Lubbock weather forecast turns into debate over racism, language

A dust storm, or haboob, seen from 38,000 feet northwest of Amarillo. (via Twitter by Ryan Scott of Dallas) A dust storm, or haboob, seen from 38,000 feet northwest of Amarillo. (via Twitter by Ryan Scott of Dallas) Photo: Photo Courtesy Of Ryan Scott Photo: Photo Courtesy Of Ryan Scott Image 1 of / 26 Caption Close Lubbock weather forecast turns into debate over racism, language 1 / 26 Back to Gallery

The use of the word "haboob" angered some people in the Lubbock area after a local newscast used the word to describe a dust storm heading their way.

The people who were riled up seemed to think that the term was an affront to the Texas and American way of life, judging from the hundreds of comments to the KCBD-TV website and Facebook page early last week.

"Since when do we need to apply Muslim vocabulary to a good ole AMERICAN dirt storm?? Did we move the country or what," one commenter wrote.

As the post began to spread across social media, it appears some users have deleted their comments. Others have written to denounce the criticism of the word.

"You know this thread made the news right? Good work Lubbock," another commenter wrote.



The United States National Weather Service in Lubbock used the term on their Facebook page to alert Panhandle residents of the coming conditions, but they didn't receive the flak the TV station got.



It's an actual meteorological term for a dust storm that comes out of a thunderstorm and lasts about an hour. It's different than a standard dust storm, according to a meteorologist interviewed recently by USA Today.



The word does have Arabic origins, which was an all-too-touchy bone of contention for some, but KCBD-TV noted in a blog after the fact that haboob is just one of many words with Arabic origins that has made it into the common English use.



The word cotton, for instance, comes from medieval Arabic. In fact lots of words and terms in the textile field have Arabic origins.



A liberal political blog grabbed some screenshots of the haboob hubbub for posterity. Many were offended at the usage and wished that the TV station had just said "sand storm" or "dust storm" instead of haboob. It was all reminiscent of that period in 2003 when french fries became freedom fries.



KCBD-TV defended the use of the word, reminding readers that the word had been used by meteorologists since the 1950s, meaning that it wasn't a political construct from the Obama administration, contrary to the peanut gallery chiming in below the their post.



Haboob is just another word in a long line of unusual terms used for curious weather conditions. A weather system affectionately known as a "Texas hooker" was making its way through the country late last month, and the then there is the derecho, a dusty windstorm associated with long, flat clouds.