It is an unfortunate practice in the STEM community to use the terms 'master' and 'slave' when referring to software/firmware where one device has control over other elements of the system. This is an unnecessary use of these hurtful terms which are loaded with the history of slavery and subjugation. Stumbling across these terms while reading an academic paper can be triggering and upsetting for obvious reasons. There are numerous other terms that can be used to describe these relationships. GitHub has already agreed to limit the use of these terms, acknowledging their offensiveness. Alternatives include "main/default/primary" and "secondary" and these terms can and should be adopted. We are calling on STEM institutions, especially those that publish academic papers, to create new rules banning the use of these terms in journals, conferences, books, and other outlets of the scientific and computing community. This small but meaningful step can be the first part of a larger movement to unpack the anti-Black racism that exists in the STEM community. 

“Blacklists” and “whitelists”: a salutary warning concerning the prevalence of racist language in discussions of predatory publishing​

It’s Time for IEEE to Retire ‘Master / Slave’

Photo Credit: Illustration: Sam Whitney