This may seem a strange thing to do a post on, but it's seeming to become more relevant. We've all probably heard the term "politically correct," and probably don't think very highly of things that fall under that label.
There are times when political correctness does become ridiculous. I've heard of cases where hate groups instead become labeled as "unhappy groups" in the guise of political correctness.
On the other hand, there are words that really are best to be treated as curse words. To name a few examples (only as examples of such words, don't take offense) - niggers, kikes, chinks, crackers, wetbacks, and several others. Those were terms that were made up exclusively as insults with no technical relevance or benevolent intention. So those I am all for treating as swear words, and in general discourage the use of, except in proper context in theater and writing (keep history in mind - I don't support the N-word having been edited out of Mark Twain's work) and of course in giving examples (lest I make myself a hypocrite).
But, we have another category here - what about technical words that have become insults?
Unofficially, said word has been treated as a swear word or insult for decades now. But there was a time that it was the proper technical word for a condition. The dictionary definitions can be found here. Basically, it means "delayed" or "slowed down." Now government documents use such terms as intellectually disabled, other organizations take it a step further and say "differently-abled." I'm not against terminology changing, although I think "differently-abled" is a bit... hmm... flowery? I'm all for treating people with disabilities with dignity and respect, but there are of course those who take offense at it being labeled as a disability. It does affect the quality of one's life and inhibits independence, so by definition, it is a disability.
I don't know... I'm of two minds on this. On the one hand, the more sentimental part of me supports this effort. I can understand how it may make people feel for a descriptive term of themselves to be used as an insult. On the other hand, the more technical part of my mind says that this word shouldn't fall into the ranks of the racial slurs and insults, even if it unofficially has. Let it be one of those things where the more intelligent/enlightened ones keep the true meaning of the word in mind. Keep in mind that there have been similar efforts on this same issue. Remember how "special" became such a loaded word?
Thoughts, anyone?
This is a graphic from an old MAD magazine in regards to prejudice and inequality:
I think you summed it up quite nicely when you mentioned that certain words were designed with hate ("unhappiness?") in mind and should be treated as curse words; but that words with concise meanings like "retarded" ought to be kept.
ReplyDeleteMy mother-in-law used to work with disabled people professionally (she still volunteers as a care taker for friends and at church sometimes). Since she lives with us it's an issue that hits a little closer to home. "Mentally challenged" is the phrase she most prefers to use I think, though she's not averse to "retarded" either. Generally she doesn't mind people using it as a descriptor for people who actually are physically/ mentally retarded. The issue becomes when people use it as an insult for people who are clearly not literally retarded.