Political Correctness is a term we have heard quite a lot throughout this election. It was one of the major differences between both of our candidates. One of our Candidates displayed political correctness in everything she did while our other candidate spoke his mind and worried about being politically correct later. This practice did not begin with this election and it most likely will not end with it either. Political correctness is a trend that has been growing upward in America for quite some time. People have latched on to it and now are trying to push it as the norm in society. Let’s start by looking at the actual meaning of the word.
*Political Correctness: conforming to a belief that language and practices which could offend political sensibilities (as in matters of sex or race) should be eliminated
*Definition from Merriam-Webster
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Now by definition this doesn’t sound bad at all. Anything that is offensive to a group of people certainly shouldn’t be allowed and should be eliminated. The issue comes in how it is practiced in American society today. People use the term political correctness to further their agenda or to scare people from speaking their actual mind. For a society to function correctly and justly with political correctness in mind we need to see two things. Number one is that everybody must be held accountable. I don’t care who you are, where you live, or what your nationality is all must be held accountable to the same extent. The second one is there must be a standard in society that is set that labels what is politically correct and what isn’t. The first one is something that could be accomplished. Through journalism and public opinion, we could uphold a society in which we held everyone accountable. The second on the other hand can never be reached in a truly just society. Who sets what is right and what is wrong? Who sets what is considered offensive and what isn’t offensive? These are all questions that are impossible to answer. The problem is that in today’s society we see people trying to answer those questions. These people are people of all walks of life. They have different occupations; they are of all races but they all have the same agenda. That agenda is to control what is acceptable to say, so they can illegitimatize anyone who disagrees with their beliefs. It is an easy way to make sure that your opinion is the one being heard and accepted. They deal with very sensitive topics. They deal with racism, sexism, and same sex attraction. If you can brand someone a racist, a homophobe or sexist then they automatically become evil in the eyes of the uneducated or people that only hear what they want to hear. This isn’t the first time we have seen this in America. During World War 2 people used the term “Nazi†to discredit people who they felt were against them. On an even bigger scale we see this during the Cold War. Using the fear of communism in America they used the title of “Communist†to blacklist anyone who was a threat to them. As you can see this sentiment still is strong today. These labels hold great power in society and can be used as a weapon to suppress others opinions. I do not support Nazi, Communist, or racist ideology. I do not support the objectifying of women. In fact, I am against anyone who holds those views but I disagree with how lightly these terms are used to try and discredit completely innocent people.
Political Correctness is a joke. People need to stop being so sensitive and be able to understand that not everyone is going to agree with you. Just because someone disagrees with you doesn’t make them a bad person. Those disagreements are what this great nation was founded upon. It is time to cut down the barriers of speaking in a politically correct manner and let people exercise their freedom of speech. Let people speak their minds and let all sides be heard. The responsibility relies in all of us. No longer will I stand for a society that oppresses the opinions of so many. No longer will I stand for a society that only accepts the opinions of the left and crucifies anyone who disagrees with them. Just because I am a Trump supporter and a Christian does not mean I am a racist or a homophobe. Yet society today tries to label people like me into those categories to discredit my views. I know I am not alone in this stance and hopefully for our countries sake people begin to stand up for the breaking down of these barriers. Because only then can we begin to fix the issues that plague America today.
