Army News, news from Iraq, - Army Times

Blogs abuzz over Army’s ‘forbidden’ words

A list generated by the Army of derogatory words to avoid in the workplace has sparked heated commentary on the Internet.

Michelle Malkin, a nationally syndicated columnist, used a submission from an anonymous “military reader” as the subject of a Nov. 28 blog, “More Diversity Lunacy: The Army Intelligence and Security Command’s list of forbidden words.”

The submission included screenshots of an Army Knowledge Online portal showing an e-mail from an Army Intelligence and Security Command Equal Opportunity office that included an attachment of disparaging terms “that should not be used in the workplace.”

“Some of the words on this list wouldn’t be used in the workplace by most people with any common sense — but some of the words on the list are ridiculous and epitomize the overreaching hysteria of the [politically correct] speech police,” the anonymous “military reader” wrote.

The list posted on the blog contains 76 words and phrases the Army office considers inappropriate, ranging from patently offensive racial slurs to the seemingly innocuous, such as “colonial.”

News of the forbidden terms spread quickly in cyberspace and had generated dozens of colorful responses by Nov. 30.

One reader wrote, “I can agree with the really hard-core racial insults; they have never been acceptable in the military, but come on. Shouldn’t they be more worried about dealing with gathering intelligence, or at least trying to display some?”

Another was perplexed: “Canuck? What if you want to talk about the NHL?” The Vancouver Canucks are a team in the National Hockey League.

Another weighed in on the etymology of the word “blacklist”: “A phrase that has nothing to do with race. Never did.”

Bob Stone, chief of public affairs for the Army Intelligence and Security Command, confirmed that the list came from the EO office. But he said the message and “referenced list of derogatory terms” were sent only to about 300 soldiers at Fort Meade, Md., in August as part of routine diversity training.

“The list was not directed at any specific unit or individual, rather was sent as part of the command’s Equal Opportunity Program, intended as a reminder that all government employees and military personnel have a right to work in an environment of respect,” Stone told Army Times. “It was not command directed, or sent in response to any particular EO issue or incident; rather merely part of a proactive EO awareness program, and should not be taken out of context.”

Stone said the list was derived from approved Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute training materials. He expressed surprise at the level of attention the posting has generated.

“More people have read about it on the Internet than read about it in the original e-mail,” he said.

Discuss: Blogs abuzz over ‘forbidden’ words