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Some Want Refugee Word to Be Racist

Discussion in 'Political Debate & Discussion' started by Dragoon68, Sep 7, 2005.

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  1. Dragoon68

    Dragoon68 Active Member

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    Who would have thought that some would find "refugee" a racist word either in literal meaning or usage?

    'Refugee' Stirs Race Debate

    It wasn't, it isn't really but, now in the interest of political correctness, it probably will become taboo.

    At least the press was "guilty" of it as well so this won't be another thing to hammer the President about.
     
    #1 Dragoon68, Sep 7, 2005
  2. LadyEagle

    LadyEagle <b>Moderator</b> <img src =/israel.gif>

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    Victims or evacuees are better choices, IMO. The President also made it clear today in a press conference that they are NOT refugees, but they are Americans. If I was in a similar circumstance, I would feel insulted at being called a refugee, and I'm white.
     
    #2 LadyEagle, Sep 7, 2005
  3. Magnetic Poles

    Magnetic Poles New Member

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    I don't get the bad connotations. The people being housed at the evacuation centers are taking REFUGE from the storm. By definition, are they then not refugees? Just as one who is being detained is a detainee? Although he has done a lot of good over the years, it seems to me like Jesse Jackson is being a bit too PC here.
     
    #3 Magnetic Poles, Sep 7, 2005
  4. Johnv

    Johnv New Member

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    As much as I think Jesse Jackson is a quart low, I do agree with LE here. "Evacuees" is accurate, "refugees" is not. It's not a "PC" issue, it's a media frenzy issue. The word "refugee" paints a picture that is neither accurate nor objective.
     
    #4 Johnv, Sep 7, 2005
  5. OldRegular

    OldRegular Well-Known Member

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    refuge: shelter or protection from danger.

    refugee: one who flees for refuge or safety.

    Face it, despite the fact that Bush has appointed more Americans, of other than European extraction, than any president in history to prominent positions in government the liberal/left will still accuse him of racism.
     
    #5 OldRegular, Sep 7, 2005
  6. Magnetic Poles

    Magnetic Poles New Member

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    John, I don't see it. How is one taking refuge not a refugee? What are the inaccurate connotations? Linguistically, it seems correct, although other words could also suffice.

    Edited to add: I certainly also fail to see how it is at all racist. Can anyone explain that to me?
     
    #6 Magnetic Poles, Sep 7, 2005
  7. Magnetic Poles

    Magnetic Poles New Member

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    OK OR, you are going to give me a heart attack here. How is it I agree with you on something? haha
     
    #7 Magnetic Poles, Sep 7, 2005
  8. Johnv

    Johnv New Member

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    I neglected to say I don't think the word "refugee" is at all racist. I think Rev Jackson is barking up a barkless tree.

    I merely think that "Evacuees" is accurate, while "refugees" when used by the media paints a picture that is neither accurate nor objective.
     
    #8 Johnv, Sep 7, 2005
  9. OldRegular

    OldRegular Well-Known Member

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    You and LE on the same night! Perhaps we are all going to be raptured out! ;)
     
    #9 OldRegular, Sep 7, 2005
  10. mcdirector

    mcdirector Active Member

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    I like the word evacuee better, but most everyone was being called refugees without discrimination (from what I could tell anyway) until Jesse Jackson stepped in.

    Now that it is an issue, I'm kindof keeping a mental tally of which newscaster uses which term. Evacuee has the lead, but refugee is still being used.
     
    #10 mcdirector, Sep 7, 2005
  11. LorrieGrace

    LorrieGrace Member

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    MP:
    What in the world word DOESN'T turn into a racist word??????? I mean, there are white people there, aren't there?

    AAAAARRRRRRRRRHHHHHHHHHH :confused:
     
    #11 LorrieGrace, Sep 7, 2005
  12. LorrieGrace

    LorrieGrace Member

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    I am a refugee. I am a citizen of heaven just passing through here. :D
     
    #12 LorrieGrace, Sep 7, 2005
  13. Dragoon68

    Dragoon68 Active Member

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    I find nothing wrong with the word "refugee" and no demeaning message in its use. I find "evacuees" awkward but, perhaps, acceptable. I've also used "displaced persons" which is not very common.

    Their home was not being put to question by the news reports that have used the word "refugee". It is a given that they are American citizens or residents or visitors and I don't believe anyone considered them differently.

    On the other, some people understand, from personal experience, what being a displaced person is like both from war and from a hurricane.

    Katrina Uproots Vietnamese Immigrants

    They didn't take offense to being called "refugees" by ABC News or in their previous experience. To the best of my knowledge, they weren't insulted by it in either case.

    Would anyone care to guess the context of the following phrases?

    "At the Bolivar Lighthouse, ten refugees from the Beaumont train took refuge with two hundred residents of Port Bolivar. The eighty-five that stayed with the train died when the storm surge overran the tops of the cars."

    "Fires broke out in many parts of town, some initially fueled by natural gas mains broken by the quake. Other fires were the result of arson, and campfires set by refugees."

    "Over 10,000 refugees, mostly African Americans, crowd onto the narrow eight-foot-wide crown with their salvaged possessions and livestock. With the arrival of the refugees, Greenville's population almost doubles."

    "Two thousand people were left homeless, 539 houses were condemned. Many of these refugees would call Camp Wallace home for many months as the city was rebuilt."

    It's strange, and a shame, how the acceptable use of words is drastically altered by the mere objection of a person or two who do not understand their meaning or, perhaps, wish to make some other point by playing upon the words.

    The greater shame is that many others, for the sake of political correctness, jump right on the wagon.
     
    #13 Dragoon68, Sep 7, 2005
  14. Dragoon68

    Dragoon68 Active Member

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    That's a very Biblical view! We are, indeed, strangers in this world.
     
    #14 Dragoon68, Sep 7, 2005
  15. Kiffen

    Kiffen Member

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    There are too many Black leaders in La. in the Deep South that are trying to find a racial issue in every thing. It is very sad.
     
    #15 Kiffen, Sep 7, 2005
  16. Ben W

    Ben W Active Member
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    Quote of the day Lorrie Grace! :cool: [​IMG]
     
    #16 Ben W, Sep 8, 2005
  17. Daisy

    Daisy New Member

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    Main Entry: ref·u·gee
    Pronunciation: "re-fyu-'jE
    Function: noun
    : an individual seeking refuge or asylum; especially : an individual who has left his or her native country and is unwilling or unable to return to it because of persecution or fear of persecution (as because of race, religion, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion)


    Source: Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.

    "Evacuee" is a more accurate word. It's only awkward until you get used to it.

    The only way "refugee" can be considered racist is if you consider the great majority of New Orleansians are black and don't consider themselves to have left their country. It could imply that they are not real Americans, that this is not their country. I think it is silly and distracting from the real issues. It's foolish to find an insult in a word not meant as one when there are so many given freely and deliberately.
     
    #17 Daisy, Sep 8, 2005
  18. Dragoon68

    Dragoon68 Active Member

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    Let's not let the race mongers - of any race or locale - play with word definitions to declare racism in them that's simply not there. If we accept their definition by changing our words accordingly then we concede they were correct.
     
    #18 Dragoon68, Sep 8, 2005
  19. Daisy

    Daisy New Member

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    Yes, let's not be accurate. Let's use the words we want, how we want and the heck with them.
     
    #19 Daisy, Sep 8, 2005
  20. carpro

    carpro Well-Known Member
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    Another example of "political correctness" run amok. :(
     
    #20 carpro, Sep 8, 2005
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