The Biggest Bedroom Is No Longer a 'Master'

[Zorro]

The term’s racist and sexist undertones lead New York’s real estate community and others to rethink outdated industry jargon.

Following the lead of other real estate brokerage communities around the country, several industry groups in New York are planning to eliminate the term “master bedroom” from floor plan descriptions and conversations between real estate agents and clients.

The Real Estate Board of New York plans to vote soon on removing the phrase from its residential listings service, the online platform that organizes listings data from brokerages around the city. While most people searching for a new place to live don’t use the site directly, the update is influential since brokerages rely on the service.

Sandhya Espitia, chief operating officer of the real estate board, said its residential board of directors, which would make the decision, has been engaged in “deep conversation” over the last month while also researching similar changes in listing services around the country. They are “assessing what meaningful steps should be put in place to bring greater diversity and inclusion to the industry,” Ms. Espitia said.

The push to stop using the term “master bedroom” comes in the wake of George Floyd’s death and the resulting Black Lives Matter protests, and as the industry grapples with issues of housing discrimination and diversity within its ranks. The origins of the term are unclear, but some brokers nonetheless find it offensive and inappropriate.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/05/realestate/master-bedroom-change.html

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

1. I read recently that the term "master bedroom" was first used in the 1920s.

So I find it hard to connect it to a racist meaning. Sexist, maybe.

So what do we now call the largest bedroom in the house, the one that usually has the ensuite bathroom?

I mean, I'm all for cleaning up language, but this one simply isn't rooted where people think it's rooted.

[Hortensis]

23. Extremely sexist and more. I always thought it was distasteful and inappropriate,

and thus we've never had a "master" bedroom. It's always been our bedroom.

Btw, remember that racism is almost always accompanied by misogyny, both major expressions of ugly bigotry used to "justify" oppression, exploitation and abuse.

No surprise, and I'm sure no coincidence, that the word "master" seemed glam to many people in the Jim Crow era of blatant racist aggression.

[Fla Dem]

56. Many words with Master, and yes there is a direct connection to the word Master and slavery, but

should all word/terms with master be replace? Master was being used to describe proficiency and a leader before American slavery.

schoolmaster, postmaster, master key, headmaster, choirmaster, master's degree, masterpiece.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

64. Thank you.

I think the problem with people objecting to terms like "master bedroom" is that they are simply unaware of the many other meanings of the word.

[yardwork]

70. I am not unaware of the various meanings of "master."

However, I would be glad to see use of "master bedroom" replaced with something that doesn't imply southern slave-holding plantations as a marketing strategy.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

77. Somehow, perhaps because I've never lived in the formerly slave-holding south,

I have never in all my life connected the term "master bedroom" with slave holding. Nor as a southern slave-holding plantations marketing strategy. If that's why that term came about, the market strategy is beyond subtle, given that it's taken a century for people to figure it out.

[ProfessorGAC]

67. Primary

Some realtors changed to primary bedroom several years ago. Maybe even 10.
They don't, however, call the other bedrooms, secondary.
I'm not sure why they changed.
May have been the sexist overtones, but I'm only guessing.

[yardwork]

69. The 1920s is when racist ideology was being embedded into everything.

If the term originated in the 1920s I can practically guarantee it was a deliberate reference to plantations. That's the time period when the "moonlight and magnolias" mythology about slavery was being created.

[mr_lebowski]

2. I think I've shared enough times how I feel about things like this, so ...

Consider this as me saying what I usually say at times like this.

[pandr32]

3. It also means "main; principle"

...not to mention a degree such as a " master of...", etc.
I see a "master bedroom" as being the principle one--not the one belonging to the man in charge.

[NurseJackie]

19. Thank you.

[pandr32]

71. You are most welcome!

[Amishman]

73. This, overreach on unrelated stuff just makes us look silly

Do I need to hide my diploma too?

[pandr32]

79. I completely agree

Many words have different meanings. Instead of being a form of address or rank (which is where the objection arises) its origin in Latin is magistrare which has to do with 'more' and 'knowledge' as far as I can tell from quick surfing around--closer to our use of mastery which is why we have "Masters" degrees.
Our "master bedroom" is more than our other bedrooms. More room!
Never, ever have I thought it subjugative.

