blacklist

The term blacklist refers to a register of people, groups, or entities who are being denied a particular privilege, service, access, or recognition due to perceived unacceptability or suspicion. Its etymological roots trace back to the 17th century, famously associated with the list of regicides punished by King Charles II of England. The term gained broader usage during labor disputes in the 19th and 20th centuries to identify union organizers, and later during the McCarthy era to describe entertainment professionals denied work due to alleged political sympathies.

Usage of the term has become a subject of linguistic debate, particularly within the technology sector and corporate diversity initiatives. Critics argue that the metaphor relies on a symbolic dualism where "black" signifies bad, dangerous, or forbidden, while "white" signifies good or permitted, potentially reinforcing unconscious racial bias even if the word's specific origin was not racially motivated. Conversely, proponents of the term argue that it is a standard, historically established idiom distinct from race, and that replacing it is a form of performative linguistic hygiene that does not address systemic issues. Despite the debate, many major organizations, including the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and companies like Google and GitHub, have moved toward more descriptive terminology.

Examples:

"The IT department updated the firewall to ensure the malicious IP address was added to the blacklist."

"After the scandal broke, the contractor found himself on a blacklist and was unable to bid for government projects."

References:

• NIST also recommends that this practice of using 'whitelist' and 'blacklist' should be stopped. (source)
• The Hollywood blacklist was the practice of denying employment to screenwriters, actors, directors, musicians, and other American entertainment professionals. (source)
• Google's Chromium project, the open-source browser project... has updated its coding style guide to use more inclusive language, replacing 'blacklist' and 'whitelist'. (source)