To this, one twit responded by saying,
"So many times, huh? Frankly, I find it difficult to believe that someone who can't keep up with this sort of thing could be conversant with the internet or function in society.
I was born in 1971. There have been two terms taught to me in my lifetime as polite, both of which are still extant and both of which I use: Black and African-American. Two terms. This isn't something that changes every five seconds."
This person did not get much support from the others. They pointed out that the term "colored" was used well into the seventies, and that it was never considered impolite. I think that the following responses were pretty darned good.
"And if my complaint had been that I couldn't keep up with the terms, then your criticism would have some merit. Thankfully, that's not what I said, and I think you know it. I'm fully aware that the term "colored" is outdated.
My point is that it's foolish to express outrage at the use of this term, given that American society can't seem to settle on a suitably non-offensive term. Heck, on more than one occasion, I've seen people take offense at the term "black," even though most people don't seem to have trouble with it. This is just one of those situations where it's best to let it go."
"Would you care to tell the NAACP that they "can't keep up with this sort of thing" or that it's hard to believe they "could be conversant with the internet or function in society"? I'm sure that they'd appreciate your candid feedback."
"It seems silly to argue that there's no possible problem trying to keep track of what terms for minorities are considered non-offensive in a thread in which people seem to be having trouble deciding if a particular term is in fact non-offensive."
