Bias-free language
A list of terms with suggested substitutions.
adopted | Do not use unless it's important to the story. For more, read what Sara Kiesler says about adoption in the media. |
bellman | bellhop |
career woman | Be specific: doctor, artist, truck driver, etc |
chairman (for everyone) | chair, chairperson
Or chairman and chairwoman [not chairman and chairperson] |
confined to a wheelchair | uses a wheelchair |
craftsman | craftsperson, artisan [or potter, woodworker, knitter, etc] |
deaf mute | deaf |
Eskimo | Inuk (singular), Innuit (plural) |
fireman, policeman, mailman | firefighter, police officer, mail carrier |
handicapped, crippled | person with a disability [or be specific] |
hearing impaired | hard-of-hearing |
Hispanic, Latino, Chicano, Latin American, Mexican American | A prime example of the complexities of terms related to nationality. [see Recommendations] |
Indian | American Indian, Native American (or better, name the person's tribe) |
Jew | "Jewish person," "of Jewish background" |
male nurse, lady doctor | nurse, doctor |
man and wife | husband and wife, partners |
man hours | staff hours, staff time, work time |
manmade | artificial, handmade, hand-built, synthetic, manufactured, fabricated, machine-made, constructed |
master, slave | first (primary) copy, second copy |
"a slave to his work" | "controlled by his work" (or her work) |
middle man | intermediary |
Mongolism, Mongoloid | Down syndrome [preferred to Down's] |
Mohammedan | Muslim |
Oriental | Asian (or be specific) |
racial codes: welfare, inner-city, underprivileged, blue collar, conservative, suburban, exotic, middle-class, Uptown, South Side, wealthy | Do not use these as euphemisms for racial groups. For more, see "Guidelines for Racial Identification" by Keith Woods. |
sexual preference | sexual orientation, gender orientation |
Siamese twins | conjoined twins |
statesman | Might be appropriate in a historical context but probably not today. |
"suffering from, afflicted with" | "has a disability or illness" |
waitress, waiter | server |
wheelchair-bound | uses a wheelchair |