As I continued to think about my topic of political correctness and the way it affects our society, I discussed with some acquaintances about what they think the main cause of or problem with being politically correct is. Based on my last blog post, I believe that political correctness is being taken to an extreme and is encroaching on personal freedoms of speech and expression, and can be used as a crutch by certain groups or political parties.
The feedback I received from people varied. Several had my same viewpoints. Two people felt that political correctness is useful in society to prevent minorities from feeling isolated, and that the pros of what political correctness is trying to accomplish outweigh the cons that we see today. However, I feel that the idea of being politically correct is being hugely abused.
After discussing this over with the people I chose, it seems that politically correctness comes from this feeling of entitlement that our generation seems to have. This leads to pride which causes people to feel very offended by something if you say it in "the wrong way." Our society is trying to prevent intolerance but is thereby being intolerant of others for their ideas that may seem intolerant. It's one big irony. One of my acquaintances expressed how political correctness is an "insidious form of censorship which only serves to push the limits of societal norms further away from that which we know to be right because we might be perceived as being mean."
So how do we change this? How do we make sure that people aren't saying harmful things or creating stereotypes, but not get our panties all up in a wad when someone has a difference of opinion, or a political party is pushing for a certain standard. And the truth is, I'm still working on that. As of right now, I don't know if there is a tangible way to cool the fire everyone is stirring up that is political correctness. It is an ideal our society needs to reach as a whole. But we could start by drawing a line. Don't make Paula Dean grovel for forgiveness because she said the "N-word" 20 years ago when it wasn't considered a bad word. That was 20 years ago. Let the past be the past. We need to look to the future. We need to teach at young age the idea of truth mixed with tact. Speak the truth in a tactful way. As my friend stated, "My conclusion is that people should strive to be straightforward yet tactful in all instances. That is how Jesus Christ taught and we should inevitably follow his example."
I feel like this lesson of truth and tactfulness is the best way to solve this issue. I feel like it is something we were taught from a young age though, so I wonder where that ideal failed. Did we lose it somewhere along the way? Or were were really never taught it in the first place?
ReplyDeleteGreat dogma to consider. I don't have an answer but would like to suggest that understanding diverse cultures really helps with PC. I watched a youtube video where a teacher taught her class about race. She asked a white kid to stand next to a black kid and talk about their differences. The white kid looked extremely uncomfortable and avoided talking about color. The teacher asked him why he didn't mention that the other was black and he said, "because I don't see him as black." The kid was obviously trying to be PC. The teacher asked the black kid if he saw himself as black and he said, "yes." I think your line "speak truth in a tactful way" is the msot important part here. Not a sly or cunning way. Not a way that avoids us getting in trouble. An honest way. The black student was black. It's funny that being PC often steers us so far from the truth.
ReplyDeletePerhaps the dogma is one that has existed for ages, one that the enlightenment thinkers were trying to escape, that of intolerance. I don't mean intolerance for other cultures, but intolerance for someone thinking a different way from you. Accusing you of not being politically correct is simply an umbrella term for what I really feel, you think differently from me and I don't like it.
ReplyDeleteYou bring up a good dogma to challenge and I totally agree with you. Joseph brings up a good point that this dogma could be characterized more broadly as intolerance. Even though it may be in the name of "tolerance" it is intolerant to constantly be riding someone for not saying things precisely as you would.
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