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No limp wrists in sign language

Mon 5 Apr 2004 In: New Zealand Daily News

The "limp wrist" is to be dropped as the official symbol of gayness within sign language for deaf people, being replaced with a more neutral tapping together of right thumb and forefinger. Other racially-charged signs are also to go, including "slitty eyes" to indicate a Chinese person, and a "hooked nose" to indicate Jews. The changes have been inevitably labelled "politically correct" by social conservative critics, but the Deaf Association doesn't agree. "We are more aware of the appropriate use of signs that can be offensive," says Deaf Association community relations officer Brent Macpherson. "It's not really political correctness gone mad. It's more to do with respecting each other."    

Credit: GayNZ.com News Staff

First published: Monday, 5th April 2004 - 12:00pm

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