Too often they forget what she stands for…

The New York City Department of Education has issued a list of just over fifty words and associated topics it intends to ban from standardised tests issued to tens of thousands of students within the metropolitan area. The words and subjects were recommended by the Department because they might offend or upset students who come across them in a test situation.

To contextualise, every educational department in the States has such a list- but the kicker here is the apparent diversity of offence-taking the City is trying to pre-empt. For instance, the words “dinosaur” and “evolution” are out because they might offend Creationists. “Birthday” is out because Jehovah’s Witnesses don’t celebrate their birthdays. “Halloween” suggests paganism. “Divorce” and “Junk Food” are also out because, well- it’s America! Capital of both. Luxury car brands are also a no-no, because not every kid’s daddy owns one, and so on.

Various experts have responded to the list, calling it unrealistic and ridiculous. The Department of Education has defended its choices, claiming “this is just making sure that test makers are sensitive in the development of their tests.”

Here’s the full list of banned words and topics up for the chop knife cut er…

Abuse (physical, sexual, emotional, or psychological)

Alcohol (beer and liquor), tobacco, or drugs

Birthday celebrations (and birthdays)

Bodily functions

Cancer (and other diseases)

Catastrophes/disasters (tsunamis and hurricanes)

Celebrities

Children dealing with serious issues

Cigarettes (and other smoking paraphernalia)

Computers in the home (acceptable in a school or library setting)

Crime

Death and disease

Divorce

Evolution (including words like ‘dinosaur’)

Expensive gifts, vacations, and prizes

Gambling involving money

Halloween

Homelessness

Homes with swimming pools

Hunting

Junk food

In-depth discussions of sports that require prior knowledge

Loss of employment

Nuclear weapons

Occult topics (i.e. fortune-telling)

Parapsychology

Politics

Pornography

Poverty

Rap Music

Religion

Religious holidays and festivals (including but not limited to Christmas, Yom Kippur, and Ramadan)

Rock-and-Roll music

Running away

Sex

Slavery

Terrorism

Television and video games (excessive use)

Traumatic material (including material that may be particularly upsetting such as animal shelters)

Vermin (rats and roaches)

Violence

War and bloodshed

Weapons (guns, knives, etc.)

Witchcraft, sorcery, etc.

[Source: CBS News]