Margaret Munn versus Western University

   Given that my last post was about a professor suing a university in the United States, I will now offer one about a student suing a university in Canada.  
   The student is Margaret Munn and the university is Western (often still referred to as UWO - the University of Western Ontario - in the sources provided below.)
   The major purpose of this post is to provide sources for information related to Munn's experience at Western and the lawsuit which has resulted. The litigation is ongoing. When the case is resolved, and if the result is reported, these background references may be of interest.
     I was unable to find any London reporting about "the Munn Affair", which is not unusual given the state of the local press, and the Western-related publications may be reluctant to approach the subject for other reasons, not-the-least of which is that the case is currently being litigated.
    The sources offered below are the ones that were found after a fair amount of searching. If they appear to be skewed in favour of Munn, that is in fact the case, but they were the only ones found; there were no critical ones to be excluded. Admittedly, less searching was done on social media sites where I did see a few negative comments about Munn and about the quality of the sources I note below. Here is one example from Reddit: "If you believe Jonathan Kay's reporting verbatim you need better critical thinking skills. He is highly ideological and sees himself as an anti-"woke" crusader." 
   I am choosing to say nothing about "the Munn Affair", or the quality of the sources. You can do some searching on your own, or read or listen to the sources provided and decide for yourself.

To Get Started:
       The lawsuit is outlined in this "Statement of Claim" filed with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on Jan. 10, 2025. At the time this is being written, the 22 page document is available to the public and can be accessed by clicking on this link: MARGARET MUNN and THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN ONTARIO. (a summary can be generated.)

Ledrew and Laywer Lisa Bildy (a UWO grad.)

  For a short interview with Munn's lawyer which offers basic background information see: "The Case of Margaret Munn VS University of Western Ontario," Stephen Ledrew, Hosts Lawyer, Lisa Bildy, The News Forum, n.d. The introduction is found by clicking on the link above and lasts 4:50. The rest of the 20 minute interview is found under, "Political Correctness and Censorship at Canadian Institutions," The News Forum. 
  More about Munn, her "offences" at Western and the actions by some in the Faculty of Education and the reaction by the Western Senate, is found in this summary provided by the Free Speech Union of Canada: "Margaret Munn v. University of Western Ontario," May 12, 2025.

  For Additional Background:
   The first article about Munn's experiences at Western is this very long one: "Lessons From a Teacher-College Battle Over Free Speech and 'Decolonization': University of Western Ontario Instructors Spent Months Denouncing an Outspoken Education Student Who'd Asked Awkward Questions About Indigenous Reconciliation - Until a UWO Tribunal Concluded They'd Violated Her Rights," Jonathan Kay, Quillette, Nov. 29, 2024. The entire article is available by clicking on the link above.
   For those who would rather listen than read, the author has more recently offered this account which is 25 minutes long. A link and an indication of the contents are provided here:
"Why This Student Was Punished for Asking the Wrong Questions at University of Western Ontario?" Jonathan Kay, Quillette, May 20, 2025.
   "In a speech at the University of Western Ontario, Quillette editor Jonathan Kay shared insights from his investigation into UWO’s teachers college, focusing on a controversy involving Margaret Munn, who questioned the curriculum's decolonization focus. Munn's inquiries led to a backlash, with UWO's Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion committee pushing for her expulsion. However, UWO's Senate Review Board Academic ultimately vindicated her, emphasizing the need for free speech and academic freedom. Kay highlights systemic pressures and incentives in academia that prioritize ideological conformity over open dialogue, urging reforms to support intellectual diversity."

