Module 1 — Effective
writing: Strategies
and principles
| Course Guide | Module 1 | Module 2a | Module 2b |
Discriminatory writing
ILO cannot, and does not, discriminate on the basis of race, gender, age, sexual orientation, beliefs, or religion. For this reason it is important to take care that your writing is free of any kind of discriminatory language or phrasing. This is not a simple matter of replacing he by he/she or mankind by people or of avoiding slang terms for ethnic groups.
From a communication effectiveness standpoint, readers will not be inclined to respond in the way you want them to if you have offended them by using language that they consider discriminatory. Both your credibility and your effectiveness can be at stake.
Currently, you need to be careful in your use of language in the areas below. Be warned though: what is regarded as non-discriminatory today may be discriminatory tomorrow. We will concentrate on the following:
- race
- gender
- disability and chronic illness
- age