First, "Jap" is not a "racial slur" but a national nickname used by Americans for Japanese at that time during WW II. They are oriental as a race, Japanese as a nation. "Jap" is NOT a racial slur.
"Kraut" is NOT a racial slur but a nickname for Germans. If "Kraut" was a racial slur, it would be referring to Caucasians.
"Chicoms", "Ruskies", "Mounties", are NOT racial slurs but indicate nation of origin--China, Russia and Canada.
"Cowards" is NOT a racial slur but is a nickname for the French.
You need to brush up on what constitutes a "racial slur".
Second, I don't think people who lived during a particular era or are descendants of one who was needs to apologize for words like "Jap" or "Kraut". That was the term used back then and it was used to label the enemy. There was no racial overtones in these names. It was just a short way of indicating the enemy.
"JAP-AN-ESE" is a THREE syllable word. "GER-MAN" is a TWO syllable word.
Guess what? "Kraut" and Jap" are ONE syllable words. Imagine that! Men in uniform using a one syllable word to indicate the enemy! How interesting! What did you want? Did you want our soldiers in WW II to have yelled "JAP-AN-ESE" when an enemy was spotted? There would be a lot more dead Americans if they had done that. I bet yelling "JAP" saved many lives as it was a lot shorter than yelling "JAP-AN-ESE".
Why don't you put on a uniform and serve your nation. I bet you would start using acronyms and short one-syllable words in no time at all.
By the way, I am of Arabic descent and just got back from a family reunion where a lot of our older aunts and uncles refer to ourselves as "Camel Jockeys". Ever since we were little we heard our Aunts and Uncles say that--one Arab to another.
No one's talking about an apology for anything said in the 1940s. The issue raised was whether it's an appropriate term in a historical essay written in 2005, and I have to agree with Jude24 that it isn't.
That was the term used back then and it was used to label the enemy. There was no racial overtones in these names. It was just a short way of indicating the enemy.
Sorry, but the notion that "Jap" or "Nip" or "Kraut" or "Hun" was just a convenient shorthand doesn't wash. Wartime propaganda was openly, broadly racist, though they did at least make an effort to educate people on how to tell the difference between Japanese and Chinese. Feel free to call those terms "ethnic slurs" if you think "racial" is too broad, but it doesn't change their nature.
Again, I'm not saying that the people who fought World War II have anything to apologize for -- we were in a total war to ensure the survival of civilization, and demonizing the enemy was part of the struggle -- but it's another question whether those are appropriate words for an article written for publication in 2005 and meant to be taken seriously as history.
Strong people are able to laugh at themselves.
Others whine a lot.
:-) You're strong AND wise.