00:15 The speaker’s legal career struggled due to moral dissonance with clients
01:39 Journalism reveals institutional pressures over personal morality
02:19 Margaret Munn faces challenges as a non-traditional student at UWO
04:40 UWO's decolonising pedagogy course is criticised as overly ideological
08:07 Munn questions decolonisation narratives, disrupting academic orthodoxy
10:24 UWO’s EDI committee seeks to expel Munn for ideological dissent
12:42 Curriculum changes and staffing reflect institutional haste and pressure
18:31 Administrators prioritise ideological trends over academic integrity
22:12 University reform requires changing incentive structures
23:09 Lena Dagnino defends academic freedom and Munn’s rights
23:37 Judgment critiques constraints on Munn’s academic expression
24:21 Panel defends intellectual freedom and academic values
24:49 Call for scholars to uphold academic principles
25:03 Based on a speech promoting liberty and rule of law

   A response to the reporting by Kay about the "Munn Affair" is found here:

"Schooled in DEI: UWO Sued for Ideological Teacher Training," by Jamie Sarkonak, National Post, May 24, 2025. Here are the first three paragraphs:

   "The point of the University of Western Ontario's education program should be to teach its students how to teach - but instead, it seems to be teaching students what to think by sabotaging the success of students who don't agree with decolonization.

   That's at least the impression you get from a lawsuit served upon the university by alumna Margaret Munn. She alleges she was subjected to unfair treatment and ideological pressure during her studies, including harassment-like behaviour from her faculty dean, and is now seeking more than $1 million in damages with the help of the Free Speech Union of Canada and her lawyer, Lisa Bildy. Her allegations are detailed in a statement of claim that has been made public, and have yet to be proven in court. Potentially years of proceedings lie ahead.

  The University of Western Ontario was only recently served and must file a statement of defence; its spokesperson, Stephen Ledgley, told the National Post on Friday that he was unable to comment on ongoing litigation."
   Essentially the same article by Sarkonak is also found under this title: "Education Student Punished For Questioning Decolonization Sues UWO," Postmedia Breaking News, May 26, 2025.

The Meaning of Magellan

What's Next: The Ceremonial Lynching of Linnaeus?

   The new old name on the long list of those to be erased is 'Magellan.'  Back in early October, his name showed up in many of those anniversary, "What happened on this date in history," articles with a text like this:

"1520: Ferdinand Magellan, Portuguese navigator, and his expedition team are blown by storms into a strait that separates South America from Tierra del Fuego and other islands south of the continent and that also connects the southern Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The strait now bears his name."
This month he is under attack and there are those who think that both the strait and the clouds in the sky which are also named after him, should be re-labelled. I am not sure what they think about all the other things named "Magellan" and if they are going to have to pull their investments from the Fidelity Magellan Fund.

   Once again, I will tack differently on this issue and continue the battle against the bowdlerizers, who everywhere seem to be in the ascendancy. I will add quickly, however, that Magellan was not a nice fellow, a fact that has been known for a few hundred years. Over those years, somehow most people were able to admire the man for his nautical achievements, be critical of his bad behaviour and not be traumatized by seeing his name on a globe. What name is next, or for that matter what word? Suppose one of the new linguistic puritans learns from the OED that their favourite and very useful word was coined by a colonizer, do we all have to lose it?

   Readers of MM will know my general position on the re-naming issues which I will attempt to briefly offer below, but I will say simply here that I don't think we should throw caution to the wind when it comes to the radical alteration of our vocabularies. 

 

The Throw Magellan Overboard Camp

   I will not attempt to interpret the arguments offered by those who want to see the word 'Magellan' disappear, but instead point you toward their arguments and the sources in which they are found. 

   Suprising to me is the fact the "Magellan Issue"  has been brought forward by those on the STEM side of campus. Perhaps they fear the citizens on the other side of the quad. Here you will find an entire essay on the subject: "The Magellanic Clouds Must Be Renamed, Astronomers Say: A Coalition of Over 50 Astronomers Is Calling to Rename the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds," Monisha Ravisetti, Space.com, Nov.3, 2023. Two major points seem to be that: 1) the author indicates that she is a "Filipino-American, and Magellan is an infamous figure in Filipino history, so this has always been at the back of my mind." , and 2) "The primary issue is that the clouds aren't his discovery." The Indigenous observers saw them first. 