[smirkymonkey]

4. See definition of "Master"

Master[ mas-ter, mah-ster ]

(noun)

a person with the ability or power to use, control, or dispose of something:
a master of six languages; to be master of one's fate.
an owner of a slave, animal, etc.

(adjective)
being master; exercising mastery; dominant.
chief or principal:
a master list.

(verb) (used with object)

to make oneself master of; become an adept in:
to master a language.
to conquer or overcome:
to master one's pride.

I always just associated it with being the bedroom for the person or couple who was the "head of the household". I didn't really read anything racist or sexist into it. This is the kind of stuff that really turns moderates off to Liberals and Progressives. I just think there are more important things for us to concentrate on right now.

[Hekate]

5. Do I have to change the designation of the Master Key for all the locks as well?

If I start calling the big bedroom with its own bathroom the Mistress Bedroom, suddenly a whole lot of insinuations and sexual jokes unfold.

If I call it the Mommy & Daddy bedroom then single people and people who are either childfree or grieving their childless life will no doubt object.

Okay, it’s the largest bedroom in the house and has its own bathroom. That’s a mouthful to say and won’t fit on a drawing of the floor plan.

[Behind the Aegis]

11. "If I call it the Mommy & Daddy bedroom..."

You missed the heterosexist connotation. Queer people are parents too!



Situations like this remind me of those who are always looking for a problem where none exist. So many molehills, so few mountains; certain people are so busy now.

[Hekate]

13. Bingo! Heterosexism is also implicit in the name. How could I have been so insensitive?!

Thank you, Aegis. Sometimes I think we’ve lost our minds.

[Rollo]

6. Main, or Big, works for me...

[ProfessorGAC]

68. As I Said Above...

...some realtors already call them primary bedrooms.

[Buns_of_Fire]

7. ...

[AnyFunctioningAdult]

8. An object controlling other objects cannot be racist

But please, keep writing articles like that that help Trump.

Everyone knows what master bedroom means. Nothing about it is racist at all. I hate to see so much work being put into helping re-elect Trump.

[Raine]

9. Some people have too much time on their hands

that they can turn something that isn't a problem into one.

[nuxvomica]

10. "Master" was originally tied to the notiion of proficiency

The master was a member of the guild who had achieved "mastery" of his craft, producing "masterpieces", as opposed to the "apprentice", who's skill is incomplete. The "master key" comes from that meaning, as it has the ability to open all the locks. Because apprentices usually lived in the domicile owned and shared by their masters, the latter had the largest bedroom. It is a curious how a term once meant to imply dominance over a skill has evolved to imply dominance over others because society has evolved to somehow equate wealth with virtue.

[Happy Hoosier]

24. Correct... and we still award

Master’s degrees to signify such mastery.

Though the term has also referred to the owner or proprietor of an establishment.

That association with slavery is quite late and narrow.

[nuxvomica]

25. Good point. Unfortunately computer science picked up the later meaning

In some contexts, there is a "master" device or process and one or more "slaves". We used to use that in database replication but now we use "primary" and "replicate", which is more descriptive anyway.

[Happy Hoosier]

38. Yeah, was thinking about that a couple days ago...

I remember setting up hard drives as Masters/Slaves.

But I haven't seen that used in a while. In current job we use "primary" and "subordinate"

[Throckmorton]

80. We dumped slave for satellite in the 80's,

and replaced master with Primary.

Who new that we were so in the vanguard.

[Freddie]

12. Oh FFS.

This is just giving people ammunition.

[DFW]

14. Picasso's "Guernica" is thus no longer a "masterpiece," but a "mainpiece."

"Jack of all trades, principal of none."

Rather than go to extremes, just ditch English as the most prevalent language in the USA, and make it Navajo instead. Then, we can find more pressing issues to which we can direct our attention. You know--poverty, the virus, pollution, corruption, unemployment, voter disenfranchisement, trivial stuff like that.

Not only that, when ignorant Republicans demand that someone "talk American," if they mean Navajo, at least they will really mean an American language instead of English, which is a European language. I have yet to hear a redneck yell at a Mexican demanding they "talk European!"--maybe because English and Spanish are both European languages, neither of which was even heard on the American continent until a little over five centuries ago. Not that more than 1% of rednecks would be aware of that, of course.........

