Chennai: Persistent efforts by a Missouri-based woman have made Merriam-Webster dictionary to redefine racism.
Mitchum, who recently graduated with a degree in law, politics and society, said the definition was too simple. It did not include systemic oppression of certain groups of people.
She said she started noticing the problem when people would argue with her about the definition of racism. It’s not just disliking someone because of their race, Mitchum wrote in a Facebook post.
The Merriam-Webster online dictionary first defines racism as a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.
Mitchum, who decided that the definition needs to change contacted the dictionary to express her concern. And, the 189-year-old company responded to her email.
Peter Sokolowski, editor at large at Merriam-Webster, was quoted as saying by AP that the dictionary’s second definition is divided to express, first, explicit institutional bias against people because of their race, and, second, a broader implicit bias that can also result in an asymmetrical power structure.
This second definition covers the sense that Ms Mitchum was seeking, and we will make its wording even more clear in our next release, he said.