   There will surely be more reactions, but here are a couple available now: "Violent Colonialist' Magellan is Unfit to Keep His Place in the Night Sky, Say Astronomers: Indigenous Peoples Already Had Their Own Names for the Galaxies Named After the 16th- Century Portuguese Explorer," The Guardian, Nov.12, 2023 and "Astronomers Request Retitling of Galaxies Named After 'Violent Colonialist' Explorer Magellan: Large and Small Magellanic Clouds Claimed to Have Been Discovered by Portuguese and His Crew in the 16th Century," Genevieve Holl-Allen, The Telegraph, Nov. 12. 2023. 

The Heretical Minority View (Mine)
   I will simply point you to two of my posts relating to this issue (there are more) and then offer my last defence. See, "Names on the Land", but avoid it if you are going to be injured by names like, "Squaw Tit" or "Whorehouse Meadow." The best writing in it is not mine and is taken from a book you should read before you make up your own mind on the matter - Names on the Land. In it, George R. Stewart writes that,

 The land has been named, and the names are rooted deep. Lake Mead may fill with silt, and Lake Michigan again spill south to the Gulf -- but the names may still remain. Let the conqueror come, or the revolution rage; many of our names have survived both already, and may again. Though the books should be burned and the people themselves be cut off, still from the names -- as from arrowheads and potsherds -- the patient scholar may piece together some record of what we were. 

  Another pertinent post is (spoiler alert), "No More Name Changing" and in it you will learn about "Awful Anna" the hummingbird that the American Ornithological Society is going to kill. If you think all those old bird names need to go, you have an ally in Margaret Renkl, who wrote this article yesterday: "North American Birds Will No Longer Be Named For Racists - or Anybody Else," New York Times, Nov. 13, 2023. That this hummingbird was named for someone's wife does not keep me awake at night and it is likely that the new one will not sound much better.

  If it is decided that one solution for improving names is applying ones that are more descriptive, it will work very well for most birds, unless they are homely, in which case, care must be taken. Sacrificing colourful or contentious names on the landscape or in the heavens will result in areas that are linguistically blighted and devoid of historical references.

  Enough energy has been expended on this issue, if not much thought given. My side in this debate is expressed in the first lines in the poem, "American Names" by Stephen Vincent Benét who expresses sentiments similar to those of George R. Stewart quoted and bolded above. Given the current zeitgeist, this debate is likely to continue, but I think I will no longer be a participant. 

                                              American Names

I have fallen in love with American names,

The sharp names that never get fat,

The snakeskin-titles of mining-claims,

The plumed war-bonnet of Medicine Hat,

Tucson and Deadwood and Lost Mule Flat.

......

I shall not rest quiet in Montparnasse.

I shall not lie easy at Winchelsea.

You may bury my body in Sussex grass,

You may bury my tongue at Champmédy.

I shall not be there. I shall rise and pass.

Bury my heart at Wounded Knee.

    I included the last lines as well and you will recognize among them, the final one which has been bolded. The questions now being considered by those of you concerned about such things are: Should the writings of Stephen Vincent Benét be delisted from curricula because of his reactionary liking of established names? Should the non-Indigenous Dee Brown be cancelled because of his appropriation of such a subject for his book with that title? And should Buffy Sainte-Marie be further vilified for borrowing the phrase from either Brown or Benét, a dead old white male American poet? I suggest that the excessive focus on identity is about as useful for the geographers as it is for the political theorists. Genug Shoyn. 

On Osler

   You will likely recognize the name 'Osler' and know that Sir William Osler was a famous Canadian physician, who is sometimes called the 'Father of Modern Medicine'. That phrase was even used in a recent article which went on to suggest his name should be erased from our memory.

   You will be able to judge easily from the headline, the sin of which he is now found to be guilty: "Sir William Osler's Revered Status in Medicine Shaken As Racist Views are Revealed," Marco Chown Oved, Toronto Star, Nov. 9, 2020. That article is reporting on another one with this rather sarcastic title, especially when appearing in a professional medical periodical: "William Osler: Saint in a White Man's Dominion", which is found in the Nov. 9th issue of the Canadian Medical Association Journal.  Some of Osler's views are now considered by some to be reprehensible (he died in 1919) and it is suggested that his name needs to be removed from various objects and replaced by the names of others now more acceptable. That would include, here in London, Osler Street and the Osler Society up at the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry. 