[ChazII]

33. How about ASL it is

easier than Navajo, I believe. Living here in Arizona home to the Navajo nation.

[DFW]

47. I have read some bits about of Navajo grammar

It's downright complicated! But at least it would not have words that would lead to tedious arguments about what's PC to non-native Americans and what isn't. "Don't like our language? We were here first, so go home!"

[ChazII]

57. Good point. I have a friend who taught at a school for the deaf

here in Phoenix. Even within that community there is disagreement on signs.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

44. I'm glad I dropped out of college before getting my "M*****" degree, which would require renaming.

Or does the word "Bachelor" trigger anything? I may need to get out the whiteout. Or just hide the diploma. It's a pointless piece of paper for an old retiree.

[DFW]

46. LOL, I hear ya!

I may not be retired (maybe in 12 years, I'm only 68), but I don't see my BA as being some kind of asset that will advance my career much at this point. Besides, in Germany, they'll just ask University of WHERE?

[RobinA]

58. Well, I Have A Master's

and a Bachelor's and I'm here to say they are misogynist as well as racist! Woman can't be...degreeholders??? Get me some off-white White Out so I can fix these diplomas!

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

65. You can't fix your diplomae until we find a new name for "white-out".

The word "white" can be a trigger. As can the word "out".

We need to start treading very carefully.

[RobinA]

59. Well, I Have A Master's

and a Bachelor's and I'm here to say they are misogynist as well as racist! Woman can't be...degreeholders??? Get me some off-white White Out so I can fix these diplomas!

[Chainfire]

15. Perhaps it is time

to set up an organization to purge words from our language and edit out some of our uncomfortable history.

[ms liberty]

16. I like to look at home floor plans for fun. In the last year or two

I've begun seeing the master suites desigated as "Owners Suite" on home plans. And now I get it. I have never thought of the phrase "Master Suite" being seen as a racist use of "Master" before now, maybe because it's not, not at all. It is Master as in home owner and head of household.
Here's a completely stupid argument about something that we don't need to have, but hey, let's have it anyway! It's the American way. And it's why we can't have nice things.

[Ilsa]

18. Owner's suite? Owner of whom?

We are getting twisted up in etiology that doesn't exist in many cases., I think. I don't care for this.

[CatLady78]

17. I guess they are Trump supporters

or caricatures...

Stuff like this makes liberals seem like caricatures and it makes a joke of serious issues. But importantly, they can also get away with not addressing actual discrimination in housing. I felt the same way about the "manhole" thing, so-called animal activists protesting a city named "fish-kill" etc.

[JHB]

20. Maestro Bedchamber?

Deluxe bedroom?
Super-Sized Suite?

Contextless risk-averse salesagent-speak sleeping quarters?

[jmg257]

21. Were Master Locks originally used on chains of bondage??

Hmmm...
?v=1481234222



Started in 1921, but so darn offensive!
Every such lock around the world should be tossed away...for freedom and equality!!

[milestogo]

22. How about calling it the "mistress" bedroom instead?

I really thought this was going to be about sexism.

[LuckyCharms]

26. How about "Predominant sexual intercourse area"?

[ChazII]

34. That might offend those of us

who are asexual? I am joking even though that IS my category.

[LuckyCharms]

35. OK. "Main Sleeping Area" or "Main Bedroom" then.

[ChazII]

39. You have a good sense of humor. n/t

[LuckyCharms]

41. Thanks, ChazII

[Crunchy Frog]

76. Or those of us who aren't getting any.

[Hortensis]

27. Marketers probably meant to harness the romantic connotations of

the "master and mistress," but only "master" was applied. The master's bedroom.

The term "master" was adopted during what was both the Jim Crow era and femininism's First Wave, and may have had appeal, especially among conservatives, as a counterreaction to feminism.

Frankly, I'm surprised the term survived the Second Wave.

[Igel]

28. Masters degrees are next. n/t

"Main" descends from the word mean "force" and obviously was used in oppression.

