u201d are two (among many more) acceptable alternative terms.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Pronouns\u00a0<\/strong>can be used to refer to a specific person when it is unwieldy to keep repeating that person\u2019s name. Since pronouns are gendered in English, pronouns can also communicate information about the person's gender identity. When referring to a person, use the person\u2019s chosen pronouns.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2>Language Toward Neurological and Physical Inclusivity<\/h2>\r\nWhat is considered an illness or disability has changed throughout history and also varies between cultural contexts. Disability has also been stigmatized and wielded as a form of social control; consider <em>drapetomania<\/em>, an \"illness\" that white psychologists hypothesized as the cause for Black slaves to want to run away from enslavement in the 19th century, and <em>hysteria<\/em>, which was used as a form of social control for women. Today, both of these illnesses are considered pseudoscience and understood to be part of a long history of scientific racism, and sexism respectively.\r\n\r\nDespite the progress that has been made, disabilities and illnesses continue to be stigmatized, and the way we write about them has the power to break down or perpetuate stereotypes that directly affect the lives of people with these conditions. Additionally, many terms carry that we, as writers, aren\u2019t always aware of; for instance, while in the early twentieth century people classified as \u201cidiots\u201d were subject to forced sterilization, we now use the word casually. By learning the history behind the words we use and choosing to write respectfully about people with mental and physical disabilities we help create a culture that rejects ableism. One way of thinking about disability is that any time we spend able-bodied is really time spent \u201ctemporarily able-bodied\u201d since we will all experience disability in our lifetimes.\r\n\r\nMany advocates and activists, especially in the disabilities-rights community, have recommended using People-First Language to avoid defining someone according to a characteristic, state, or disability. For instance, one might refer to a \u201cperson with mental illness\u201d rather than a \u201cmentally-ill person\u201d or \u201cpeople experiencing homelessness\u201d rather than \u201cthe homeless.\u201d Other advocates, however, have rejected PFL as awkward or apologetic (\u201cPeople-First Language\u201d). Like many linguistic interventions, PFL is part of an ongoing conversation about representation, rather than a prescription. When in doubt, it\u2019s usually best to take your cue from the most recent and reputable sources you have available.\r\n<div class=\"textbox examples\">\r\n<h3>Strategies for Writing with Neurological and Physical Inclusivity in Mind<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Only refer to disabilities if they are relevant to what you're writing.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>For example, referencing a wheelchair in a sentence like \u201cA man in a wheelchair let me borrow his pen\u201d is unnecessary and ableist. However, relevantly referencing disabilities can be important: \u201cMy friend, who uses a wheelchair, was late to class because of limited accessibility on campus.\u201d (This rule is true for other minoritized identities as well.)<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>When writing about people with disabilities, it can be useful to put the person first.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>For example, by saying \u201ca person with disabilities\u201d rather than \u201ca disabled person,\u201d and \u201cthey are a person with schizophrenia\u201d or \u201cthey have a diagnosis of schizophrenia\u201d not \u201cthey are a schizophrenic.\u201d While this is a good rule-of-thumb, it is not always appropriate (see above).<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Use \u201cdisabled\u201d as an adjective, not as a noun.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Just as you wouldn't refer to transgender people as \u201ctransgenders,\u201d so, too, would you not refer to people with disabilities as \"the disabled.\"<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Know that a disability is a condition, whereas a handicap is a constraint.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Someone can have a disability, such as congenital blindness, but someone cannot \"have\" a handicap\u2014rather, their environment (lack of Braille on signs, for example) handicaps them.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Recognize that cultural identity can be connected with disability, but that they are not the same thing.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>For instance, one can be deaf (that is, have the physical condition of not being able to hear), and one can be part of the Deaf community (people who communicate in sign and who identify culturally as Deaf\u2014including deaf people but also people who are close to deaf people, such as hearing children of deaf parents). Being deaf doesn't necessarily mean being Deaf, and vice versa.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Do not use terms like \u201cnormal\u201d or \u201chealthy\u201d when referring to people without disabilities.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Some people also object to the phrase \u201cable-bodied.\u201d Instead, use the term \u201cpeople without disabilities.\u201d<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Do not write about people with disabilities (or other marginalized people) in terms of overly heroic or tragic narratives, as this reinforces existing stereotypes and emphasizes the \u201cotherness\u201d of someone with a disability.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Use this same set of guidelines regardless of whether the disability in question is visible or invisible.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2>Language Toward Racial and Ethnic Inclusivity<\/h2>\r\nBoth ethnicity and race can make people targets of stereotyping, prejudice, and violence, and at the same time provide a sense of belonging or pride for people. Like most other identities, the categories of race and ethnicity have differed between places and across time. For example, in the United States, court cases such as\u00a0<em>Dow v. United States<\/em> (1915)\u2014which determined that Syrian people were not \u201cwhite\u201d\u2014have been part of sculpting the racial categories we are familiar with today. Racial and ethnic categories continue to drastically impact all of our lives, and so, while complicated, it is important to be aware of the histories behind the words we use and the ways we write about race and ethnicity in order to not perpetuate racist ideologies.