When the concept of "subtleism" (note the spelling) was explained to me by one of the Hacker School founders, I thought it was brilliant. Precisely because it t

When the concept of "subtleism" (note the spelling) was explained to me by one of the Hacker School founders, I thought it was brilliant. Precisely because it transformed a "shaming ritual" into an olive branch. The idea is that subtleist remarks are NOT *-ist, individually, but the aggregate of hundreds of subtleisms could be oppressive. So, nothing's wrong with saying "you guys", if only it didn't come in a flood of subtleisms. It's ok, you're forgiven, but we can do better. Compare the word "micro-aggression". That's an accusation and the beginning of on argument. "Subtleism", by contrast, is a word to promote healing.