Am I too politically correct??

Ok, I have a very political background - studied politics, did local politics, loved every minute of it.

But that environment can remove a person from the real world - or can it? I am comfortable when I don't feel I have offended anyone, I so try and be 'politically correct', some people might call it.

In my political world, people in Nottingham were "local people", some were from "low income brackets/families"(poor?) or middle income brackets, middle income family - some were even high income earners (RICH!)

People in Nottingham were from  different "ethnic groups", we had communtities of "ethnic minorities". Some people had an Afro- Carribbean background, people were Black. Some people were White, some had a Pakistani background.

Some people in Nottingham has a disability. A hearing imparement, or has a visual imparement.

Happily in Nottingham's mix was also a Lesbian, Gay and Bi Sexual community. You were a member of the Gay community.


So, in all walks of life there were what we thought were non offensive words to describe people that has a different background or had different physical or mental capabilities.

Imagine my shock horror on moving to what I thought was an open and liberal society, the Netherlands. Behind all this of course is a deep puritanical streak.Some of this language may offend people, and I do not mean to. I am just showing you how some cultures you  may assume are way ahead in rights, are aactually way behind in terms of language.

One of my first horrors was that in this country there are still people -even in phrases- are still using the word for people of the Black community  - Nig**r. THAT word is associated with the awful past and slavery and denegration or absence of himan rights for the Black community. It is nt a word that should be allowed in common language. My Dutch teacher even used a phrase "sat in a row like 9 little Nig**rs". When I asked her if that was really allowed, she said "yes, it is only a phrase and is not Rascist"!! I have also recently heard it even with some councillors here. You should know better.

Also - here, in Ulvenhout where I live there is a bike ride here for Charity - it is called the Spaci - Bike Ride, raising money for the Spastics Society. I am sure we in the UK stopped using that word years ago..rightly so.

Here if you have a disability (there are mostly"cared for" in Special Centres, so to be fair you don't see many disabled people around - especially not in a wheelchair). You are still described as 'handicapped'- also a word that in Britain was removed a very long time ago.

One of the other words which make my toes curl here and the LBG community seem not to be bothered by the word is 'Homo'. You are not Gay here, you are a Homo. The Homo community. It just sounds like something out of the 1950s...and should be long gone.

The other words of ways to describe here which I find offensive is the colour of people's skin - people here can be described as 'having a tint', they can be a 'light brown colour' or be "dark-skinned". 

You are also, if you are not white, often described literally here as 'non-native" = allochtone. The dictionary description is "non-native"meaning not born here. So I and my children should be allochtone, but that's not what it is about, because if I use that word to describe myself in political situations or within school, I am looked at in a weird way. I am not allochtone (non native/not born here) - I am White.

A person can have Surinaam or Turkish great grandparents, and each generation after that could be born here and thus Native - but because of the colour of their skin, they are much more likely to be described as 'allochtone'- not born here/non native.

Why does there have to be a technical description of people with different backgrounds that has got annything to do with being born in the Netherlands or not?

So, I got all that off my politically correct chest. Don't even get me started on the Big White Bishop getting his little "Blacked up" helpers (slaves) to do all the work....that time will come in the next few weeks....