Inclusive language: Race and ethnicity

Non-inclusive language regarding race and ethnicity can be harmful by maintaining a bias towards people based on race, ethnicity, country of origin, or culture. As society and language evolve, words that risk alienating or showing disrespect become less acceptable. In this article, we’ll help you catch up with this knowledge so you can ensure your content is welcoming to people of diverse backgrounds.

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Race & ethnicity

When referring to someone’s race or ethnicity, only include what is relevant to your content. Keep in mind that there are terms that characterize people in a negative way based on their racial and ethnic background. This includes not only direct slurs, but terms that originated from a slur. Avoiding these words prevents alienating people with certain ethnic backgrounds.

Many terms become outdated because they were created from a generalization or inaccurate notion about a certain group. For example:

Using Oriental can be overgeneralizing and othering towards Eastern and Asian people). It’s better to use Asian, East Asian, or refer to the specific country, region, ethnicity, or culture.
Eskimo was commonly used to refer to Inuit and Yupik people, but it is overgeneralizing and potentially othering towards Alaska Natives Peoples. It’s more inclusive to use the specific name of the Indigenous community.

Country of origin

It is more inclusive if you are specific and respectful when referring to the countries people come from. This helps to avoid harmful overgeneralizations. Consider this example.

Third World is an outdated term that puts several countries in one group based on factors such as income. The phrases low-income countries, developing countries (or ideally, naming the specific country or region) are more inclusive alternatives.