Rep. Eli Crane, R-Ariz. referred to Black people as "colored people" Thursday in floor debate over his proposed amendment to an annual defense policy bill, prompting a stern rebuke from the former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. Lawmakers were debating a series of GOP-backed amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act, which the House aims to pass by the end of the week.
The study you quoted isn’t the same thing. It would be more like comparing “people of color” with “coloreds”. And to your point about how tall people aren’t marginalized, that’s kind of my point. “Colored people” is offensive because it’s been used derogatorily for so long, not because of the word order. That same wikipedia article points out that there are several marginalized groups that reject people first language. It mentions Deaf and autistic people, but anecdotally I’ve never seen anyone take offense to “gay people” or “trans people” either. It’s just the specific history of the adjective “colored” being applied to people that makes the difference.