A New Word to Challenge Everyday Racism
Malak Foundation launches Another IQjack?, a new language and awareness initiative encouraging people to recognise and respectfully challenge racial prejudice in workplaces, communities and everyday conversations.
Racism is not always loud or openly hostile. Sometimes, it appears in casual remarks, workplace assumptions, social media comments or jokes dismissed as harmless banter.
While societies have made progress in recognising discrimination, everyday racism continues to find new ways to enter our conversations, particularly through digital platforms where comments can spread rapidly and often go unchallenged.
At Malak Foundation, we believe that changing behaviour sometimes begins with changing the language we use to describe it.
That thinking led our team to develop IQjack, a newly coined, gender-neutral expression designed to make casual racism easier to recognise, challenge and discuss.
What does IQjack mean?
IQjack (noun): A person whose judgement is distorted by racial prejudice, or who introduces racist remarks, stereotypes or discriminatory assumptions into a conversation, particularly under the guise of humour, personal opinion or casual banter.
IQjacking (verb): Introducing racial prejudice or discriminatory stereotypes into an otherwise ordinary conversation.
IQjacked (adjective): Describing a remark or judgement distorted by racial prejudice.
The expression combines two ideas: prejudice hijacking someone's judgement and someone hijacking a conversation through racism.
It does not refer to a person's measured intelligence, nor does it target any particular race, nationality, gender or cultural background.
The word has also been submitted to dictionary platforms as part of our efforts to document its meaning and encourage wider public discussion.
Giving people a simple way to challenge prejudice
Imagine a workplace discussion about someone's professional capabilities.
A colleague makes an assumption about that person's suitability based on their ethnicity rather than their experience or qualifications.
Instead of allowing the comment to pass unchallenged, someone might respond:
"That sounds like an IQjack moment. What evidence supports that assumption?"
The aim is not to embarrass or label someone permanently. It is to encourage reflection, question stereotypes and return the conversation to fairness and evidence.
We also recognise that difficult questions, respectful disagreements and genuine cultural curiosity should not automatically be labelled racist.
IQjack is intended to challenge prejudiced behaviour, not silence discussion.
Introducing AnotherIQjack.com
To bring the concept into everyday use, Malak Foundation has launched AnotherIQjack.com, an interactive awareness website that combines education, humour and practical conversation tools.
Visitors can:
Spot the IQjack: Explore everyday scenarios and distinguish racial prejudice from legitimate disagreement or respectful curiosity.
Practise constructive responses: Learn ways to challenge harmful remarks without unnecessarily escalating conversations.
Create and share reaction cards: Help introduce the expression through social media and everyday communication.
Explore workplace examples: Discover practical language for challenging stereotypes and discriminatory assumptions.
Learn about the word: Understand its meaning, intended usage and origin.
The website is free to access and does not require visitors to create an account.
A word for everyone
One of our core principles is that racism is not exclusive to any race, nationality or community. Anyone can experience prejudice, and everyone has a responsibility to challenge it.
That is why IQjack has been designed as a gender-neutral and culturally neutral expression.
Our ambition is not to turn the word into another insult, but to provide a shared language that people can adopt naturally in workplaces, schools, communities, sporting environments and online conversations.
Language alone will not eliminate racism. However, accessible expressions can help people recognise behaviour that might otherwise be ignored or normalised.
An invitation to participate
IQjack was proposed in October 2026 by Fawaz F. Ateem and the team at Malak Foundation in Australia. It is a newly introduced expression, and its wider adoption will depend on whether people find it useful in real conversations.
We invite educators, employers, community organisations, content creators and individuals from all backgrounds to explore the idea, question it, improve it and consider its practical use.
Our hope is that IQjack becomes more than a word introduced by one organisation. We want it to become a useful expression that people can make their own.
Racism has no race. Challenging it is everyone's responsibility.
One new word. A conversation for everyone.
Explore the initiative
Website: anotheriqjack.com
Definition and origin: What is IQjack?
Community dictionary entry: IQjack — Definitions.net
An initiative of Malak Foundation Incorporated, Australia — promoting inclusion, respectful dialogue and stronger communities.
