President Obama Signs Bill Eliminating 'Oriental' From Federal Law

[Chesterton]

What if they were born Downeast? What if they went up to Boston? Bet you didn't think of that!

Or down South? I know a Japanese guy who does a mean Hank Williams, Sr. impersonation.

 

[GoldenBoy89]

Yet the word and all it's connected to in the names of businesses, etc. will be demonized?

And what if it is?

Seriously, the world will go on without use of the word 'oriental'. And, that's not even the case here.

What exactly upsets you about this decision?

 

[USincognito]

Yet the word and all it's connected to in the names of businesses, etc. will be demonized?

Have you actually read any of the thread? Oriental as an adjective for things is still considered acceptable. For instance oriental rug, oriental flavor ramen soup, and the Mandarin Oriental. It is considered an impolite as an adjective for people. And there is no "demonizing" in this legislation. Simply using more accurate and more polite language in Federal documents.

 

[USincognito]

And what if it is?

Seriously, the world will go on without use of the word 'oriental'. And, that's not even the case here.

What exactly upsets you about this decision?

For some, they simply want to use terms so they can be seen as anti-PC. I am not saying that's the case with Brinny, by the way. Just making a general statement.

 

[TLK Valentine]

For some, they simply want to use terms so they can be seen as anti-PC. I am not saying that's the case with Brinny, by the way. Just making a general statement.

There are also those -- and I'm not saying Brinny is one -- who are so deeply entrenched in Obama Derangement Syndrome that they latched on to the fact the he signed the bill. All they know -- all they need to know -- all the ever need to know -- is that Obama did something official. They'll get angry now; they'll come up with a reason later.

 

[CRAZY_CAT_WOMAN]

It basically means East or from the East.

I don't think any of us can explain why oriental suddenly came to be considered an offensive word.

I have a sister part Chinese and Philippine. I assure you she's been insulted by the word oriental for over 20 years. So has her first mom. It's not something that happened over night. I just think Obama seems to care about these things, does something about them.

 

[LivingWordUnity]

I have a sister part Chinese and Philippine. I assure you she's been insulted by the word oriental for over 20 years. So has her first mom. It's not something that happened over night. I just think Obama seems to care about these things, does something about them.

That doesn't explain why people suddenly started getting offended by the word.

The word essentially means East, from the East or toward the East.

 

[Glass*Soul]

That doesn't explain why people suddenly started getting offended by the word.

What makes you think this is sudden?

 

[LivingWordUnity]

What makes you think this is sudden?

How long do you think is a long time?

 

[Glass*Soul]

How long do you think is a long time?

Tell you what. Since you asked a question using the term "sudden," I will let you define your term.

While you're working on it, this may help: http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/Yuji-Ichioka-UCLA-Asian-American-3489

Ichioka, who dedicated much of his life to social justice and scholarly research in the United States, Japan and Latin America, created the term "Asian American" in the late 1960s, according to Nakanishi [director of UCLA's Asian American Studies Center]. While at the University of California, Berkeley, where he organized the Asian American Political Alliance in 1968, he was an activist for civil rights and against the Vietnam War.

So, the term "Asian American" has been in usage for around 50 years, over time replacing Oriental as the accepted, correct term. For those who feel this has not been a gradual enough change and are surprised at its "sudden" adoption into federal documents, I don't know what to say.

 

[LivingWordUnity]

Tell you what. Since you asked a question using the term "sudden," I will let you define your term.

For example, if something has been around for two thousand years then within the past 40-60 years is relatively sudden.

Do you agree?

 

[Glass*Soul]

For example, if something has been around for two thousand years then within the past 40-60 years is relatively sudden.

Do you agree?

Well, modern English has only been around about 500 years, so 2000 years is not a usable rod for measuring the changing cultural acceptability of a particular usage of an English word. Our country has only been around for 240 years. Forty to sixty years is between 1/4 and 1/5 of that time, which seems like a fairly significant fraction within which to consider a simple piece of legislation's wording. I believe the section of title 42 which I quoted earlier in this topic as being one place where the change is being made, is from 1977. It is not unusual to tweak a piece of legislation that has been around this long to prevent it from becoming outmoded in some detail. Congresswoman Meng, who sponsored the bill, is in her second term. I don't know how long she hopes to serve or whether she intends to run again when this term is over or how sure she can be of being re-elected, but when it comes to serving in Congress 40 - 60 years is probably more than most can hope for and far longer than she should wait to get to the things she wants to accomplish.

I have to ask, if now is "sudden" by some measurement, what would that measurement be?

 

[CRAZY_CAT_WOMAN]

That doesn't explain why people suddenly started getting offended by the word.

The word essentially means East, from the East or toward the East.

If you get my post they always have been offended . 20 years ago my sisters told me, that's a long time ago. Her mom didn't like and I'm sure the moms, grand and great grand parents didn't like it. It's non something people just started getting offended about. Finally we have a president that does something about it. This is nothing new. Unless you don't know anyone, that's Asian.

 

[LivingWordUnity]

Well, modern English has only been around about 500 years, so 2000 years is not a usable rod for measuring the changing cultural acceptability of a particular usage of an English word. Our country has only been around for 240 years. Forty to sixty years is between 1/4 and 1/5 of that time, which seems like a fairly significant fraction within which to consider a simple piece of legislation's wording. I believe the section of title 42 which I quoted earlier in this topic as being one place where the change is being made, is from 1977. It is not unusual to tweak a piece of legislation that has been around this long to prevent it from becoming outmoded in some detail. Congresswoman Meng, who sponsored the bill, is in her second term. I don't know how long she hopes to serve or whether she intends to run again when this term is over or how sure she can be of being re-elected, but when it comes to serving in Congress 40 - 60 years is probably more than most can hope for and far longer than she should wait to get to the things she wants to accomplish.

I have to ask, if now is "sudden" by some measurement, what would that measurement be?

The root "orient" originally derives from Latin which means it can be traced back over 2,000 years.

 

[LivingWordUnity]

If you get my post they always have been offended . 20 years ago my sisters told me, that's a long time ago. Her mom didn't like and I'm sure the moms, grand and great grand parents didn't like it. It's non something people just started getting offended about. Finally we have a president that does something about it. This is nothing new. Unless you don't know anyone, that's Asian.

You say that someone's mom didn't like it. And I think that much is believable. But you are making assumptions beyond that without historical evidence. Historically, 20 years ago is like yesterday.

 

[Glass*Soul]

The root "orient" originally derives from Latin which means it can be traced back over 2,000 years.

So, if this has been in the making for thousands of years, then what's sudden about it?

 

[LivingWordUnity]

So, if this has been in the making for thousands of years, then what's sudden about it?

I said people suddenly started getting offended by the word. I didn't say that it suddenly became a word.

 

[Chesterton]

I wonder if any U.S. government documents refer to the Oriental Orthodox? Yeah, probably not, unless they're suing some of their nuns.

 

[Glass*Soul]

I said people suddenly started getting offended by the word. I didn't say that it suddenly became a word.

So, yes. At some time since the origin of the word, people became offended by a certain usage of it. Quite suddenly(!), over the course of a period probably somewhere between a few thousand years and a few seconds.

 

[USincognito]

That doesn't explain why people suddenly started getting offended by the word.

The word essentially means East, from the East or toward the East.

1. With what part of 20 years did you have the most trouble understanding?
2. We're not talking about the deep etymological roots of the word, we're talking about its use as an adjective for human beings.