College: Saying ‘politically correct’ is a microaggression

College administrators are one step closer to encouraging students to communicate in soothing coos and affirmations.

Staff at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Inclusive Excellence Center have deemed the phrase “politically correct” to be a politically-incorrect “microaggression.”

The “Just Words” campaign launched by the college seeks, “to raise awareness of microaggressions, their impact, [and] provide an insight into their meaning,” WMU’s website says.

“We, the staff of the Inclusive Excellence Center, modeled our efforts after UC-Davis Words that Hurt and Why campaign, which UW-River Falls adapted. We also drew inspiration from the University of Maryland’s Inclusive Language Campaign,” the website says.

Some other words and phrases to make the list include: “Illegal immigration,” “man up,” “welfare queen,” “third world,” and “slut.”

“The Death of Free Speech: How Our Broken National Dialogue Has Killed the Truth and Divided America” examines how the news media has created arbitrary, biased and illogical rules for determining what can and cannot be said in the public arena.

The education watchdog Campus Reform first reported on the “Just Words” campaign and the Inclusive Excellence Center’s director, Warren Scherer, Oct. 21. The nonprofit organization examined Scherer’s official Twitter feed, which included language and rhetoric seemingly at odds with the school’s stated mission.

“F–k every fiber of your being,” Scherer tweeted Oct. 13 to Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee.

In response to Campus Reform’s story, Scherer tweeted Oct. 21, “I must be doing something right. #wontbebullied #unphased.”

Neither UWM Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Michael Laliberte or Scherer responded to Campus Reform’s requests for comment.