\r\n\r\nRacial prejudice and racism, though related, are distinctly different. Racial prejudice is discrimination against someone because of their race. Racism is a sociocultural phenomenon that takes into account histories of racial inequality and describes a system that benefits people in a dominant racial group (whether or not they want to benefit) through the oppression of other racial groups. Because racism is a result of dependent on past and present systemic racial inequality, \u201creverse racism\u201d does not exist. For example, in the United States there has never been a set of laws and political and economic institutions that enforce the dominance of people of color over White people as there have been in support of White supremacy. Therefore, while a person of color may hold racial prejudice towards a White person, there is no structural support for their prejudice that enables them to exert \u201creverse racism.\u201d\r\n\r\nRacism has manifested in many different ways. Some forms are overt, such as \u201cWhites Only\u201d signs during the Jim Crow era; other racist histories are embedded in language in less obvious ways. For example, the term \u201cCaucasian\u201d as a synonym for White has its origins in pseudo\u2013scientific theories about the racial divisions. Although white-skinned people might feel uncomfortable with a racial descriptor such as White, using that term is one way to use equivalent terms; there is ethnocentric bias in assuming whiteness as a standard and using terms like Black, Asian, and Latino to designate people as different from that standard.\r\n<p id=\"p-939\">When in doubt, do some research and do not be afraid to engage in conversations about appropriate usage. When referring to a particular person or group, use the term that they prefer (though when directly asking people, be mindful of the burden you may be placing on them to educate you). You may not get unanimous feedback on what the best terminology is; lots of terminology is in flux, and what is respectful or correct is contested. For example, there remains no consensus about the proper capitalization of \u201cBlack,\u201d especially in relation to \u201cWhite.\u201d Additionally, the distinction between \u201cNative American\u201d and \u201cAmerican Indian\u201d is also contested. You can ask your professors for their preferences and, as always, research the implications of each usage; it is always best to be intentional and open-minded.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div class=\"textbox examples\">\r\n<h3>Strategies for Writing with Racial and Ethnic Inclusivity in Mind<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Beware of oversimplifying Latino\/a\/x identity.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Latino\/a (in other stylings, Latin@, Latinx, which have slightly different meanings) refers to any person of Latin American descent living in America. Mexican Americans may also identify as Chicano\/a\/x (or Xicano\/a\/x). The terms Chicano\/a come from the 1960's Mexican American Civil Rights Movement and represent a more political stance on identity than Latino\/a (as they are examples of words that were reappropriated by the people who they originally referred to in a derogatory way). Hispanic describes any person of Spanish-speaking heritage. While some Latinos find the term \u201cHispanic\u201d offensive because it reinforces the history of Spanish colonialism, others (particularly Latinos in the American Southwest) embrace and use the identifier. Furthermore, \u201cLatino\/a\/x\u201d also references\/privileges European descent in its etymology, and \u201cChicano\/a\/x\u201d, which nods to a Mesoamerican indigenous nation, is seen by some to obscure the complicated nature of modern Mexican and Mexican American identity (which has come to include Afro-Mexicans, Mexicans of Chinese descent, and, increasingly, Central Americans). The meanings of these terms are debated and, as a result, not fixed. It is always best to follow how people identify themselves.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>As you write with accuracy and specificity, be aware of the difference in scope between the terms Black and African American.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>\u201cBlack\u201d is typically a racial term describing people with African ancestry living anywhere in the world. \u201cAfrican American\u201d generally refers to Black descendants of enslaved people in the U.S. who likewise live in the U.S.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Stay informed about respectful language use, which changes over time.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>For instance, in the contemporary United States, using the word \u201cBlack\u201d as an adjective (as with \u201cBlack people\u201d) is widely accepted as inoffensive (though using it as a noun, as in \u201cBlacks,\u201d is often offensive). In contrast, the term \u201ccolored\u201d was once widely used, but it is now inappropriate.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Think critically about the assumptions and invisibilities reflected in the choices you make when writing about race and ethnicity.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>People often identify with more than one group or category, and so writers may use terms like multi-racial or multi-ethnic. One problem with these terms is that they render invisible specific racial and cultural identities, such as being Black and Asian; White and Puerto Rican; or Native American, Black, and Latina.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>When using the term \u201cpeople of color\u201d make sure you are truly talking about\u00a0<em>all<\/em>\u00a0individuals who are not considered White.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>For example, if you are actually referring just to Native American people, say so.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Consider carefully the term \u201cminority.\u201d.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Often, \u201cminoritized\u201d or \u201cmarginalized\u201d is a more accurate descriptor because\u2014in many cases\u2014the so-called minority is not, in fact, quantitatively in the minority, even though the people being described may be marginalized or treated as inferior.