There is a new book out, The Language Police: How Pressure Groups Restrict What Students Learn" (Knopf, 2003). According to the author, the restrictions are mostly from the radical left and radical right, especially in the states of Texas and California.

I hate censorship, so this list has me hot! This is a list of things that writers, editors, and illustrators are asked to avoid when writing textbooks for schools:

blind leading the blind: banned as handicapism
busybody: banned as sexist; demeaning to older women
courageous: banned as patronizing when referring to a person with disabilities
egghead: banned as offensive; replaced with intellectual
fairy: banned because it suggests homosexuality, replace with "elf"
Founding Fathers: banned as sexist, replace with the "Founders" or the "Framers"
jungle: banned, replace with "rain forest"
mentally ill: banned as offensive, replace with "person with a mental or emotional disability"
one-man band: banned as sexist, replace with "one-person performance"
polo: banned as elitist
senile: banned as demeaning to older people
snowman: banned, replace with "snow person"
tomboy: banned as sexist

Here are images to avoid:

~women as more nurturing than men
~men as active problem solvers
~men playing with sports or working with tools
~girls as peaceful, emotional and warm
~pioneer woman riding in covered wagon while man walks
~African Americans who are baggage handlers
~Native Americans with long hair, braids, headbands
~Asian Americans as very intelligent, excellent scholars
~Hispanics who are warm, expressive and emotional
~older people who have a twinkle in their eyes

Can you believe it?!

Straw men was used as a term to describe the things people make up to argue against.

quote:

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There is a new book out, The Language Police: How Pressure Groups Restrict What Students Learn" (Knopf, 2003). According to the author, the restrictions are mostly from the radical left and radical right, especially in the states of Texas and California.

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The influence of Texas and California on textbook production is pretty shameful. I went to a good high school in a good school district, and in Honors Biology we managed to "skip" the theory of evolution. Rather an important aspect of Biology, I would think.

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Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend.
Inside of a dog,
it's too dark to read.--Groucho Marx
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Perhaps I can see not portraying African-Americans as baggage handlers. However, I am really confused why you can't portray the good stereotypes; for example: very intelligent, excellent scholars; or people who are warm, expressive and emotional; or those who have a twinkle in their eyes!

To me that is ridiculous!

It's all part of the mistaken belief that to promote a measure of social and financial equality you need to strive for complete personal congruency.

Load of tosh, of course.

Richard English

I had to look up tosh, even mistaking it for tush, and found that it is chiefly British for "foolish nonsense." Thanks for that new word!