> What was wrong with a "be bolder"/"be more assertive"/"don't be afraid of taking credit for your work"?
I don't see those as useful since it doesn't provide the person any actual guidance or reference point. What does assertive mean? What should I exactly do? How do I do it? "Act like X" provides a well known reference point that they can use to adjust their behavior based on. They can remember all the times they've seen X do something in a similar situation and then just act like that.
"Act like X" in this situation is not a well known reference point and not a good way to express the idea. Know how we know that? Because the person who said it offended someone and then got reported. Please, quit trying to justify using racially-charged language in this situation
By that definition of something being problematic "someone you said it to got offended" the OP has resolved the issue. Now people he talks to no longer are offended by what he says. I suspect however that you don't like his solution to the problem even though it resolves the very definition of it being an issue you bring up.
It doesn't actually resolve anything. Just because someone passed a test to see if X was offensive, it doesn't mean they won't find Y offensive. So no, I don't like this 'solution', because it's not a good one. It takes risk where none is needed.
If you want to make it super explicit, come up with examples. "Be bolder, for example for this project I saw you doing 80% of the work, you should get to headline the presentation and have top billing on the authors page".
"Act like X" is also potentially useful, if you make it explicit. Explicit is not "Act like a white man" (whaaaa?). Explicit: is "Act like Bob, for example do you remember when HR said he couldn't have a new screen and he insisted"?
But all that does in practice is that only those who can come up with perfectly worded advice on the spot that will not offend anyone will be giving advice to people who might become offended. Which actually hurts the underprivileged since they will now receive a significantly reduced amount of advice.
I don't see those as useful since it doesn't provide the person any actual guidance or reference point. What does assertive mean? What should I exactly do? How do I do it? "Act like X" provides a well known reference point that they can use to adjust their behavior based on. They can remember all the times they've seen X do something in a similar situation and then just act like that.