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2>Language Toward Socioeconomic Inclusivity<\/h2>\r\nWriting about social class can be difficult because information about non-technical, correct, and respectful language can be hard to come by. While the last few years have given rise to more conversations around race, gender, and sexuality, discussions of socioeconomic differences have been comparatively lacking. Socioeconomic status is an important topic in many social sciences and relates to a variety of identities people may hold such as being a first-generation college student, being homeless, or being rich or poor.\r\n\r\nWriting about socioeconomic status or class without acknowledging inequalities in opportunities does injustice to the people that those inequalities affect. Avoiding classist language is an important step toward changing the classist ideologies that underlie and reproduce the structural inequalities that lead to economic disparity.\r\n<div class=\"textbox examples\">\r\n<h3>\u00a0Strategies for Writing with Socioeconomic Inclusivity in Mind<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Avoid classist terms.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Choose not to use words like ghetto, white-trash, classy, thug, inner-city, and terms like \u201chigh class\u201d and \u201clow class\u201d because they convey biased judgments about people within certain socioeconomic settings.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"textbox exercises\">\r\n<h3>Terms<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li><strong>Classism\u00a0<\/strong>is the belief that people with high socioeconomic status are culturally superior to those with lower socioeconomic status.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Socioeconomic status\u00a0<\/strong>refers to a person's social and economic standing in relation to other individuals in the same society. It is often measured by education, occupation, and income.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2>Language Toward Religious Inclusivity<\/h2>\r\nThe majority of people in the world identify with a religion, and most religions span huge swaths of the globe and encompass very diverse groups of people. Additionally, religions are often interpreted and practiced very differently depending on the cultural context, and people may identify with a religion religiously, culturally and\/or ethnically. All of these factors make it complicated to write about religion inclusively and without over-generalization.\r\n<p id=\"p-979\">Despite this complexity, it is important to take the time to learn about the nuances of religion in order to avoid perpetuating stereotypes and spreading misinformation that contributes to religious discrimination or persecution. Both religious discrimination (the treatment of a person or group differently because of their religion) and religious persecution (the systematic mistreatment or discrimination of an individual or group because of their religion) have long and persisting histories. From the forced conversion of Native Americans to Christianity by European Americans in the late 19th century, to the murder of millions of Jewish people during the Holocaust, to modern U.S. immigration policies that disproportionately affect Muslim people, the histories of systematic religious oppression are extensive.\u00a0 Although the subject of religion is complex, it's is vital to take the steps to learn about the nuances of religion before writing about it.<\/p>\r\nA common misconception about religious communities is that there is a single experience shared by everyone in the community, and that there is agreement about how the religion should be practiced or interpreted. In reality, there is a lot of disagreement within most faith communities about religious beliefs, practices, interpretations, and even about who belongs to the community.\u00a0 Individuals within a religious community have experiences, beliefs, and practices as diverse as the individuals themselves. Individuals' and groups' religious practices are informed by their cultural context as well as their other identities.\u00a0For instance, a Sunni Muslim, upper-middle class, merchant family from Damascus, Syria will likely have very different perspectives and practices than a Muslim farmer from Sinai, Egypt, despite their shared Muslim identity. For this reason, it is important not to oversimplify the experiences, beliefs and practices of individuals and religious communities. When writing about a religion, take care to be precise about what specific sects you are referencing, and don\u2019t generalize one group or individual\u2019s experience as representative of others just because they fall under the same umbrella religious term.\r\n\r\nAnother intricacy about religious identity is that people don\u2019t always identify with a religion religiously; they may also identify with it culturally and\/or ethnically. For example, someone who is raised Catholic but identifies as atheist may identify as culturally Catholic. While they may not share the same religious beliefs and practices as the Catholic community they were raised in, their worldview was nevertheless shaped by growing up in a Catholic community.\r\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\r\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/9b508c6a-e17e-4899-96a2-5c107caf7bd9\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n[reveal-answer q=\"281307\"]Works Cited[\/reveal-answer]\r\n[hidden-answer a=\"281307\"]\r\n<p class=\"hanging-indent\">\u201cPeople-First Language.\u201d\u00a0<i>Wikipedia<\/i>, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Sept. 2020, en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/People-first_language.<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"hanging-indent\">Yuval-Davis, Nira. \"Intersectionality and feminist politics.\"\u00a0<i>European journal of women's studies<\/i>\u00a013.3 (2006): 193-209.<\/p>\r\n[\/hidden-answer]","rendered":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\n<h3>Learning Objectives<\/h3>\n<p>Recognize the importance of using inclusive language<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Intersectionality<\/h2>\n<p>At the root of writing with awareness about identity is an understanding of\u00a0<em>intersectionality<\/em>.\u00a0\u201cIntersectionality\u201d is a relatively new word to describe a very old concept. The term was coined in 1989 by Black feminist lawyer Kimberl\u00e9 Crenshaw to describe how the discrimination faced by Black women is simultaneously based on race and gender. In a seminar at the 2001 World Conference Against Racism, Crenshaw used the metaphor of a traffic intersection to describe how women of color must simultaneously navigate multiple forms of oppression:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Intersectionality is what occurs when a woman from a minority group .\u00a0.\u00a0. tries to navigate the main crossing in the city..\u00a0.\u00a0. The main highway is Racism Road. One cross street can be Colonialism, [the other] Patriarchy Street.