voicism
(VOYS.iz.um)
n.
Discriminating against or stereotyping a person because of the sound of their voice. —adj., n. voicist. Also: voice-ism, voice-ist.
Example Citation:
Alex has difficulty with speech, meaning he can't pronounce sounds as expected for his age, and people don't always understand him. . . . Alex has taught me a lot about helping children with speech problems by his candid opinion of speech therapy. He's also taught me about "voicism" from his experiences. Helping children to communicate more effectively when they are young should reduce the effects of "voicism" and hopefully help others see the child, not the speech problem.
—Lynne Sherriff, "Take sting out of 'voicism'," The Hamilton Spectator, May 10, 2002
Earliest Citation:
Walden was only the first of Mr Hattersley's appearances yesterday. Later, on Star Chamber (Channel 4), he was interrogated by a computer. Here was a political interview which would, you felt, have benefited from Nicam Digital Stereo, enabling us to savour in full Mr Hattersley's amusing impression of Ken Livingstone's nasal twang (a surprisingly voicist slur from someone who recently accused Chris Patten of sneering about his own speech impediment).
—Mark Steyn, "Walden it be luvverly?," Evening Standard, February 17, 1992
Notes:
Given the admirably nuanced appreciation that the British have for accents, the apparently Britannic origin of today's word is, not expected, exactly, but let's call it unsurprising:
