Is it racist to use the term 'Master Bedroom'

[Lucas_Jackson]

I work at a property management company. I also have a background in architecture. I have used the term ‘master bedroom’ thousands of times in my work. So I was surprised yesterday when an associate told me the term was racist.

I checked around on the internet and some say, yes, and some say no. I certainly understand that in this political climate that there is a need to be sensitive, and I certainly am, but it should only extend to words with an actual connection, right?

And maybe this word does - I honestly don’t know. A New York Times article states:

The push to stop using the term “master bedroom” comes in the wake of George Floyd’s death and the resulting Black Lives Matter protests

And

The Real Estate Board of New York plans to vote soon on removing the phrase from its residential listings service

Further

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development determined in 1995 that “master bedroom” was not discriminatory and that it did not violate fair housing laws, which is largely why the National Association of Realtors hasn’t created a policy regarding its usage. The national organization’s president, Vince Malta, said in a statement in June that there was no reason that real estate professionals could not use the term since there was no evidence of its historical connection to slavery.

So it seems open.

The first recorded usage of “master bedroom” seems to have been in a 1926 Modern Homes catalog by Sears, Roebuck and Co. The pamphlet offered potential buyers a kit they could use to build their own homes.

So what do you think?

[chela]

Try using Primary bedroom. Industry is moving away from master, and man caves.

[DSeid]

I’d put it in the same group as “niggling” … it doesn’t matter what the historical roots or meaning are. It “has the sound of” enough that basic manners would currently guide one to avoid its use. “Primary bedroom” suffices.

[pulykamell]

We had an extensive thread on this last year that may be helpful:

Is the term "master bedroom" offensive?

Those of you shopping for a house, or who have done so, what do you think of when you hear “master bedroom”? I think of the main bedroom, one in which, in a modern house, I’d expect an ensuite and a walk-in closet and lots of space. In an older house, it would be at least the most spacious bedroom. Not, however, the impeccably upstanding and rabidly Politically Correct to the Point of Insanity Toronto Real Estate Board. What do they think of when they hear the term? Why of course they think…

[Mean_Mr.Mustard]

@DSeid

I’d put it in the same group as “niggling” … it doesn’t matter what the historical roots or meaning are…

Are young boys no longer allowed to be called master? Is a dog’s owner no longer his master? Are Master locks offensive? Am I no longer allowed to master a skill?

My point is that it’s not the word per se that is offensive; it is (or would be) what the word represents.

I don’t think my largest bedroom ever owned any slaves.

mmm

[Grrr]

I’d be currious to know how many POC are actually offended by it.

I mean, shouldn’t “Mr.” be offensive as well?

[Si_Amigo]

I want to be a master. In my own home definitely.

[Elmer_J.Fudd]

“Primary” means first; not biggest or best. Neither does a master bedroom control lesser bedrooms. The adjective clearly describes the occupant; the master(s) of the house. That’s where it gets problematic. Why not just call it the big bedroom?

[Qadgop_the_Mercotan]

It’ll be interesting to see what the future holds for Master’s Degrees.

[Tamerlane]

@Elmer_J.Fudd

Why not just call it the big bedroom?

Main bedroom?

I personally have no problem with master bedroom, but main bedroom seems like a perfectly fine synonym.

[Jackmannii]

@Mean_Mr.Mustard

Is a dog’s owner no longer his master?

I prefer “pack leader” (a term discouraged by some canine psychology “experts”, but fie on them).

@Qadgop_the_Mercotan

It’ll be interesting to see what the future holds for Master’s Degrees.

I have one…in Science!

[Chefguy]

I think it’s a stupid notion and I refuse to entertain the idea.

[PhillyGuy]

@Qadgop_the_Mercotan

It’ll be interesting to see what the future holds for Master’s Degrees.

Good thinking, but of course it’s been been thought before. There also is the question of bachelor’s degrees being sexist:

Is it time we renamed our degrees? | Wonkhe

As for the issue, it is hard for me to think of something more trivial.

[DSeid]

@Grrr

I’d be currious to know how many POC are actually offended by it.

Not just POC; what fraction of potential home buyers, a demographic that often skews to maybe late twenties to early forties and increasingly multicultural, find the phrase at least potentially off-putting? Bemoan the demographic as “woke” if you must, but they are sometimes sensitive to these things.

What fraction of those potential buyers are you as the realtor willing to put off, when “primary” and “main” serve as well?

Word usage change doesn’t have to make sense or have consistency in other usages.

[Chingon]

Good news for everyone so very concerned: you are free to use whatever terms you want! Show the world how brave you are!

[Broomstick]

@Lucas_Jackson

So what do you think?

I think it’s a pretty minor thing for me, personally, to start saying “primary” or “main” or “largest” bedroom rather than “master” bedroom, especially if it IS a big deal to other people. If it makes others more comfortable I’m all for this particular change.

[Grrr]

I’m fine not using the word if it offends someone. It just strikes me as dubious bc I have never heard anyone complain about it until now.

[Darren_Garrison]

As issues go, this is on the same level of absurdity as “freedom fries” and “liberty cabbage”.

[PhillyGuy]

@DSeid

What fraction of those potential buyers are you as the realtor willing to put off, when “primary” and “main” serve as well?

All I know is that it is a low one.

And some other low fraction will associate “primary” and “main” with progressivism, and not like that.

Although I am among those who think wokeism can go too far — I’m against reverse discrimination — there’s no harm if the woke win this one.

[TriPolar]

@DSeid

Not just POC; what fraction of potential home buyers, a demographic that often skews to maybe late twenties to early forties and increasingly multicultural, find the phrase at least potentially off-putting? Bemoan the demographic as “woke” if you must, but they are sometimes sensitive to these things.

Well, how many? Any at all?

Any racist association with the term is not based on actual usage. Anyone disturbed by it’s usage is irrational and unreasonable. I don’t see any more reason to humor people like that than election deniers. So I would like to know how many people who can afford to buy a house believe this nonsense. It will give me an idea how often I might run across one.