\u201d<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Crenshaw, K., according to a report of the 2001 World Conference against Racism as cited in Yuval-Davis 196.\" id=\"return-footnote-875-1\" href=\"#footnote-875-1\" aria-label=\"Footnote 1\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[1]<\/sup><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Rather than cross each road in isolation of the others, the woman of color must navigate them all at the same time.<\/p>\n<p>While the term intersectionality was initially coined to describe the struggles of Black women in the feminist movement, it can be used even more broadly to understand how systems of oppression are interconnected, and how individuals and groups face discrimination based on multiple identities. When intersectionality is overlaid with power imbalances, those with multiple marginalized identities\u2014such as being Black and female in the U.S., or disabled, Queer and poor\u2014experience oppression and discrimination against several aspects of their identity.<\/p>\n<p>As you write, consider the ways that intersectionality applies to your topic. For example, if you are writing about salaries in the United States, explore how they intersect with gender (e.g. men make more money than women, gender non-conforming, and trans people), race (e.g. white women make more money than women of color), and ability (people with mental and physical illnesses have a harder time acquiring and keeping jobs than their able-bodied counterparts). At the same time, be careful about highlighting an aspect of someone\u2019s identity if it may not actually be relevant.<\/p>\n<h2>Language Toward Gender Inclusivity<\/h2>\n<p>Sexism refers to discrimination against individuals based on sex and has historically described discrimination specifically against women. The perceived social and biological inferiority of women has existed for centuries in the West (and also throughout the globe), and although women in the last century have made advances\u2014the right to own property and vote, for example\u2014sexism prevails, especially against women of color and trans women. Women still, on average, earn lower wages than men; women are much more likely than men to be raped or stalked; and women are still underrepresented in positions of power and leadership. Importantly, women of color, at the intersection of race and gender, face each of these challenges to a greater extent than White women. Examples of such intersectional injustices are how, on average, White and Asian American women make about 20% less than White men, while Black and Latina women make about 30 and 40% less than White men respectively. Part of writing with awareness and respect means that you as an author are attentive to the context of historical and current discrimination that women face and cognizant of how the choices you make in writing engage with that context.<\/p>\n<p>In English, many words and phrases have historically contained inherent assumptions about sex and gender. When writing, one should avoid using gendered terms. For instance:<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: left;\">\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>instead of:<\/td>\n<td>use:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>businessman<\/td>\n<td>businessperson, executive<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>cleaning woman<\/td>\n<td>cleaner<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>congressman<\/td>\n<td>congressperson<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>mailman<\/td>\n<td>letter carrier<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Workman\u2019s Compensation<\/td>\n<td>Workers\u2019 Compensation<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>manmade<\/td>\n<td>artificial, synthetic<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>manpower<\/td>\n<td>workers, workforce, staff<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>mankind<\/td>\n<td>humankind, humanity<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>middleman<\/td>\n<td>intermediary, go-between<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<p>The exception, of course, is if you are specifically calling attention to one gender or another.<\/p>\n<p>Pronouns are also an important consideration in using inclusive language.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If a writer fails to use inclusive pronouns, he risks excluding many of his readers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Think about that previous sentence. It\u2019s grammatically correct, in that English has traditionally used the masculine pronoun as a generic, third-person singular pronoun. But in reading it, can you imagine this speaker as anything but a male? Instead, we could try:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If a writer fails to use inclusive pronouns, he or she risks excluding many of his or her readers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This version is a bit more inclusive, but it leaves out those who don\u2019t identify as male or female (and it sounds clunky). Grammatically, the best solution may be to use the plural here:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If writers fail to use inclusive pronouns, they risk excluding many of their readers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>With the trend toward more gender-inclusive language, you are probably more likely to hear the plural pronoun\u00a0<em>they<\/em>\u00a0used as a singular pronoun\u2014especially in everyday spoken English. For example:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If a writer fails to use inclusive pronouns, they risk excluding many of their readers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>While the singular\u00a0<em>they<\/em>\u00a0offers the advantage of being gender-neutral\u2014and it may soon become the accepted norm, as it was officially accepted by the APA in 2019\u2014for now there are mixed opinions about it, and you may want to avoid it in your academic writing. When in doubt, consult your instructor\u2019s preferred style guide.<\/p>\n<p>In the case of individuals who use\u00a0<em>they<\/em>\u00a0as a singular pronoun to refer to themselves, it is grammatically correct to use\u00a0<em>they<\/em>\u00a0as a singular pronoun (per the Chicago Manual of Style, one of the predominant authorities on grammar and style). (The University of Chicago Press. \u201cGrammar &amp; Usage: Singular \u2018they.&#8217;\u201d\u00a0<em>Chicago Manual of Style<\/em>, 2017, p. 241.)<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox examples\">\n<h3>Strategies for Writing with Gender Inclusivity in Mind<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Mix up the order.