Arising just twenty years ago, emojis (formerly emoticons) evolved to the point where they were the 2015 Word of the Year and a 2017 animated film. Without question, any reader of this article could open up their texting apps and likely notice various uses of shorthand, images, and iconery to replicate spoken language. The influence and ubiquity of the emoji cannot be overstated. Thanks to social justice activism, it is now the latest casualty in a neverending culture war.
How did something so easy to use - and indeed, universal - incur the wrath of the leftist mob?
According to a lawsuit brought forward by self-proclaimed civil liberties organizations, there has been a problematic use of emoji in communications such as billboards and other forms of advertisements. A few of the cited examples include:
As part of a billboard advertisement from an optometry office to have an annual eye exam: “👁️ can’t wait to see you!”
As part of an in-house menu insert at a breakfast eatery: “Don’t (waffle image), order some pancakes!”
As part of a mass email advertising campaign from a take-out restaurant: “R U Ready 4️⃣ Dinner?”
Because the pictographic use of homophones demands an understanding of not just the word or idea itself but the pronunciation of the replacement image as well, the lawsuit alleges discrimination toward the subset of the American population that is either unable to communicate in English or still in the process of learning English. And, since the left only sees immigrants as oppressed (and apparently illiterate) people of color, the lawsuit concludes by noting that the exclusion of non-English speaking, mostly Hispanic immigrants creates a harmful, xenophobic, and racist environment.
This claim is buffered by the observation that while English is the predominant language of the American cultural sphere, in both private and public settings, it is not recognized as the official language. Therefore, based on this and the aforementioned concerns, the use of homophonic images creates an unnecessary language barrier for whom the lawsuit is construing as a protected class (immigrant status). In essence, the suit contends that the use of emojis violates the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Now, it’s not like the exclusion of emojis is new; in 2016, all iPhones had the handgun emoji removed for a green water pistol. Apparently a handgun was too problematic, even though Apple retained a burning stick of dynamite, swords, an axe, a bomb with a lit fuse, and a cigarette in mid smoke.
Still, there is a difference between a private company like Apple deciding what to include or exclude within their text features and activist litigative agencies seeking to stifle the use of speech by other private entities. Instead of celebrating the evolution of language, in this case the deployment of the lingua franca of the digital age, these ambulance chasers seek to create problems where none currently exist.
It is as disturbing as it is revelatory of the times in which we live.
Author’s Note: Just kidding! This entire article and the message it conveys has been fabricated. To be sure, there is no (well, as of yet) lawsuit seeking to suppress the use of emojis in communication. That being said, how believable was this? You fully expected this to be a real problem. The left destroys everything else, why not universal texting features? Stay vigilant!
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