   I was not convinced by the arguments presented, that Osler needs to be eliminated. I admit, as well, that I am more concerned about the skills of my cardiac surgeon than her political views. There are others better equipped to defend Osler including some close by, to wit: "Dr. Vivian McAlister, a surgeon and professor at Western University in London, Ont., warned against people reading Osler's words and judging them by the standards of today. "(Historical figures) all said things that would make us cringe today, but they were still very noble people," McAlister said. "(Osler) inspired all physicians of all races and all backgrounds to do better. He continues to do that today. That is his legacy." (that is from the Star article.) 

   I made a similar point in my post about the current Historical Censoriousness:

“The dispensing of moral judgments upon people or upon actions in retrospect,” wrote Butterfield, is the “most useless and unproductive of all forms of reflection.”

   Both the articles are available to you and you can decide for yourself. As well, you should read the long biographical essay by Charles G. Roland in the Dictionary of Canadian Biography, or the shorter one by him in the Canadian Encyclopedia.  There is a good profile of Osler at Johns Hopkins where he was physician-in-chief.  At McGill University, however, his legacy is under attack and, "This summer, Montreal emergency pediatrician and McGill professor Dr. Samir Shaheen-Hussain penned two columns asking why medicine still puts racists on pedestals." Apparently hiring policies at McGill are more liberal now than admissions standards once were, since the discriminatory policies against Jews were not changed until after World War II. While the Dr. above may not be Jewish, if he is really concerned about all the past injustices, he will likely be busier as a polemicist than a physician.

Osler's Other Controversies

   If the Thought Police wish to be thorough in their indictment of the evil Osler, they should include three other incidents which indicate he did not have the character required for the period in which we live. The first two are reported in the DCB profile of Osler mentioned above. For very sensitive readers I should place here one of those warnings one gets before TV shows, but the sentence so far should suffice.

"William was an active and mischievous child, and numerous stories describe his jokes and pranks, one of which ended in an overnight stay in jail."

and

"Sometimes, Osler’s spirits bubbled over into literary practical jokes. One such instance of joie de vivre almost backfired. While living in Montreal, he concocted a spurious and ribald account of the supposed sexual and obstetric practices of an Indian tribe in Quebec, sending it under a pseudonym to a friend who edited a journal. The joke got out of hand when the article was accepted and almost published. A few years later, a similar piece by him was published."

(It is fortunate that I have few readers, none of whom would read carefully enough to notice the involvement of the Indigenous in the episode above. Although the people at Hopkins seem to be aware of all this horrid stuff, if this information spread widely in Canada, Osler would surely be in deep trouble.)

   The third charge against Osler is far more serious. In 1905 he was widely condemned in the North American press for recommending that the elderly be euthanized. He made the suggestion during a talk he delivered as he was leaving Hopkins and it was quite controversial. It shouldn't be. The idea that we should all be allotted a "FIXED PERIOD" was taken from Trollope, but Osler's,  "attempt at jocularity failed when the American yellow press sensationalized the story, claiming that Osler had seriously recommended that all older persons be chloroformed."  His name became a widely used eponym and we can apply it artfully here and say the debate about Osler should be "Oslerized." Sir William Osler likely had both a better bedside manner and a better sense of humour than your current GP. 

Sources:

"Nationwide ridicule of “The Fixed Period” address included cartoons such as this one, showing haloed William Osler dispensing chloroform to aging men. Image courtesy of the Alan Mason Chesney Medical Archives of the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions.

All the above from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6413966/

For the article in the CMAJ. 

"William Osler: Saint in a “White Man’s Dominion,”

CMAJ November 09, 2020 192 (45)

Information about the "Fixed Period" fiasco is easy to find and you can begin with the Wikipedia entry.  A thorough account is found in the following article which also provides these eponymous examples:

“To Oslerize” entered the American lexicon as a synonym for euthanasia, but the Baltimore News went further:

Osler; v.—To retire, to be retired. Example: “I am about to Osler.” “We have decided to Osler the janitor.”