\n<ul>\n<li>If you refer frequently to men and women, husbands and wives, sons and daughters, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, etc., mix up the order to avoid putting one gender continually ahead of the other. In fact, unless gender is a central facet of your discussion, it&#8217;s better to avoid perpetuating gender binaries by using alternatives such as \u201cdistinguished guests,\u201d \u201cpeople,\u201d \u201chuman beings,\u201d \u201cchildren,\u201d \u201cadults,\u201d \u201cindividuals,\u201d and \u201ccouples.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Refer to women in the same way you would men.\n<ul>\n<li>If you wouldn&#8217;t say \u201cMr. Faulkner\u201d when writing about Faulkner, then don&#8217;t say \u201cMs. Austen\u201d when writing about Jane Austen. Similarly, if a woman holds a title like \u201cDr.,\u201d then refer to her as Dr. in the same way you would refer to a male M.D. or Ph.D.<\/li>\n<li>Avoid sexist descriptions and terminology.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Consider the historical usage of words.\n<ul>\n<li>Numerous English words are rooted in sexist ideas about how women should act and live. Terms like \u201cbarren,\u201d \u201cspinster,\u201d \u201cfeisty,\u201d \u201ccoy,\u201d \u201cshrill,\u201d \u201cemotional,\u201d \u201chysterical,\u201d \u201cfrumpy,\u201d \u201cexotic,\u201d \u201cditzy,\u201d and \u201ccatty\u201d can all convey implicit judgments about women.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Be conscious of gender stereotypes.\n<ul>\n<li>Pay attention to where you&#8217;re using certain pronouns. Saying, \u201cA lawyer should listen to his client\u201d or \u201cA nurse left her clipboard in the breakroom\u201d are also forms of sexist language because they perpetuate gender stereotypes (i.e., the assumption that lawyers are always men and nurses are always women).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Be conscious of heteronormativity.\n<ul>\n<li>Women don&#8217;t always marry men. People don&#8217;t always marry. To this effect, statements such as \u201cHe needs a girlfriend\u201d or \u201cShe should get married\u201d perpetuate heteronormative expectations.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Language Toward\u00a0<abbr class=\"initialism\">LGBTQ+<\/abbr>\u00a0Inclusivity<\/h2>\n<p><abbr class=\"initialism\">LGBTQ+<\/abbr>\u00a0spans a wide and complicated range of sexual orientations, gender identities, and diverse bodies. The acronym itself stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer\/Questioning and others. Even this list does not cover the full range of identities represented by the acronym. The language of the\u00a0<abbr class=\"initialism\">LGBTQ+<\/abbr>\u00a0community is ever-evolving, so it may not always be clear to you which term to use.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox exercises\">\n<h3>Terms<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Sex\u00a0<\/strong>is the classification of people (usually as infants) as male, female, or intersex based on biological, chromosomal, and anatomical features.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Gender identity\u00a0<\/strong>is the internal, personal sense that people have of their own gender, and<\/li>\n<li><strong>Gender expression\u00a0<\/strong>encompasses the ways in which individuals choose to express their gender based on sociocultural ideas of masculinity and femininity.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Cisgender\u00a0<\/strong>refers to individuals whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Gender non-conforming\u00a0<\/strong>refers to individuals whose gender does not neatly fit into the dominant notions of gender within their particular cultural context.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Genderqueer\u00a0<\/strong>refers to people whose gender is outside of the male\/female binary and who therefore challenge the idea that gender is a static binary.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Intersex\u00a0<\/strong>refers to individuals who were born with components of both \u201cmale\u201d and \u201cfemale\u201d sexual anatomy or chromosomes.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Transgender\u00a0<\/strong>is an adjective and umbrella term that describes individuals whose gender identity is different from the sex they were assigned at birth. Many people take hormones and some undergo surgery, but neither of these medical treatments is requisite for a transgender identity.<br \/>\nIt is inappropriate to use transgender as a noun (e.g., a transgender) or to use the term transgendered.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Transsexual\u00a0<\/strong>is an older term that is not an umbrella term and is preferred mostly by individuals who have changed (or seek to change) their bodies through medical procedures. It is best not to use this term unless someone has indicated it as their preference.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Trans or trans*\u00a0<\/strong>are shortened versions of \u201ctransgender\u201d and the spectrum of identities that accompany that term. The asterisk in trans* represents the multitude of identities that \u201ctrans\u201d encompasses. Be careful when using this term around audiences that may not understand exactly what it means.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Transgender woman and transgender man\u00a0<\/strong>are ways some transgender individuals choose to identify themselves. MTF\u00a0stands for male-to-female, and\u00a0FTM\u00a0stands for female-to-male. Only use these terms if the individual has indicated their preference for them, as some people choose to identify as man or woman without any modifier.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Transition\u00a0<\/strong>refers to the period of time in someone&#8217;s life during which they make an inward and outward transition to the gender with which they identify. This period and what occurs within it differ from person to person. Do not use the term \u201csex change,\u201d as it obscures the difference between sex and gender and does not represent all transition experiences. \u201cSex reassignment surgery\u201d (SRS) and \u201cgender-affirming surgery\u201d are two (among many more) acceptable alternative terms.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Pronouns\u00a0<\/strong>can be used to refer to a specific person when it is unwieldy to keep repeating that person\u2019s name. Since pronouns are gendered in English, pronouns can also communicate information about the person&#8217;s gender identity. When referring to a person, use the person\u2019s chosen pronouns.