We communicate in one of two ways: body language and speech.

Movement, or body language, is a less conscious act than speech. Of course we can consciously move our muscles and limbs, but when we’re communicating, our body language is on auto-pilot. We’re more aware of our speech — of what we’re saying and how we’re saying it.

But even though we have more control over our speech, we still say things that offend people, history, and the meaning of words. We don’t mean to; most of us are just lazy and don’t know any better. For instance, we call women “guys” when speaking in the plural, and we call people from the United States “Americans” even though they only represent one part of the Americas. Continue reading “How to lessen sexism and bias with conscious speech” →