the euphemism treadmill is a description of linguistic patterns, not a get out of rule free card
the euphemism treadmill is a description of linguistic patterns, not a get out of rule free card
Using ableist language as insults is always bad, even if the words seem innocuous. Some may reference the "euphemism treadmill" to try to justify their behavior, but it's crucial to understand that the treadmill is merely a linguistic observation. It does not exist to normalize ableist behavior.
what is the euphemism treadmill for those who dont want to google
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Neurodivergent isn’t an insult…
"Cisgender" isn't an insult either, but that doesn't stop Elon Musk and his flunkies from treating it as such.
mega fax
correct, it’s not (or shouldn’t be), but it’s being used as one, especially recently!
precontext: i said i could see both sides of some non-important debate. something about whether a community mod should be heavy or light with bans, and i was like, “well it depends on what the motivations and needs are.”
their response to that?
in this post i hope to call attention to the same destructive processes happening to “neurodiverse” as to all the other terms. particularly i want to call out the ableist motivations behind it.
It's an insult because of intent, not because of the word itself, though.
oh absolutely :) would never disagree with you here 💯💯💯
You can use gay, homosexual, homo habilis as insults
That doesnt make these words bad
precisely? never said otherwise :) to quote another person right in this thread whom i agree with:
It’s an insult because of intent, not because of the word itself, though.
Not YET!
With that theory, any word could become an insult.
Bingo. I assumed more people understood this, so I apologize for not communicating clearly. Any word can become an insult—with the right people in control. What’s particularly hurtful is seeing words that marginalized or oppressed groups use to describe their own experiences being co-opted and turned into insults, reinforcing their otherness.
It happened with “retard,” as with “idiot,” and so many others. Recently, I’ve seen it happen with more niche phrases (look up “is X acoustic” if you’re unfamiliar). Just the other day, I made a comment that I could see two perspectives on a matter. Instead of simply calling me wrong, someone said, “You must be neurodivergent, you’re so gullible.” In that context, “neurodivergent” was clearly being used as a stand-in for the r-slur.
To be clear, I am not against any language. I’m against the weaponizing of language.
👍🏻
What’s interesting about the word retard specifically is it’s still used as a technical term that has nothing to do with developmental disabilities - for example, fire retardant - to slow/stop something.
right, i mean thats just kind of a side effect of language existing
a similar concept appears in the terms “dumbwaiter,” “dumbfounded,” “dumbstruck” wherein “dumb” literally just meant mechanical/nonspeaking, and had none of the other implications of disability-related muteness it has now.
obviously “dumb” carries a lot less weight these days than the r slur, but the existence of etymologically related terms doesn’t give an “out” to people using them for offense and denigration in either case
but the existence of etymologically related terms doesn’t give an “out” to people using them for offense and denigration in either case
Never said it did. I remember the first time I saw retard being used in a technical sense and being thrown by it’s usage in todays world. Ultimately though you can’t police language, people are gonna say whatever dumb shit they want, doesn’t mean you have to listen. And no, anyone using “dumb” or “idiot” today is not referring to disabled people, those words stopped being used to describe disabled people multiple decades ago and are far removed from being associated with disabled people. Retard is a lot more recent, but even as a kid growing up in the 90s where calling people gay, queer and faggots were acceptable, even retard used as a slur back then was frowned upon.
Never said it did.
no worries! i wasn’t saying you said that, just returning to the thesis of my post :)
again, as i said two comments above. this is a descriptive post, not perscriptive. my main concern is to make people aware of the pattern, not to tell them what to do about it.
Correct
That's the attitude one would expect from such a high class individual.