Ethnonyms
The only acceptable English language alternative to the term "Polish person" (man, and woman) today is Pole (see also: Naming Poland in foreign languages). In some other languages such as Swedish, Norwegian or Portuguese e.g., Polack, Polakk or Polaco is an acceptable expression for a person from Poland. In Russian and Ukrainian the old exonym "лях" (lyakh, lyakhy) is now considered offensive, and is replaced by the neutral "поляк" (polyak).
On July 26, 2008, The Times newspaper from the United Kingdom featured a comment piece by restaurant reviewer and columnist Giles Coren (known for his profanity-strewn complaints), containing general anti-Polish sentiment. In a piece, entitled "Two waves of immigration, Poles apart" Coren used the racial slur 'Polack' to describe Polish immigrants who can "clear off". He went on to articulate his views about the role of Poles in the Holocaust in Poland. The piece prompted a letter of complaint to The Times from the Polish ambassador to the UK, Barbara Tuge-Erecinska. She wrote that "the issue of Polish-Jewish relations has been unfairly and deeply falsified" by his "aggressive remarks" and "contempt". Coren's comments caused the Federation of Poles in Great Britain to demand a published apology from The Times under threat of an official complaint to the Press Complaints Commission, which has the power to force an apology.
Read more about this topic: Polack