Complaints about the Censor

gattsuru wrote: »

Please do not bypass the word filter.

The first word is still considered quite offensive, enough to earn protest when used in international talks, and enough for most modern dictionaries to list if as offensive or derogatory. There's a reason most Japanese region codes are jpn, ja, or even jp rather than that word.

It's varied rather highly based on region and time period. You won't see much recognition of it as offensive in Hong Kong or France, and a lot of north easterners in the United States probably won't encounter the phrase as often as you might in, say, California or Texas. Before WWII, it usually wasn't said offensive, and there have been more than a few places that have needed to have the name changed as time and trends passed.

After WWII... well, a lot of people took slogans aimed at a system of government and opponents in a war, and instead aimed those same slogans at fellow civilian individuals. It's not pretty.

The second word is still used rather often in a derogatory manner against some individuals of hispanic descent (mostly Mexican or South American) across most of the United States, and in rarer cases among English-speaking countries in Europe (can include Mexican, South American, or some Spanish-speaking islanders). In some cases, it's even been included under the 'fighting words' exception to the First Amendment protection for free speech, although the laws doing so tend to be overbroad enough to raise Constitutional issue.