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Language Toward Neurological and Physical Inclusivity<\/h2>\n<p>What is considered an illness or disability has changed throughout history and also varies between cultural contexts. Disability has also been stigmatized and wielded as a form of social control; consider <em>drapetomania<\/em>, an &#8220;illness&#8221; that white psychologists hypothesized as the cause for Black slaves to want to run away from enslavement in the 19th century, and <em>hysteria<\/em>, which was used as a form of social control for women. Today, both of these illnesses are considered pseudoscience and understood to be part of a long history of scientific racism, and sexism respectively.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the progress that has been made, disabilities and illnesses continue to be stigmatized, and the way we write about them has the power to break down or perpetuate stereotypes that directly affect the lives of people with these conditions. Additionally, many terms carry that we, as writers, aren\u2019t always aware of; for instance, while in the early twentieth century people classified as \u201cidiots\u201d were subject to forced sterilization, we now use the word casually. By learning the history behind the words we use and choosing to write respectfully about people with mental and physical disabilities we help create a culture that rejects ableism. One way of thinking about disability is that any time we spend able-bodied is really time spent \u201ctemporarily able-bodied\u201d since we will all experience disability in our lifetimes.<\/p>\n<p>Many advocates and activists, especially in the disabilities-rights community, have recommended using People-First Language to avoid defining someone according to a characteristic, state, or disability. For instance, one might refer to a \u201cperson with mental illness\u201d rather than a \u201cmentally-ill person\u201d or \u201cpeople experiencing homelessness\u201d rather than \u201cthe homeless.\u201d Other advocates, however, have rejected PFL as awkward or apologetic (\u201cPeople-First Language\u201d). Like many linguistic interventions, PFL is part of an ongoing conversation about representation, rather than a prescription. When in doubt, it\u2019s usually best to take your cue from the most recent and reputable sources you have available.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox examples\">\n<h3>Strategies for Writing with Neurological and Physical Inclusivity in Mind<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Only refer to disabilities if they are relevant to what you&#8217;re writing.\n<ul>\n<li>For example, referencing a wheelchair in a sentence like \u201cA man in a wheelchair let me borrow his pen\u201d is unnecessary and ableist. However, relevantly referencing disabilities can be important: \u201cMy friend, who uses a wheelchair, was late to class because of limited accessibility on campus.\u201d (This rule is true for other minoritized identities as well.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>When writing about people with disabilities, it can be useful to put the person first.\n<ul>\n<li>For example, by saying \u201ca person with disabilities\u201d rather than \u201ca disabled person,\u201d and \u201cthey are a person with schizophrenia\u201d or \u201cthey have a diagnosis of schizophrenia\u201d not \u201cthey are a schizophrenic.\u201d While this is a good rule-of-thumb, it is not always appropriate (see above).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Use \u201cdisabled\u201d as an adjective, not as a noun.\n<ul>\n<li>Just as you wouldn&#8217;t refer to transgender people as \u201ctransgenders,\u201d so, too, would you not refer to people with disabilities as &#8220;the disabled.&#8221;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Know that a disability is a condition, whereas a handicap is a constraint.\n<ul>\n<li>Someone can have a disability, such as congenital blindness, but someone cannot &#8220;have&#8221; a handicap\u2014rather, their environment (lack of Braille on signs, for example) handicaps them.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Recognize that cultural identity can be connected with disability, but that they are not the same thing.\n<ul>\n<li>For instance, one can be deaf (that is, have the physical condition of not being able to hear), and one can be part of the Deaf community (people who communicate in sign and who identify culturally as Deaf\u2014including deaf people but also people who are close to deaf people, such as hearing children of deaf parents). Being deaf doesn&#8217;t necessarily mean being Deaf, and vice versa.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Do not use terms like \u201cnormal\u201d or \u201chealthy\u201d when referring to people without disabilities.\n<ul>\n<li>Some people also object to the phrase \u201cable-bodied.\u201d Instead, use the term \u201cpeople without disabilities.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Do not write about people with disabilities (or other marginalized people) in terms of overly heroic or tragic narratives, as this reinforces existing stereotypes and emphasizes the \u201cotherness\u201d of someone with a disability.<\/li>\n<li>Use this same set of guidelines regardless of whether the disability in question is visible or invisible.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Language Toward Racial and Ethnic Inclusivity<\/h2>\n<p>Both ethnicity and race can make people targets of stereotyping, prejudice, and violence, and at the same time provide a sense of belonging or pride for people. Like most other identities, the categories of race and ethnicity have differed between places and across time. For example, in the United States, court cases such as\u00a0<em>Dow v. United States<\/em> (1915)\u2014which determined that Syrian people were not \u201cwhite\u201d\u2014have been part of sculpting the racial categories we are familiar with today. Racial and ethnic categories continue to drastically impact all of our lives, and so, while complicated, it is important to be aware of the histories behind the words we use and the ways we write about race and ethnicity in order to not perpetuate racist ideologies.<\/p>\n<p>Racial prejudice and racism, though related, are distinctly different. Racial prejudice is discrimination against someone because of their race. Racism is a sociocultural phenomenon that takes into account histories of racial inequality and describes a system that benefits people in a dominant racial group (whether or not they want to benefit) through the oppression of other racial groups. Because racism is a result of dependent on past and present systemic racial inequality, \u201creverse racism\u201d does not exist. For example, in the United States there has never been a set of laws and political and economic institutions that enforce the dominance of people of color over White people as there have been in support of White supremacy. Therefore, while a person of color may hold racial prejudice towards a White person, there is no structural support for their prejudice that enables them to exert \u201creverse racism.