Oslerization—The process of applying the Osler. Example: “Your services are no longer required.”

Oslerumni—Those who have been Oslered or Oslerized; divided into two classes—the material but declining and the spiritual but declined.

Osleresque—Having the quality of early retirement; prematurely languid; that tired feeling at 40.

Osleritis—See lazy.

From: "Osler Goes Viral: "The Fixed Period" Revisited," Charles S. Bryan, Proceedings- Baylor University, Medical Center, 2018-10-02, Vol. 31 (4). p.550.

A new article about Osler has just been published, but I was not able to access it. Here is the abstract:

Charles S. Bryan, "Sir William Osler, Eugenics, Racism, and the Komagata Maru Incident, "Baylor University Medical Proceedings, Published online: 09 Nov 2020

Abstract

A recent critic levels two new charges against Sir William Osler: (1) that in 1912 he was a vice president of the First International Eugenics Congress; and (2) that in 1914 he asserted Canada should remain a “a white man’s country.” Osler was indeed among the 31 vice presidents of the First International Eugenics Congress, but he did nothing further in this area. Osler indeed asserted that Canada should remain a “white man’s country,” but his context was the Komagata Maru incident during which most Canadians felt the same way about 376 passengers from the Punjab Province of British India who sought to defy Canadian immigration law. There is little or no indication of racism elsewhere in Osler’s deeds and writings, and the idea that race is largely a social construct emerged only after his death. Advocates for racial equality should view Osler not as an adversary but rather as an ally in today’s battles for global justice and also for human survival.

Charles S. Bryan (2020) Sir William Osler, eugenics, racism, and the Komagata Maru incident, Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings, DOI: 10.1080/08998280.2020.1843380

Bonus Information:

Did you know that the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame is in London and has relocated to 100 Kellogg Lane, The Tower, 4th Floor. 

There is an Osler Society up at the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry:

"The Osler Society at Western was founded as a permanent historical society at Western’s Medical School in the 1920s. It is named after Canadian doctor William Osler (1849-1919), who emerged as the ideal modern physician for his stance on the importance of practical instruction teaching in the laboratory, at the bedside and in the morgue. Osler’s The Principles and Practice of Medicine became a landmark textbook, going through eight editions in Osler’s lifetime and sixteen in total, and established him as the authority in modern medicine. His lay sermons include ethical and moral lessons relevant for physicians past and present."

The Old Sam Shitstorm

   
   The folks at the far eastern tip of the continent have 'awakened' and some of them who are employed by The Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation decided that Old Sam needed a closer look. The image is "commonly perceived to be a laughing, elderly Black man", which doesn't seem offensive to me and I have noticed more smiling Black people in commercials lately, which I thought was a good thing. When I looked at the Old Sam company website, I found that "Sam was a man who demanded much of himself, his workers and his rums, but brimmed with generosity for guests and friends." 
   I recognize, however,  that the illustrations per se, of Aunt Jemima and Uncle Ben are also not offensive and that context is everything, and just about everything is offensive these days.  As this is being written, the employees of the NLC are "exploring the history of the product and whether changes are needed." I am sure they are.
   Our colonial past is soaked in rum and we probably shouldn't drink any brand of it. Plus, Captain Morgan is surely problematic and I imagine horrors happened at Appleton Estates. Mount Gay appears to be okay since the name relates to the Mount Gilboa Plantation, but then again, it was a plantation.


   I have my own reasons for being upset about Sailor Jerry and the employees at the NLC may object to the improperly appropriated hula person pictured. They will need a very strong drink if they investigate further. The current company website shows a black woman blowing a bubble announcing that the new "Savage Apple" Rum is now available. If other brands and types of liquor are studied, it is likely that only a few bottles of Screech will be left on the shelves.

  I suppose it is a good thing to have socially conscious employees determining what it is that those of us who are less enlightened can drink. Recently I recall that some other progressive staff members here on the mainland made a decision about something we should not see. It was a documentary about Jordan Peterson.

