The R Word

I was going to stay out of this particular fracas, as it seemed like the kind of thing that didn't need any more attention paid to it. A lot of the blogs I read have weighed in on the issue, which is whether or not to boycott Ben Stiller's new film, Tropic Thunder. (I won't link to it for reasons made obvious later.)

Then I read some of the comments on an entertainment gossip site. The majority of comments were supportive of the film. The clearly intelligent, informed and sensitive readers of Perez Hilton offered up such wisdom as "I still want to see it. I love Ben Stiller. Im sure its not that bad. Those people need to quit being so friggin sensitive. " and "iM SEEING IT! PEOPLE ARE jUST TOO DAMN SENSiTiVE NOW DAYS!" [sic]

Hmmm. Food for thought, most definitely. Granted, I have not seen the film. What I do know is that Stiller's character in Tropic Thunder, an actor, attempts to play a person with a cognitive disability in order to secure an academy award nomination. Said character is referred to as a "retard" and the expression "Never go full retard" is used in the film. Those are the facts.

Mr. Stiller and his supporters have claimed that if you don't think it's funny, you are not clever enough to get the joke--that he's making fun of people who don't understand disability. High concept comedy, indeed. That cleverness and "free speech" appear to cloak Mr. Stiller in Teflon. Some of us are clever enough, however, to see that what really protects Mr. Stiller is that most people in this country do not care enough about the rights of the disabled to make a fuss about this issue. The rest of us are "too sensitive". Mr. Stiller and others are able to freely ridicule people with developmental disabilities because it is the last publicly acceptable prejudice in our society.

Now let's consider another word that has a tumultuous history in this country--the N word. I won't write or say it. I can barely even think it, but you know the word I mean.

This word was developed by oppressors to keep another group of people down; to keep them in their place. It was born of hate, ignorance and fear. It was (and is) used to insult, to demean, and to assign inferiority.

Can we not say the same things about the R word?

A funny thing happens when an oppressed group begins to take back its power. Members of the group take ownership of the words that were used against them. We have seen it happen with the N word and with "queer". Whether or not black people should use the N word is not for me to debate, as I am white. I only know I will not use it and will make my feelings clear if people use it in my presence.

It will be a happy day if people with disabilities gain the rights and privileges of the non-disabled, if they ever are accepted into mainstream society without fear, ignorance or shame. Perhaps on that day, they can claim the R word for their very own. Until then, do I think people like Mr. Stiller should be banned from using it? No. But I will vote with my wallet and not see his film. And I will hope and pray for the day when a movie that uses the word "retard" won't get made at all--because no one will think it's funny.