Nearly 1500 names of cities, landmarks and other designations contain racial slurs, according to a data investigation by Vocativ.
Vocvativ cross referenced racial slurs with 2.2 million names in the U.S. Geological Survey’s Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
30 names included the word “Chinaman.”
“The term ‘Chinaman’ dehumanizes Asian Americans and specifically Chinese Americans,” says Kham Moua, policy and communications manager of Organization of Chinese Americans. “From the 18th and 19th century when Chinese Americans were viewed as less than human and the term was meant to draw a distinction between White Americans and Chinese Americans. It’s also linked to the idiom ‘A Chinaman’s chance in hell’ which came about because Chinese Americans were tasked with some of the most dangerous jobs, like blowing out tunnels with dynamite, which resulted in thousands of Chinese Americans dying.”
In 2004, OCA was successful in renaming Chinaman Arch in Utah to Chinese Arch.
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In 1974, all references to “Jap” on the federal map were changed to Japanese. Some 200 names were changed after the Japanese American Citizens League opposed the name of Jap Creek, Oregon.
There are also numerous examples of the use of the word negro and even Uncle Tom. Most of the examples are offensive to Native Americans.
You can see some of these examples and find out which states and regions of the country have the most offensive names in Vocativ.