Post Script:
   I should stay away from these current controversies and I am sure you agree. Before I return to obscure and obsolete matters I cannot resist making another contrarian observation.
  I do so only because of an accidental discovery. When I thought of the Peterson documentary controversy, I decided I would check and see how he is doing since I recalled reading about his recent health problems. It seems he is okay, or at least he is still writing.

   Unfortunately I read his recent, rather robust piece which is the reason I am straying further into current and controversial territory.  I also just read portions of another recent report that issued from Western University: The President's Anti-Racism Working Group Final Report.  It is instructive to read the two reports together.

   According to the Western Report, things are grim at that institution. Here is how bad it is:

"For the past four months, we have heard from hundreds of community members about the insidious, often violent, nature of racism at Western and its devastating impact on their mental and physical health, and on their sense of well-being and belonging. The stories we heard and the data we gathered affirmed for us that there are systemic problems embedded within the University’s colonial history, traditions, structures, practices and policies that normalize “whiteness,” that “other” racialized groups, and that perpetuate racism."

   It may even be worse:

"Contrary to the principles of a meritocracy, we heard stories that point to
an institutional culture that privileges certain groups over others. 

We wonder about the stories we did not hear—but know are out there—
because some people are too fearful to speak up."

   I was surprised that the racism is systemic, was unaware of the violent nature of the environment and disappointed to learn that people without merit were successful generally because of their 'privilege'. I used to study and work there, but am white and generally oblivious to what is really going on.

  Then I read Professor Peterson's report which relates very much to the issues of diversity and merit in the university setting. Although it is not about Western, I do think that Peterson would very likely be highly skeptical of the conclusions reached in the Western report. There may also be some at Western who feel that way, but "are too fearful to speak up." 

  The title of the Peterson report may be all you need to read, but I will offer a bit of the introduction:

                "Missives of Appalling Idiocy and Envy Embarrassing to Behold"

"I have observed the colleges and universities of the Western world devour themselves in a myriad of fatal errors over the last two decades, and take little pleasure in seeing what I knew was inevitably coming manifest itself in an increasingly comprehensive manner. It is of course a self-destructive and unfortunate tendency of human reason, with all its limitations—as well as ego, with all its pretensions—to wish or otherwise agree to serve as Cassandra, and to derive a certain satisfaction in watching the ship whose demise was foretold breach its hull on rocks hidden from all other observers. The self-righteous pleasure of “I told you so,” is, however, of little comfort when the icy water wends its way around ankle, knee and thigh, threatening to swamp everything still retaining its incalculable and unlikely value, even if it simultaneously makes short shrift of the ignorance and willful blindness that is frequently part and parcel of the death of something once great.

It is also necessary to note that the catastrophic failures of process and aim which I am about to relate were by no means hidden from the public view by the persons and institutions in question. They were instead positively trumpeted to all by multiple attempts to harness the powers of social media and announced, more traditionally, in press releases designed to indicate the success of some great and laudable moral striving. It is nothing less than a dire day when the proud revelation of vices of deadly and multifarious seriousness serve to substitute for announcements of genuine and valuable achievement, but that is where we are at—make no mistake about it."

The entire report can be read here and it is worth doing so, even if you don't agree with it. That used to be what people did - read something in order to be able to discuss it.

Sources:
   I don't usually use slang obscenities (in this blog), but "shitstorm" does seem appropriate here. It occurred around the middle of June and plenty of articles can be found. Here is one:
"Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corp. Reviewing Old Sam Rum Over Racist Branding Concerns," By The Canadian Press, Fri., June 19, 2020.

  A link is provided to the Jordan Peterson website and the Western report is easily found at Western and much more will certainly be written about the horrors that exist there.

