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Does political correctness harm society?
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Political correctness is a new form of prejudice

Our society's emphasis on political correctness reflects prejudice toward individuals with controversial opinions.

The Argument

Although political correctness originally served to eliminate casual prejudice from public discourse, it has evolved into a new form of prejudice. Our culture's political correctness has led to the marginalization of those who do not conform to a rigid standard. As a result, people who hold politically incorrect views feel threatened by those who do not approve of their perspectives. They remain silent, fearing that their controversial opinions will result in outrage. In our society, it is common to hear of individuals being "canceled," which implies public shaming and withdrawal of support. The public shames these individuals for voicing politically incorrect opinions, which can even result in the loss of a job or educational title. By harshly policing political incorrectness, our culture has created a new form of prejudice against people who hold unconventional opinions.

Counter arguments

Political correctness strictly limits what people can or cannot say while maintaining a positive reputation. However, this is not a harmful thing. Politically incorrect comments belittle the existence of other people. In our society, no one should be allowed to disrespect entire demographics. For this reason, political correctness is justified. It is not a new form of prejudice, it prevents people from sharing their prejudice without criticism.

Proponents

Premises

[P1] Our culture requires political correctness. [P2] Our culture polices and "cancels" politically incorrect people. [P3] Because of this, politically incorrect people feel unwelcome in certain circles. [P4] Therefore, political incorrectness is a form of prejudice.

Rejecting the premises

References

This page was last edited on Tuesday, 2 Jun 2020 at 16:38 UTC

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