How I Define Political Correctness
It’s about inane people who’ve convinced themselves they’re the most mature ones in the room
The notion of “political correctness” is complicated. Anybody who uses this term — including me — obviously has a rationale for their usage. But it has also become a very malleable and subjective term.
It’s getting to the point where “political correctness” is at risk of turning into an utterly meaningless linguistic choice, due to how open-ended or misappropriated it can be. Similar blurred lines can increasingly be created by words such as “snowflake,” “mansplaining,” “butthurt,” “grudge,” “adulting,” “guesstimate,” “viral,” “stellar,” “respect,” and “interesting”…to name a handful.
Given how we each have our own definitions for what exactly constitutes “political correctness,” I’ve decided to share mine.
But before we talk about my perspective on what it actually is, let’s review what “political correctness” ISN’T.
When a lot of people who have conservative or libertarian leanings complain about something being too “politically correct,” they are often bashing attempts to acknowledge multiculturalism. They are threatened by celebrating diversity through efforts that strive to represent people from all demographic groups. Whether…