  Although there is considerable contrarian content in the Peterson article, here I will provide another contrarian source, which is about gender, but relates to race and quotas.  That's my job. Here are some snippets from:
"Stop Counting Women:Quotas and Tallies Won't Bring Real Progress on Gender Parity,” Katherine Mangu-Ward, New York Times, Feb.23, 2019.
 "However, the notion that the lack of perfectly equal representation is obvious evidence of injustice is wrongheaded and counterproductive.
"By focusing on having equal numbers [or erasing images] you  -are more likely to provoke resentment than to convert the reluctant."
Keeping those running tallies of gender [racial] imbalance is like other emotional labor: It’s exhausting and distracts from more substantive work, and some people are skeptical it needs to be performed at all.
 

Speaking of Statues

  Relax, I said about all I had to say on this subject in my year-end rant where I suggested that there should be a statute of limitations on the elimination of statues. Perhaps I should also have suggested that we should no longer construct any at all. I say this now because I had forgotten about the controversy over the memorial to the Vietnam War, but was reminded of it because of a new book on this subject. I will put down a few words which may serve to help me not forget again.

     The new book is James Reston Jr.’s “A Rift in the Earth: Art, Memory, and the Fight for a Vietnam War Memorial”, in which he “recounts the bitter debate over Lin’s design and the contest between Lin and Frederick Hart, who was commissioned to make the memorial more appealing to traditionalists with the addition of a bronze statue known as “Three Soldiers.”
Apparently I am not the only one who forgot about all this since one reviewer notes;  “Maya Lin’s Vietnam Veterans Memorial has been so successful that one almost forgets the ugly storms of racism and misogyny with which opponents of the design fought the young architect more than 35 years ago.” (One opponent said it “was designed by a gook.”)

     Perhaps future statues should be virtual rather than concrete so they can be more easily deleted.

Post Script:
For a couple of reviews of the book see: “Fighting a War Over a War Memorial,” Philip Kennicott, Washington Post, Dec. 1, 2017 and “The Right Way to Memorialize an Unpopular War,” by Michael J. Lewis, New York Times, Sept. 11, 2017.

There are at least two more books on the subject: To Heal a Nation, by Jan Scruggs and Joel Swerdlow and Robert Doubek’s, Creating the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

In my year-end jeremiad relating to political correctness and STATUES I also considered WORDS, particularly those which should no longer be used. One of them is MASTER. You will be pleased to learn that that odious word has now received Canadian censure: “York University Scraps 'College Master' Academic Title to Cut Association to Discrimination and Racism”, National Post, Dec. 18, 2017.
Although Canadians were slightly slower than Americans in banning “Master”, it looks like we may be taking the lead in banning words that are not offensive, but sound like they might be:

“A Simon Fraser University (SFU) professor has launched a petition urging officials to change the school’s team name from The Clan, suggesting it could offend U.S.-based opponents and potentially put student athletes at risk.The university’s teams are known as The Clan, formerly the Clansmen, in honour of the Scottish heritage of the man the school is named after.”
No doubt as this is being written hundreds of bowdlerizers are scouring lengthy lists of homonyms, homographs and heterographs looking for new words to ban. I do suppose, however, that the rather dramatic loss of words from our vocabulary may be more than offset by the addition of new gender pronouns.

My rant was cleverly concealed, but if you wish to know what I said see here since I have made the early resolution to abandon things controversial and contemporary in the coming year.

Ruckus in Richmond

Diversity is Difficult

    You may recall that back in my year-end rant I warned you about being careful about what you say and that there are many words which should not be used at all. You need to speak very carefully and carry a very big stick.

   Additional evidence supporting my prescience arrived last week in the form of a sign in Richmond which was advertising for a person who spoke Chinese. There are many Chinese in Richmond. A controversy ensued. Here is the sign; see if you are linguistically savvy enough to spot the problem.

  The problem is clear enough if you have been paying attention. A hint: it is not a philological issue over whether what is wanted is a speaker of Cantonese or Mandarin.

    When the error was called to the attention of the profusely apologetic owner he realized immediately that he should have advertised for someone who spoke Chinese (Mandarin, etc.) and not a Chinese person. Whether he was spared a visit to the Human Rights Tribunal, I am not sure. Whether it is okay to hire a Chinese person, I am not sure, but I suppose it is okay if they speak Chinese.

