# Inclusive Language Guide **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 7, 2021, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074 "2021-10-07T14:14:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/112 "2021-10-10T14:50:45Z")
> [@GreysonCarlisle](#): > > > [@](#): > > > > **Instead of:** Brown bag > > > > > **Try:** Paper bag > > > **Why:** Rooted in racism > > So is this one. I agree that it’s stupid. On the other hand, the bag that i think of as a “brown bag” is sold as a “sandwich bag” in the supermarket, and that actually seems like a better name. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/113 "2021-10-10T14:56:36Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > **Instead of:** Brown bag > **Try:** Paper bag > **Why:** Rooted in racism Bloomingdales would like [a word](https://www.bloomingdales.com/buy/brown-bag). ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/114 "2021-10-10T15:12:18Z")
I could see nightclub door security holding the Wild Brown Bag up to compare would-be patrons to. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/115 "2021-10-10T15:19:34Z")
That is one of those things that might depend on age and location - if you’ve only ever experienced supermarkets and other retailers that give you plastic bags or no bags , you probably don’t think of the larger grocery/shopping bags made out of the same color paper as “brown bags”. And sometimes there’s a need to distinguish “brown paper bags” from the similar but less sturdy “white paper bags” used by bakeries and restaurants. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/116 "2021-10-10T15:57:48Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > On the other hand, the bag that i think of as a “brown bag” is sold as a “sandwich bag” in the supermarket, and that actually seems like a better name. When I’ve seen things called a “sandwich bag”, they’ve been transparent plastic things, with either a foldover top or (more commonly) a zip top, for holding one individual sandwich and nothing else. A “brown bag” could easily hold an entire lunch: A sandwich, a can of pop, a piece of fruit, etc. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/117 "2021-10-10T16:07:26Z")
I haven’t seen brown bags sold as “sandwich bags” - but I have seen the size sold in supermarkets described as “lunch bags”. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/118 "2021-10-10T16:47:05Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > When I’ve seen things called a “sandwich bag”, they’ve been transparent plastic things, with either a foldover top or (more commonly) a zip top, for holding one individual sandwich and nothing else Same. If someone said “I have a sandwich bag full of…” I would assume it was a plastic bag for keeping your sandwich fresh and held together, not the brown bag you then put the sandwich bag in. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/119 "2021-10-10T16:53:31Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > nobody ever refers to Hillary as the second person to reach the top of Everest Well, Hillary might. ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/120 "2021-10-10T18:00:48Z")
The Sherpa one definitely makes sense, and I certainly have heard it used as a synonym for porter- and probably said it myself before I knew it was an ethnicity, not a job (on stuff like camping trips). Not only are there other people who make a living as mountain guides/porters, there’s probably some pissed off Sherpas out there somewhere who’re computer programmers or bakers or something who’re very tired of people assuming they’re there to carry the luggage every time they get introduced, or people telling them that they’re _not_ a Sherpa any more, because they have a different job now… ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/121 "2021-10-10T18:04:06Z")
> [@Crane](#): > > Master and Slave are common terms in serial communication systems. They are used without malice. I’ve heard and used these terms all my professional career without malice, but this usage is now being demonized. [https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/13/technology/racist-computer-engineering-terms-ietf.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/13/technology/racist-computer-engineering-terms-ietf.html) > **[How “Master” and “Slave” Terminology is Being Reexamined in Electrical...](https://www.allaboutcircuits.com/news/how-master-slave-terminology-reexamined-in-electrical-engineering/)** > **[Master-slave terminology alternatives you can use right now | TheServerSide](https://www.theserverside.com/opinion/Master-slave-terminology-alternatives-you-can-use-right-now)** > > A master-slave terminology alternative should be a top priority for organizations that want to replace this antiquated jargon with more culturally sensitive vocabulary. ---
**Author:** ![Crane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crane/32/3495_2.png) [@Crane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crane)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/122 "2021-10-10T18:39:05Z")
They’ll have to talk to Bosch about I2C. Good luck with that. ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/123 "2021-10-10T20:03:13Z")
I assumed the offense at Brown Bag was over the expression “Brown Bag it” which is when you buy a bottle of liquor at a liquor store and then the cashier gives you a brown bag so you can drink it in public without the cops hassling you. The “racism” is the fact the stereotype is that mostly black guys do this. ---
**Author:** ![TheCuse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thecuse/32/2854_2.png) [@TheCuse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheCuse)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/124 "2021-10-10T20:24:33Z")
Whenever I used to buy alcohol at the liquor stores they always put it in a brown paper bag. Whether it was liquor or wine. And I’m white. And there were various brown paper bags for various sizes and types of bottles. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2021, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074/125 "2021-10-10T20:45:28Z")
It’s sometimes amazing the wide breadth of experiences that can be found in American society. As a kid, brown bagging it meant you were packing a lunch at home to eat it at school. Sometimes I hear people at work saying they’ve brown bagged it when asked what they’re doing for lunch. It kind of reminds me about the word regatta being used as an example of a racially biased word on the SAT. Apparently regattas just aren’t a thing for most African Americans. Which is certainly something I could understand because being a lower middle class white kid the first time I saw the word regatta I wasn’t quite sure what it was. I thought it might have been a party of some sort as it’s not like boat racing was a part of my life. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inclusive-language-guide/952074.md?page=4)