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Racism has manifested in many different ways. Some forms are overt, such as \u201cWhites Only\u201d signs during the Jim Crow era; other racist histories are embedded in language in less obvious ways. For example, the term \u201cCaucasian\u201d as a synonym for White has its origins in pseudo\u2013scientific theories about the racial divisions. Although white-skinned people might feel uncomfortable with a racial descriptor such as White, using that term is one way to use equivalent terms; there is ethnocentric bias in assuming whiteness as a standard and using terms like Black, Asian, and Latino to designate people as different from that standard.<\/p>\n<p id=\"p-939\">When in doubt, do some research and do not be afraid to engage in conversations about appropriate usage. When referring to a particular person or group, use the term that they prefer (though when directly asking people, be mindful of the burden you may be placing on them to educate you). You may not get unanimous feedback on what the best terminology is; lots of terminology is in flux, and what is respectful or correct is contested. For example, there remains no consensus about the proper capitalization of \u201cBlack,\u201d especially in relation to \u201cWhite.\u201d Additionally, the distinction between \u201cNative American\u201d and \u201cAmerican Indian\u201d is also contested. You can ask your professors for their preferences and, as always, research the implications of each usage; it is always best to be intentional and open-minded.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox examples\">\n<h3>Strategies for Writing with Racial and Ethnic Inclusivity in Mind<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Beware of oversimplifying Latino\/a\/x identity.\n<ul>\n<li>Latino\/a (in other stylings, Latin@, Latinx, which have slightly different meanings) refers to any person of Latin American descent living in America. Mexican Americans may also identify as Chicano\/a\/x (or Xicano\/a\/x). The terms Chicano\/a come from the 1960&#8217;s Mexican American Civil Rights Movement and represent a more political stance on identity than Latino\/a (as they are examples of words that were reappropriated by the people who they originally referred to in a derogatory way). Hispanic describes any person of Spanish-speaking heritage. While some Latinos find the term \u201cHispanic\u201d offensive because it reinforces the history of Spanish colonialism, others (particularly Latinos in the American Southwest) embrace and use the identifier. Furthermore, \u201cLatino\/a\/x\u201d also references\/privileges European descent in its etymology, and \u201cChicano\/a\/x\u201d, which nods to a Mesoamerican indigenous nation, is seen by some to obscure the complicated nature of modern Mexican and Mexican American identity (which has come to include Afro-Mexicans, Mexicans of Chinese descent, and, increasingly, Central Americans). The meanings of these terms are debated and, as a result, not fixed. It is always best to follow how people identify themselves.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>As you write with accuracy and specificity, be aware of the difference in scope between the terms Black and African American.\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cBlack\u201d is typically a racial term describing people with African ancestry living anywhere in the world. \u201cAfrican American\u201d generally refers to Black descendants of enslaved people in the U.S. who likewise live in the U.S.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Stay informed about respectful language use, which changes over time.\n<ul>\n<li>For instance, in the contemporary United States, using the word \u201cBlack\u201d as an adjective (as with \u201cBlack people\u201d) is widely accepted as inoffensive (though using it as a noun, as in \u201cBlacks,\u201d is often offensive). In contrast, the term \u201ccolored\u201d was once widely used, but it is now inappropriate.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Think critically about the assumptions and invisibilities reflected in the choices you make when writing about race and ethnicity.\n<ul>\n<li>People often identify with more than one group or category, and so writers may use terms like multi-racial or multi-ethnic. One problem with these terms is that they render invisible specific racial and cultural identities, such as being Black and Asian; White and Puerto Rican; or Native American, Black, and Latina.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>When using the term \u201cpeople of color\u201d make sure you are truly talking about\u00a0<em>all<\/em>\u00a0individuals who are not considered White.\n<ul>\n<li>For example, if you are actually referring just to Native American people, say so.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Consider carefully the term \u201cminority.\u201d.\n<ul>\n<li>Often, \u201cminoritized\u201d or \u201cmarginalized\u201d is a more accurate descriptor because\u2014in many cases\u2014the so-called minority is not, in fact, quantitatively in the minority, even though the people being described may be marginalized or treated as inferior.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Language Toward Socioeconomic Inclusivity<\/h2>\n<p>Writing about social class can be difficult because information about non-technical, correct, and respectful language can be hard to come by. While the last few years have given rise to more conversations around race, gender, and sexuality, discussions of socioeconomic differences have been comparatively lacking. Socioeconomic status is an important topic in many social sciences and relates to a variety of identities people may hold such as being a first-generation college student, being homeless, or being rich or poor.<\/p>\n<p>Writing about socioeconomic status or class without acknowledging inequalities in opportunities does injustice to the people that those inequalities affect. Avoiding classist language is an important step toward changing the classist ideologies that underlie and reproduce the structural inequalities that lead to economic disparity.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox examples\">\n<h3>\u00a0Strategies for Writing with Socioeconomic Inclusivity in Mind<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Avoid classist terms.