Even "doctor" was a theological term for centuries before its growing lexical field finally led to two separate meanings; people may try to ground it in pre-Catholic roots, but that's meaningless. The word "trichloroetylene" is dripping Greek, pre-Catholic lexical roots but nobody seriously would say it means Aristotle removed sap stains using it.

[Hortensis]

30. Mastery of a subject good. Mastery of women/people bad. nt

[Polybius]

29. What bullshit

It’s not like the small one was called the slave bedroom.

[MineralMan]

31. Primary Bedroom would be a good substitute.

[Coventina]

32. are we going to get rid of Masters Degrees? How about master cylinders?

This is getting a little nuts.

Master doesn't just mean one thing.

[Happy Hoosier]

52. We should rename all the degrees....

Bachelor's degree. I mean, married people get them too, amiright? New Name: Basic Degree

Master's degree. Slavery. Ugh. New Name: Advanced Degree

Doctorate. C'mon.... Phd's aren't REAL doctors. New name: Bestest degree

[Baclava]

36. What? They gonna outlaw masterbating next?

[Bengus81]

42. Not with Trump around. Everyone knows he ain't getting any from Mrs. Trophy

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

66. That was so "last year".

Now, all the talk is about "mask debating".

[Crunchy Frog]

78. Only for people who aren't masters of their domain.

[mnhtnbb]

37. I am buying a new house that is being built by a developer

and I'm not the only single woman buyer in the development of 93 houses. The floor plans identify the Owner's Suite and smaller bedroom as Bedroom 2.

[Bengus81]

40. This is just getting silly..........

How many words in the English language have more than one meaning?

[Kaleva]

43. Changing the name isn't going to change the fact that the top dog(s) has the best bedroom

[angstlessk]

45. Why not change the term used to describe slave owners?

He/she was not a 'master' he/she was a prick!

There all fixed.

[SiliconValley_Dem]

48. this is the kindof bullshit that helps cons and RW idiots caricature progressives

and therefore the Dem party. I would say greater than 95% of people have not been triggerred or even given a second thought to the term Master Bedroom. A waste of time when we could be doing thi gs so mich more substantive re: racism and showing support for BLM.

[JHB]

51. This is coming from real estate brokers...

Is there really much call to change this from the general public, or specifically progressives for that matter, or is it just flailing about for "why aren't millennials buying homes in the numbers previous generations did?"

[SiliconValley_Dem]

49. And here we have the Big ass bedroom

We like to call this the processed meat patty of your McMansion.

[BannonsLiver]

50. Now will Master Lock be changing their name too?

Seriously this is ripshit crazy.

[Devil Child]

63. I'm now questioning my decision to graduate with a Master of Social Work.

The insanity seems limitless.

[Hugin]

53. Egads! What next? The Drawing Room or the Car Hole?

Where will I draw? Where will I hitch the wagon and team?

The Fancy Eating Room?

The S&M community will be outraged.

Seriously, though... I don't believe I've ever used a 'Master Bedroom' for it's named purpose. I've always slept in one of the regular bedrooms and used the larger bedroom with it's own bath as an additional family space.

[Liberal In Texas]

54. Put me in the NO column on this one.

The word has way more meanings than someone who was a slave owner.

[frazzled]

61. Well, it's definitely a male term as well

No one has much objected to that connotation yet, even though it's a room that a man and woman, or woman and woman (or man and man, though they're safe on that count) share.

Count me in the "this is pure silliness" camp, but on the other hand, I'm fine with "main bedroom."

[cabot]

55. In my family, we just called it the big bedroom

We weren't well-off enough to rent or own a home that was fancy enough to have a master bedroom. And the person who got the big bedroom was the one who paid the bills.

[Devil Child]

60. NY Real Estate community has just ended racism in our time.

[ismnotwasm]

62. Which words have power and which don't?

Who decides?

Language carries cultural freight, language *is* culture to a certain extent.

I always enjoy seeing reactions to this word or that, especially my own.

[LuckyCharms]

72. They should change "Masturbate" to "Journeymanbate"

[Crunchy Frog]

74. Yes, but are you still Master Of Your Domain?

They'll have to remove that episode from Seinfeld.

[lame54]

75. Football team