The times they are a changing Monty. In the case of Thomas it actually looks more like expanding marketing opportunities than political correctness, otherwise The Fat Controller would bite the dust or only be referred to as Sir Topham Hat as he is here.
Where I work our new Director of Diversity and Inclusion has introduced five focus groups for Women, Blacks, Latinos, Asian American/Pacific Islanders and Queers. Not sure where that includes me
(and before anyone presses the complain button, I work with a number of LGBTQ people who often use the term 'queer' to describe themselves)