I would agree that mentioning race, skin colour, sexual preference, etc is not racist on its own. They can indeed be descriptive terms. However, some terms/words and the intention they represent ARE racist. Would you suggest that terms like “Darkie”, “Nigger”, Paki, Zipperhead, Faggot.....etc aren’t racist terms and don’t bring racism with their use?
How would most of the ladies feel about being called a “whore” or “hooker”? Would you be ok being referred to as a “trick” or “John” by an SP? How about no Fat Guys or Assholes?
Personally, I have chosen to stay well away from this provider.....I don’t support racism or racists. And my bet is her attitudes would bring a whole lot of other things I wouldnt want to be part of or enjoy
I think you went from "water gun" to "bazooka" with your examples a bit there, and some terms are definitely backed by hate you exampled, and hate speech is wrong on every level and agree with you.
Is "black man" racist? Is "dark man" racist? Who gets to decide? It's almost impossible based on words alone, as it's the intent (and harm) that matter most.
Racism is real, but needs to be assessed on the context and intent, and should be applied to all groups / races equally in order to get it under control. No group gets a free pass based on the past, we move forward.
I just think if it isn't motivated by hate, it isn't necessarily racism, as racism is an act of hate in my opinion. The person saying it can still be an idiot, and you'll know to disregard.
The use of the word "queer" in reference to a gay man or woman is a hot topic on YouTube right now (Vox vs Stephen Crowder). Its in the acronym LGBTQ all the time, but can't be used unless you're part of the Gay alliance?
Over-policing of the language we can use is a very very slippery slope. Very curious where we end up.
I'm not saying it's ok to use any of the terms you listed, but as bbbj_anal_cimsw pointed out really well above, let people speak their opinions and expose who they are, and we can all discriminate who we associate with accordingly.