Talking it out

Abstract

If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -In this article, I seek to show how invocations of political correctness still work in nuanced ways to close down debates and trivialise issues, and effectively slow down progress towards achieving an anti-racist society. I also begin to identify the typologies of the myriad ways in which it presents. Design/methodology/approach -It is an autobiographical account, with evidence gleaned from personal experiences as an equalities trainer and from discussions arising as part of supporting and mentoring other trainers. Findings -Political correctness has not gone away: it is still invoked by politicians, the media and individuals within organisations to attack anti-racism and anti-racist learning.Research limitations/implications -The research is limited by its autobiographical and inevitably subjective nature. However, the standpoints of resistance that I have chosen to discuss are those that have arisen frequently and repeatedly and from across a range of public sector and quasipublic sector organisations. Practical implications -Despite its limitations, the article clearly demonstrates that political correctness remains an important topic for academic and practitioner debate, and it also identifies the need for further work in developing training to combat its destructiveness. Originality/value -An original and firsthand account of anti-racist training from the front line is provided. Its value lies in its experiential origins and its potential as a basis for further work.

Social Justice ‘Lite’? Using Emotion for Moral Reasoning in Diversity Practice

“…There are also indications of hostile feelings toward the programmes more generally. In the US, the concept of 'political correctness', designed to ameliorate relations between social groups and foster mutual respect, was branded a contravention of rights to free speech (Crawley, 2007;Mobley and Payne, 1992;Penketh, 2000). Equality training in the UK was likened to preaching (Bennett and Keating, 2008) and brainwashing (Karp and Sutton, 1993;Hemphill and Haines, 1997).…”