Absentee Fathers

Though there are fathers of all races and ethnicities who have minimal presence in their children’s lives, “absentee” isn’t used to describe most of them, just Black ones. In reality, CDC data shows Black fathers are more likely than other dads to be with their children on a daily basis.

Affirmative Action

A set of policies and practices within a government or organization seeking to include particular groups based on their gender, race, religion, or nationality in areas in which they are excluded in the past such as education and employment.For myths and facts on affirmative action, see the ACLU Racial Justice Program, ACLU Human Rights Program, and the African American Policy Forum’s factsheet.

African Diaspora

The dispersal of millions of people of African origin all over the world, especially in Europe and the Americas. The largest populations descended from those forcibly transported from Africa are in Brazil, which, though not precisely listed in census returns, may be as high as 90 million – about half of Brazil’s entire population in 2010. Other similarly descended populations include approximately 40 million in the Caribbean, 40 million in the U.S., and many millions more in other countries. Roughly 4 million more enslaved Africans were taken to Brazil than to any other country. Slavery lasted longer in Brazil than in other countries, not being finally abolished until 1888. - Understanding Slavery Initiative

Afro Latinx

Black Latinx people who refer to themselves in varied, nuanced ways. For instance, those from Latin America and the diaspora self-identify using terms including, but not limited to, Black Latinx (“negro(a)/x” in Spanish), Afrodescendant (“afrodescendiente” in Spanish), and Afro Latinx.

Baby Mama/Daddy

These terms have a context-specific meaning within Black culture, but when used by people who aren’t Black, especially in official capacities (like newscasters), the meaning changes. They undermine the seriousness of real relationships and imply a lack of personal responsibility.

Code-Switching

The practice of alternating between two or more languages or varieties of language in conversation. For instance, Latinx Americans who speak a combination of Spanish, Indigenous/Native dialects, and English or Black Americans who speak African American Vernacular English (or Black English) and English. Code-switching is often used at home or among members of the same communities, and people don’t necessarily code-switch to someone who doesn’t speak their same language.

Colorism

Also called Skin Color Stratification. Prejudice or discrimination against those with darker skin tones, typically among people of the same ethnic or racial group. It privileges light-skinned people of color over dark in areas such as income, education, housing, and dating. (Colorism is prevalent across many cultures, not just African American.)

Cultural Hybridity

The practice of someone maintaining customs and values of two or more different cultures that make up their identity. In engaging with their separate cultures, someone can create a new hybrid identity that seeks to balance these multiple parts of them. Cultural hybridity is an ongoing, active, and fluid process that is shaped by history and background.

Diaspora

A community of people from the same homeland who have been scattered or have migrated to other lands. While most often associated with the Jewish people expelled from the Kingdom of Israel in the 6th century BCE, the diaspora of many ethnic groups is found around the world today.

1) A diaspora is a group of people who have been forced from or chosen to leave their homeland to settle in other lands;

2) People of a diaspora typically preserve and celebrate the culture and traditions of their homeland;

3) Diaspora may be created by voluntary emigration or by force, as in the cases of wars, enslavement, or natural disasters. For more.

Domestic Worker

Hired to perform household and caregiving duties in an employer’s private home or residence (e.g., housekeeper, nanny, gardener, au pair, chauffeur, in-home aide, babysitter). These professionals (majority women, mostly immigrants and BIPOC) do difficult, skilled work, often without basic labor rights and protections.

Emotional Labor

The process of managing feelings and expressions in order to fulfill the emotional requirements of a job. More specifically, when workers have to regulate emotions to shape the minds of superiors, co-workers, and customers. Emotional labor more often falls on BIPOC people, especially women (e.g., swallowing down feelings about a racist or sexist comment so as not to make things awkward for another individual, having to fake positivity to placate a customer).

Enslaved Person vs. Slave

Today, most historians refer to “enslaved people” instead of “slaves.” This language choice separates a person's identity from his/her circumstance. Likewise, saying “owner” or “master” empowers enslavers and dehumanizes enslaved persons, reducing them to commodities rather than someone who had slavery imposed on them. Using “enslaved” instead of “slave” and “enslaver” instead of “master” are subtle but powerful ways of affirming that slavery was forced upon someone, rather than an inherent condition. - Telling the Story: Enslavement of African People in the United States.

For more affirming language to use when writing about slavery, check out Writing About Slavery? This Might Help

Generational Trauma

The long-term psychological effects of trauma (both personal and communal) that can be passed down through generations of families and cultures. Beyond psychological, these generational effects are also familial, social, cultural, neurobiological, and possibly even genetic.

Ghetto

A racist and classist term for poor Black neighborhoods. It ignores the role of government policy in creating blight and suggests there’s no way to correct it.

Identity

An intrinsic, embodied part of who someone is (e.g., race, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability), not to be confused with the various experiences, ideologies, and preferences they identify with (e.g., careers, politics, hobbies). Identity shapes our everyday life, psychology, culture, relationships, behavior, and shared history. Identity is deeply personal and language used to describe it is ever-evolving. We must be open to new language as understanding shifts; it’s vital to use the terms, names, and pronouns others use for themselves. Note: Avoid the phrasing “identify as” (e.g. “she is a woman” instead of “she identifies as a woman”; “they are non-binary” vs “they identify as non-binary”).

Immigrants

Those who move to take permanent residence in a new country.

Minority Stress

Chronically high levels of stress endured by members of stigmatized communities (e.g., BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, disabled, religious minorities, HIV+) caused by the prejudice, discrimination, and systemic oppression they face. This leads to a number of negative mental and physical health disparities among these groups (e.g., internalized racism, transphobia, homophobia; increased risk-taking behavior; anxiety; high blood pressure).

Misogynoir

Coined by the queer Black feminist Dr. Moya Bailey in 2010, the term blends concepts that combines “misogyny” (extreme hatred of women) and the French word for black, “noir.” Per Ms. Bailey, misogynoir is the anti-Black racist misogyny that Black women experience. As noted by the Blackburn Center, misogynoir comes in many forms in daily life, for instance 1) Black women are viewed as threatening or angry whenever they speak up for themselves, and 2) Maternal mortality rates for Black women are three times higher than for white women in the United States, with many attributing that to racial bias in the healthcare system.

Othering

A pattern of exclusion and marginalization based on having identities that are different from the perceived “norms” of a community, social group, nation, etc. It relies on an “us vs. them” mentality.

Passing

The ability for a person in an oppressed group to move through the world as a more privileged identity than the one they are. In BIPOC communities, passing refers to a person, often mixed-race, with features that adhere to Eurocentric beauty standards (e.g., light skin, straight hair) who may be mistaken for being white. For trans people, this means being perceived as cisgender by others.

Note: trans women perceived as women are not "passing as women" – they are women. The same is true for trans men – they are men. Passing is not a goal for all trans people but can aid in a trans person’s safety. Passing is also sometimes used to describe gay, lesbian, bi+, or ace people who are perceived as heterosexual until they disclose their sexual orientation.