PC Run Amok: LA County to Vendors: Avoid using "Master/Slave"

Snopes.com ^ | 11/24/2003 | Snopes.com

[Keith in Iowa]

Claim:   The County of Los Angeles has requested that equipment vendors avoid using the industry term "Master/Slave" in product descriptions and labelling.

Status:   True.

(snip)

Equipment vendors who do business with Los Angeles County received a message in November 2003 from the county's Internal Services Department (ISD) informing them that "based on the cultural diversity and sensitivity of Los Angeles County," labeling or describing equipment with the term 'master/slave' is no longer acceptable:

Subject: IDENTIFICATION OF EQUIPMENT SOLD TO LA COUNTY
Date: Tue, 18 Nov 2003 14:21:16 -0800
From: "Los Angeles County"

The County of Los Angeles actively promotes and is committed to ensure a work environment that is free from any discriminatory influence be it actual or perceived. As such, it is the County's expectation that our manufacturers, suppliers and contractors make a concentrated effort to ensure that any equipment, supplies or services that are provided to County departments do not possess or portray an image that may be construed as offensive or defamatory in nature.

One such recent example included the manufacturer's labeling of equipment where the words "Master/Slave" appeared to identify the primary and secondary sources. Based on the cultural diversity and sensitivity of Los Angeles County, this is not an acceptable identification label.

We would request that each manufacturer, supplier and contractor review, identify and remove/change any identification or labeling of equipment or components thereof that could be interpreted as discriminatory or offensive in nature before such equipment is sold or otherwise provided to any County department.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation and assistance.

Joe Sandoval, Division Manager
Purchasing and Contract Services
Internal Services Department
County of Los Angeles


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To verify that this wasn't a hoax or an internal joke which mistakenly escaped to the wider world of the Internet, we called the Purchasing and Contract Services division for the County of Los Angeles, and they informed us that yes, they did issue this message, and yes, it was meant seriously. The representative we spoke with said that someone within the County bureaucracy — a person who probably didn't understand computer terminology — had taken offense at 'master/slave' references and complained to the board, whereupon the Internal Services Department was obligated to issue notification requesting that vendors refrain from using that terminology.

Whether this message reflects more a "socially progressive" change or one of the "needless discarding of the familiar and traditional" variety we couldn't say, but — much to the chagrin of several vendors who passed it along to us — the County of Los Angeles is apparently serious about it.

[Keith in Iowa]

Perhaps Arnold the Governator can Terminate this stupidity.

[muawiyah]

Itz Loss Ann-jellys. Efen die Governator haz no awwww-tor-itee!

[Keith in Iowa]

Ummm...yeah.

[Erasmus]

The PC terminology is now Dominatrix and Masochist.

[Socratic]

"The PC terminology is now Dominatrix and Masochist."

Just rip all those hard drives from everyone's computers because of the offending words and this will demonstrate the rampant idiocy. I suggest door-to-door teams and the recruitment of youths to accomplish this daunting task.

[peteram]

LOL - Yeah, it wasn't meant to be a discriminatory term, merely a simple sexual innuendo.

[LowCountryJoe]

Military equipment have instances where a type of configuration - much like the image of the projectors in the 'Snopes' link - are called 'master' and 'slave'.

Rolling assets also use an item whose very nomenclature is identified by the words 'slave cable'. In a sense it is very much like a big jumper cable that allows the 'slaved' vehicle to borrow battery power from another with strong batteries.

But I suppose where this will get interesting is in the case of the gay icon band Depeche Mode. Because their '80s song "Let's Play Master and Servant" was about two men in a dominate/submissive sex act, they'll get a free pass. Sodomy fits in with the social agenda so: "it's cool!"

[self_evident]

Or we've heard the (possibly apocryphal) tale of a writer who was informed by his editor that his use of the hunting term 'duck blind' was unacceptable, as the preferred substitute for the latter word is now 'visually impaired.'

Another snippet from the page. Just think, we now must go duck hunting in our duck visually impaired. Or while driving, show caution for the visually impaired intersection.

[Fresh Wind]

LOL - Yeah, it wasn't meant to be a discriminatory term, merely a simple sexual innuendo.

I guess now it's going to be sexist to refer to electrical connectors as male and female. And wait until the PC Police discover that certain plumbing items are called "nipples"!

[Vinnie]

Next will be fasteners and fittings, vis a vis, male adapters, female threads.

I'm getting a headache.

[Diverdogz]

Well Vinnie, that male adaptor could really just be a pre-op transgender adaptor. We couldn't hurt its feelings. :)

[AppyPappy]

I guess they have to change the menu at the Lebanese restaurants.

[Crazieman]

Not sure if mods will let me get away with it, but it is too hilarious to let go of.

Remember how the generic pronoun "he" was considered sexist, and now we're supposed to write the contraction "s/he" to mean "she or he"? Well, it's pretty clear that this discriminates against nongendered species as well as inorganic objects. Thus I propose the written contraction "s/h/it" to mean "she, he, or it." I'll contact the LA County supervisors right away with my proposal.

[Sacajaweau]

It's a legal definition and occurs in our NY lawbooks on a continuous basis in work relations.

[Tijeras_Slim]

Back in the lod days where Hazel O'Leary was Sec. of Energy she was touring one of the facilities at Sandia National Labs where radioactive material is handled. They use remote control arms and one operator can control 2 sets. They were explaining the system and the master/slave terminology was used. Ol' Hazel got nasty and ordered that the name be changed immediately.

[Tijeras_Slim]

lod=old

[appeal2]

You can be sure that if it was S&M technology they wouldn't have had a problem with it.

[Cultural Jihad]

You forgot to post the rest of the story:

When the spokesperthing for Purchasing and Contract Services was asked whether the vendors had complied with the new rule, he responded: "The vendors niggardly complied."

;-)

[Kozak]

How about " top and bottom "? Oh, that would be in San Francisco. Never mind.

[Cultural Jihad]

'Spokesman' was replaced with 'spokesperson' but there's still the gender-disciminatory 'son' in 'person.' Hence the PC term is 'spokesperthing.'