I was watching John McGinley (of Scrubs fame) on the Bonnie Hunt Show and I kept looking at his shirt thinking I would need to look up what this means: "Spread The Word To End The Word 03-31-09." Later on he explained his involvement with Special Olympics with his son who was born with Down Syndrome. While attending a Special Olympics Youth Summit in Idaho a group of athletes and John McGinley wrote a letter to Bill O'Reilly after the "r" (retarded) word was used to make demeaning remarks (to his credit, O'Reilly attempted to demonstrate sensitivity for the remarks). Advocates for The Special Olympics are now campaigning to end the use of the "r" word in a way that many have been accustomed to using for a very long time--including me. I am feeling very shamed as I cannot believe that I have so openly used this word for too long--and that I never gave enough thought to this!
However, I know I can change! This entire realization reminds me of my overuse and misuse of the term "gay." As a kid and teenager I would use the word to also make demeaning remarks about something that might look unfamiliar to me or to suggest that a particular person was doing something that I did not understand or agree with. But this changed when my very near and dear friend explained that he is gay. I could write a book about the way my life changed in the most wondrous way after that day, but I will abbreviate and, instead say that I stopped using "gay" and any word similar as a way to make unnecessary and painful remarks . . .that was almost 20 years ago.
Shamefully, I have used the "r" word and today I will stop. I love the notion of free speech and do not ask others to change their speech on my behalf, and that includes cursing/cussing, as I truly believe certain terms allow us to find our voice. However, utilizing terms such as retarded and gay, in irrelevant ways, serve one purpose and that is to strip the opportunity for everyone to have an equally relevant voice.
No comments:
Post a Comment