\n<ul>\n<li>Choose not to use words like ghetto, white-trash, classy, thug, inner-city, and terms like \u201chigh class\u201d and \u201clow class\u201d because they convey biased judgments about people within certain socioeconomic settings.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"textbox exercises\">\n<h3>Terms<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Classism\u00a0<\/strong>is the belief that people with high socioeconomic status are culturally superior to those with lower socioeconomic status.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Socioeconomic status\u00a0<\/strong>refers to a person&#8217;s social and economic standing in relation to other individuals in the same society. It is often measured by education, occupation, and income.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Language Toward Religious Inclusivity<\/h2>\n<p>The majority of people in the world identify with a religion, and most religions span huge swaths of the globe and encompass very diverse groups of people. Additionally, religions are often interpreted and practiced very differently depending on the cultural context, and people may identify with a religion religiously, culturally and\/or ethnically. All of these factors make it complicated to write about religion inclusively and without over-generalization.<\/p>\n<p id=\"p-979\">Despite this complexity, it is important to take the time to learn about the nuances of religion in order to avoid perpetuating stereotypes and spreading misinformation that contributes to religious discrimination or persecution. Both religious discrimination (the treatment of a person or group differently because of their religion) and religious persecution (the systematic mistreatment or discrimination of an individual or group because of their religion) have long and persisting histories. From the forced conversion of Native Americans to Christianity by European Americans in the late 19th century, to the murder of millions of Jewish people during the Holocaust, to modern U.S. immigration policies that disproportionately affect Muslim people, the histories of systematic religious oppression are extensive.\u00a0 Although the subject of religion is complex, it&#8217;s is vital to take the steps to learn about the nuances of religion before writing about it.<\/p>\n<p>A common misconception about religious communities is that there is a single experience shared by everyone in the community, and that there is agreement about how the religion should be practiced or interpreted. In reality, there is a lot of disagreement within most faith communities about religious beliefs, practices, interpretations, and even about who belongs to the community.\u00a0 Individuals within a religious community have experiences, beliefs, and practices as diverse as the individuals themselves. Individuals&#8217; and groups&#8217; religious practices are informed by their cultural context as well as their other identities.\u00a0For instance, a Sunni Muslim, upper-middle class, merchant family from Damascus, Syria will likely have very different perspectives and practices than a Muslim farmer from Sinai, Egypt, despite their shared Muslim identity. For this reason, it is important not to oversimplify the experiences, beliefs and practices of individuals and religious communities. When writing about a religion, take care to be precise about what specific sects you are referencing, and don\u2019t generalize one group or individual\u2019s experience as representative of others just because they fall under the same umbrella religious term.<\/p>\n<p>Another intricacy about religious identity is that people don\u2019t always identify with a religion religiously; they may also identify with it culturally and\/or ethnically. For example, someone who is raised Catholic but identifies as atheist may identify as culturally Catholic. While they may not share the same religious beliefs and practices as the Catholic community they were raised in, their worldview was nevertheless shaped by growing up in a Catholic community.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_9b508c6a-e17e-4899-96a2-5c107caf7bd9\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/9b508c6a-e17e-4899-96a2-5c107caf7bd9?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_9b508c6a-e17e-4899-96a2-5c107caf7bd9\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"qa-wrapper\" style=\"display: block\"><span class=\"show-answer collapsed\" style=\"cursor: pointer\" data-target=\"q281307\">Works Cited<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"q281307\" class=\"hidden-answer\" style=\"display: none\">\n<p class=\"hanging-indent\">\u201cPeople-First Language.\u201d\u00a0<i>Wikipedia<\/i>, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Sept. 2020, en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/People-first_language.<\/p>\n<p class=\"hanging-indent\">Yuval-Davis, Nira. &#8220;Intersectionality and feminist politics.&#8221;\u00a0<i>European journal of women&#8217;s studies<\/i>\u00a013.3 (2006): 193-209.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t <section class=\"citations-section\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t <h3>Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t <div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <div id=\"citation-list-875\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <div class=\"licensing\"><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Shared previously<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Inclusive Language. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Cody Chun, Kieran O&#039;Neil, Kylie Young, Julie Nelson Christoph. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: University of Puget Sound. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/soundwriting.pugetsound.edu\/universal\/writing-with-awareness.html\">https:\/\/soundwriting.pugetsound.edu\/universal\/writing-with-awareness.html<\/a>. <strong>Project<\/strong>: Sound Writing. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t <\/section><hr class=\"before-footnotes clear\" \/><div class=\"footnotes\"><ol><li id=\"footnote-875-1\">Crenshaw, K., according to a report of the 2001 World Conference against Racism as cited in Yuval-Davis 196. <a href=\"#return-footnote-875-1\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 1\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/div>","protected":false},"author":161083,"menu_order":12,"template":"","meta":{"_candela_citation":"[{\"type\":\"cc\",\"description\":\"Inclusive Language\",\"author\":\"Cody Chun, Kieran O\\'Neil, Kylie 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