Racial and ethnic groups

Nowadays more and more groups of people prefer to be called by the name they have chosen, rather than by terms selected for them by others. In the US, for example, the most sensitive areas of vocabulary are often those that deal with racial and ethnic groups. For example, many Americans whose families originally came from Africa prefer to be called African-American. But there are others who prefer to be called black because they see themselves as American, not African

At any given time, members of a particular racial or ethnic group prefer different terms, and certain words become outdated. For example, in books and articles that were written in the middle of the last century you may see expressions like Oriental or Chinaman. Be careful using old-fashioned and offensive words like these. Do your best to substitute more acceptable terms, such as Chinese people.

In our days people are obsessed by political correctness. Here are some examples:

· “A children’s story based on the tale of the Three Little Pigs was rejected for an award after judges became concerned that it would offend Muslims, the Times of London reported”. [Three Pigs Story Judged 'Offensive to Muslims' -Published January 24, 2008 London Times]

And so, In the nursery school of the USA a fairy story “Three piglets” is being renamed into “Three puppets” so that the Muslim people would not be offended.

· In Japan “dwarf penguins” were renamed into “fairy penguins” to avoid reference to dwarfs (short people).

· The animated virtual book for primary school children, “the three little cowboy builders”, was also criticized for its potential to offend builders.

· ‘Baba rainbow sheep’

“Baba black sheep” has been changed to “baba rainbow sheep” in some schools, in case the nursery rhythm could be deemed racist.

· A UK council has banned the term 'brainstorming' – and replaced it with 'thought showers', as local lawmakers thought the term may offend epileptics.

Gender

Gender is an area in which it is most difficult to avoid giving offence. This is partly because of the way the English language works.

The word man originally meant both adult human and adult male. But nowadays its meaning is so closely identified with adult male that in sentences like ‘Man has always dreamed of being able to fly’ it does not seem to include women. When referring to adult humans, you can avoid offending anyone by using terms like people or human beings instead of man:

People have always dreamed of being able to fly.

Many older words for occupations seem to exclude women because they include the word man. Avoid using man in words for jobs that can be held by either a man or a woman. Use neutral words that include both sexes. For example, instead of businessman use a word like executive or businessperson, and instead of fireman use firefighter.

Avoid using words like manageress, actress and other words ending in –ess to refer to women. Words like these are considered old-fashioned, and are offensive to some people. Use words like manager and actor that can refer to both men and women.

Because English has no singular common-sex pronoun, speakers of English have traditionally used the pronouns he, his and him in expressions like ‘Each student brought his own dictionary’. Here are some ways you can avoid using masculine pronouns to refer to groups that are made up of both men and women.

-1. Use the plural form for both nouns and pronouns:

All he students brought their own dictionaries.

-2 Reword the statement to avoid using a pronoun:

Each student brought a dictionary.

-3. Use the phrase his or her.

Each student brought his or her own dictionary.

-4. Use s/he: Each student brought the dictionary that s/he preferred.

-5. Use the plural pronoun their after an indefinite pronoun.

Everyone brought their own dictionary.

On "Clarissa's Blog" which writes on different subjects. Different academic's opinions on feminism, politics, literature, philosophy, teaching, academia, and a lot more.
She was absolutely offended by Dalai Lama's quote and says that he is a condescending prick towards men and a nasty chauvinist towards women.
In her opinion this quote condemns her and her life as useless. As she says she is extremely offended because she works and contribute to the world by her labor instead of sitting there and hating everybody for having a life.
The quote:

“The Dalai Lama when asked what surprised him most about humanity, answered " Man. Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money. Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health. And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never going to die, and then dies having never really lived. ''Dalai Lama”

A lot of people, including her fans ware a little disappointed and offended by her referring to the Dalai Lama as he brings fundamental and much-needed teachings to the world with his teachings of kindness towards one another in a world that is being destroyed by the believe that only material things exist.
The quote in Russian. It’s ''человек'', human, not a man, as some people thought.

– ЧТО ВАС БОЛЬШЕ ВСЕГО УДИВЛЯЕТ В ЛЮДЯХ?
Ответ Далай Ламы:

” – Сам человек.
Вначале он жертвует своим здоровьем для того, чтобы заработать деньги.
Потом он тратит деньги на восстановление здоровья.
При этом он настолько беспокоится о своем будущем, что никогда не наслаждается настоящим.
В результате он не живет ни в настоящем, ни в будущем.
Он живет так, как будто никогда не умрет, а умирая сожалеет о том, что не жил.”

After reading some kind of Buddhist text, there can be noted that it doesn’t make sense at all. Buddhism is based on the principle that everyone is equal, regardless of who you are and what you are. Very different from any other religion (and in fact it is not a religion at all, more a philosophy of living that encourages everyone to look for truth on their own).

So, he very likely meant “Man” = humanity in general, so that this applies to all people.
It could be just a bad translation that put this in gendered way and probably not his exact words at all. Based on buddhism the point of this is more on living without being present for your life in every single moment rather than anything else (and particularly not related to gender.

AGE

As more and more people are living longer, healthier and more active lives, the concept of ageing is changing. Many people think that using words like old and elderly to describe older people is offensive because they seem to suggest inactivity and weakness. To avoid offending people, use terms that give more detailed or exact information about the person or people described.

Membership is only available to retired people.

People over sixty-five can get a discount.

Many senior citizens enjoy going for long walks.

The European Parliament introduced proposals to outlaw titles stating marital status such as 'Miss ' and ' Mrs ' so as not to cause offence. It also meant that ' Madame ' and ' Mademoiselle ', 'Frau ' and ' Fraulein ' and ' Senora ' and ' Senorita ' would be banned.

‘Age’ Questions in some examples

• “Japanese toy makers now see senior citizens as their most dinamic market.” (Newsweek)

• “For Ms Jose there is no moral dilemma in breaking the law to bring people from Mexico – most of them elderly or needing medical care – to their tribal hospital in Sells.” (The Dallas Morning News)