How the Political Correctness makes you an indivdual zombie
Let’s begin with some definitions picked from some known dictionaries. The online Cambridge dictionary defines a Politically Correct as someone who believes that language and actions that could be offensive to others, especially those relating to sex, gender and race, SHOULD be avoided, for instance a Politically Correct who makes use of Political Correctness both commonly abbreviated to PC would rather use “africain-american” and “persons with learning difficulties” instead of “black” and “mentally ill persons”, or “differently abled” and “developing countries” instead of “disabled people” and “third world countries”, “homosexual” instead of “gay”. And the list go on; it’s not difficult to imagine how much PC has been extended over many areas of human communication and activities, not least important among them, the field of social media where the PC finds its special and ultimate power. And it’s no surprise if the word “g—y” mentioned before was censored by FB algorithms, but why should FB and other platforms should censor such words ? We’ll examine this question later on and demonstrate why FB and big companies will simply bankrupt without its PC corporation policy.
It’s not difficult to understand the genesis of the PC and its wide spread in the social media and communication technology era. In the early to mid-20th century the term PC was confined within Academia and among political actors. Political factions or parties used the term to disqualify, censor and condemn their opponents, but the term had then in those spheres a different meaning and usage, in politics it means someone who’s rigidly and dogmatically believes in some political or ideological ideas, likewise in Academia, the intellectuals and university professors who adhered to some iconic philosophers at the time like Sartre or Merlau-ponty were disqualified as a PC.
The success of civil rights movement in 1960 in America with its figure Martin-Luther King established many rights for the black community with the proscribing of the use of some words and expressions considered as prejudice against the black community and other minority groups in schools, and public settings. The minority groups advocates the use of a politically correct language to designate and talk about those minorities and controversial subjects like sex, gender, women rights, etc.
The linguistic war continues since then among minority groups activists, academics, conservatives and journalists, the argument advanced by PC advocates is that we should use a caring language as not to offend people or groups who are disadvantaged or marginalized, such use of the unpolitical correct language will perpetuate the inequalities and their exclusion. The PC critics advance that the search for a caring lexicon is pointless since the inequalities which the language reflects do not change.
To be continued…
About Yassine Elmarrueco
Hi there! My name is Yassine, I am an adventurous blog writer, a rational anti-establishment interested in spiritual and philosophical aspects of the warrior archetype. See About page to read about my writing guidelines and mission.