  This all happened in Richmond, B.C. not Richmond, VA. If you live in that Richmond, don’t advertise for an African-American Sales Person. Look instead for an Ebonics speaker.

Expurgations (2) Illegal Aliens

Undocumented Immigrants

Under discussion here is the phrase “illegal alien”, not any policy issues relating to that subject. Actually the subject of “illegal alien” is likely to disappear even if the phrase does not. Let me explain.

In my attempt to keep you au courant about language issues I indicated to you a few weeks ago that the phrase “automobile accident” is now generally frowned upon and should be avoided. That is now the case with “illegal alien” which is to be replaced  in polite circles with “undocumented immigrant”. The story begins on campus as many language stories do, this time at Dartmouth. A student being assisted by a librarian was apparently looking for material related to immigration matters and noticed that they were typically led to the subject heading “illegal aliens” which, as a formerly “undocumented immigrant”,  she found offensive.

She took the issue to the Dartmouth student group, CoFIRED (Coalition For Immigration Reform, Equality and DREAMers) which is also concerned with such tenets as “intersectionality” and “inter-community.” They then asked the Dartmouth library people to change the heading, only to realize that they were not in a position to do so since such terms are determined by the Library of Congress. The phrase ultimately found its way to the American Library Association where it was decided that it had to go. The resolution to replace the term with “undocumented immigrants” which  was sent to the Library of Congress contains about a dozen Wheras’s and here are a few samples:

“Whereas the terms "illegal" and "alien," when used in reference to people, have undergone pejoration and acquired derogatory connotations, becoming increasingly associated with nativist and racist sentiments;”

“Whereas referring to undocumented immigrants as "illegal" is increasingly viewed as dehumanizing, offensive, inflammatory, and even a racial slur;”

“Whereas college students have petitioned the Library of Congress to retire the subject heading Illegal aliens;

Etc.

The Library of Congress ultimately agreed to move to more neutral subject headings such as “non-citizens” and “unauthorized immigration”.

Although Library of Congress subject headings do change over time, there has been some opposition to this one since it was viewed as being motivated more by political than linguistic correctness.  Representative Diane Black (Republican TN) released the following statement:

“This needless policy change by the Library of Congress embodies so much of what taxpayers find enraging about Washington. By trading common-sense language for sanitized political-speak, they are caving to the whims of left-wing special interests and attempting to mask the grave threat that illegal immigration poses to our economy, our national security, and our sovereignty. My constituents know that illegal immigration by any other name is still illegal, and we should identify it as such. That is why my bill directs the Library of Congress to continue using the term ‘illegal alien’ just as they were previously. Hopefully this bill will give Washington the push needed to stop thinking up the most politically correct ways to describe illegal immigration and start thinking about solutions to address it,”

Soon after in May, four Senators (Ted Cruz being one) wrote a letter accusing the Library of being on an “Orwellian trajectory” and concluded with this statement:
“There is no other way to put this: the Library has bowed to the political pressure of the moment.”

Representative Brown has introduced a bill called the Stopping Partisan Policy at the Library of Congress Act which demands that “illegal aliens” be kept as a subject heading.

I confess that I was not sufficiently sensitive. I assumed that perhaps those included under such a description were mainly objecting to “alien” which can be related to rather scary characters in Japanese sci-fi movies. The term “alien” legally has a long history and refers basically to any foreigner or outsider. “Illegal” as a word also has a long history, but it is now argued that it should not be applied to a person.

In any case, we seem to have come a fair distance. When looking for instances of the phrase historically one often comes up with headlines such as this: “Plans Set to Round Up Wetbacks…” Los Angeles TImes, June 13, 1954.

For sources see:

“The Library of Congress Will Ditch the Subject Heading “Illegal Aliens”, Erin Blakemore, Smithsonian.com, March 29, 2016.
“Another Word for ‘Illegal Alien’ at the Library of Congress: Contentious,” Jasmine Aguilera, The New York Times, July 22, 2016.

“Library of Congress to Stop Using Term “Illegal Alien,” Steve Padilla & Selene Rivera, Los Angeles Times, April 3, 2016.