"Oriental" pejorative?

[thomas]

Now, we've had a long thread discussing whether the term "Jap" is pejorative or not.

The state of Washington just banned the term "oriental" from official use. Is it really derogatory?

Washington state law bans term "Oriental"

=> http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content...at=1&id=221806

[samuraitora]

Personally, this whole P.C. thing is getting out of control.

If you were born in Japan, your Japanese.
If you were born in America, your American.

Simple.

Your background is great and should be learned about as well as your foreground. Heritage is important. So is your current living enviroment.

Sould there be more emphasis placed on what you look like in comparison as to what and who you really are?

I have a ton of 'Japanese' friends that were born here and raised here and speak english. They are americans...until you look at them and see the Japanese features.

[Kotonko]

Does this mean that one can no longer talk about the orient express?
oriental simply means anything east, in this neck of the woods.
Has it become politacily incorrect in the states?

[Maciamo]

Is Washington being anti-Latin ? Oriental is the same word as Eastern. The former comes from Latin, the latter from Germanic origin (probably via Latin). Usually words of Latin origin in English (about 50% of all words) are more formal than the ones from Germanic origins. What's the point in banning one. In French, Italian, Spanish or Portuguese, there is only one word "oriental" or"orientale" and its connotation is neutral or even poetic. For me who speaks French, Italian fluently (and Spanish fairly well), I can't understand this kind of stupid rules from the US. There are being racist or discriminative against their OWN language and OTHER languages with the intention of being P.C. ! It really amazes me.

[Maciamo]

Samuraitora said : "If you were born in Japan, your Japanese.
If you were born in America, your American. "

If you were born in America you are American, but just about anywhere else in the world it's not so easy, let alone Japan. Even Brazilian-Japanese or American-Japanese who return to Japan and have their children born there have difficult to get the nationality. To be Japanese, one of your parents need to be Japanese AND you should be born in Japan. If your parents are not Japanese, there will be few chances than you become Japanese just by being bon there. In Japan blood in more important than soil.

[samuraitora]

I agree with the 'blood is more important than soil' to a certain extent. Classifying things is human nature...but as we all know, there is a time and a place for everything. Here in the states, the P.C. thing is getting WAY out of control. Like black people, who have had there roots in this country for decades, are now supposed to be called African-American. That is getting rediculous.

I understand the progression of what we call them. From the 'N' word to coloreds to blacks...so on and so forth, but now we are getting out of control. Most people are upset when people refer to them as black, oriental, or something along the lines of there race.

How much easier would it be to in a situation where there are 2 people standing next to each other and your trying to describe which one is your friend when they have on similar clothes and hair color, but skin color is the only separating factor...we aren't supposed to do that here... if you say the black guy is my friend...your considered a racist.

Sorry...I will stop ranting

[Mavurik]

I hear a lot of Japanese saying Jap. It's like slang.

Example: "Do you have the Jap2 book?"

I say it every once in a while too but I don't mean it in a bad way. Nobody seems to get mad either.

[moyashi]

I agree this PC thing is getting out of hand.

I lived in NY and basically were I lived nothing was PC and you just lived with being called a Nazi or what not. It was called "growing up and getting used to what life had in store for you."

I moved to California and nobody was allowed to classify anybody. I remember calling somebody a "Geek" and my best friend almost hit me, until he remembered I had just moved to CA.

It was in California that I learned that I was "German American"

I have a lot of "African American" friends in town. Hell, I don't how to refer to them in Japan ..... So I just ended up borrowing the Japanese term of [koku-jin] (darkish black person) ... They don't mind but I do.

In University I had a black friend who was pegged a "token" because he would join the "union" ... Another Philipino high school friend at Uni had a black roomate who was pretty decent when I visited but if I bumped into him when he was outside with his "union" friends he would squirm and vaguely say "hi" back. What gives??

I've had it really. I'm going to start a new religion in Japan, evade taxes, own my own jet and several companies. It's now officially called "net'ism".

Now I just have to find some poor souls who are willing to give me all their belongings and savings (aka ... Aum shinri kyo) and sit back.

I called "shot gun" so I'm the high Priest. Anybody want to join? First few posistions will allow you to share in the profits.

watch out NET'ism is coming !!

PS... anybody know of any unemployed gods that we can hire, they can give up car window washing and regain their diginity by teaming up with us!

lololololo


Seriously though. I just wish humans would get back to normal.

[shintemaster]

This one is pretty ridiculous. The term is simply descriptive. Like most P.C. ideas its a case where the intention and reception create the idea that a word is wrong. It's interesting to note that some other deregatory words, notably, Nigger are also derived from simple adjectives. In that case the Latin word for black...

[deborah gormley]

@ moyashi lolol