This summer, I was made aware that there are certain subtle differences in political correctness between the US and Canada. Now while I realise that we tend to be a bit more uptight about things like that up here I am really surprised by this one.
I’m watching a remarkable show on CNN called Autism Is A World. I’m currently in the process of being blown away by this individual’s story. She is an autistic adult with a 133 IQ. She’s now studying towards a college degree. If you have any interest in the life of the mentally handicapped then you really should watch this. It’s quite a stunning show.
But there’s one thing that kind of rubs me the wrong way. Apparently using the word “retarded” on TV in the US is not only acceptable but perfectly normal. I never realised that we had gotten rid of the word in public discourse, but once someone told me about that this summer, I started noticing the difference on US channels.
Even the girl’s mother was referring to her as being retarded. Now I’m not criticizing her or the on-air people for it, I just found it a little jarring. When you’re not used to hearing a word outside of insults and derogatory comments and then you hear a news anchor use the word, it can catch you off-guard. Especially since our news anchors wouldn’t use the word.
I guess I’m just intrigued by my natural reaction to it all.
As a final note though, watch the show if you get a chance. It’s really amazing to learn about how this person lives her life.
Canada, politically correct, US
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2 responses so far ↓
1 Ian // Dec 2, 2006 at 7:45 pm
Another victim of political correctness.
I never understood the continual redefinition of words as old ones were deemed offensive. These words all have (or at least had) a specific meaning. “Retarded” isn’t intrinsically offensive, it means that growth has been in some way delayed or blocked. Instead of sticking with that now, we have a whole slew of words/phrases. Developmentally challenged. Learning disability. Differently abled. $X impaired. If, heaven forbid, you use whichever is out of fashion this month you’re a monster.
What really gets me is that the people who are differently abled/impaired/disabled/whatever tend to be irritated with the politically correct phrasing too. A guy I knew in Ontario would complain if you called him anything fancier than “disabled”. Sean Smith has been known to correct people who call him “Hearing-impaired” instead of “Deaf”.
The really jarring thing from your write-up to me, though, is hearing someone with an IQ of 133 referred to as retarded.
2 Sean // Dec 6, 2006 at 12:08 am
Yes, I have been known to tell correct people that tell me I am ‘hearing impaired’, or some other politically correct term, in favor of ‘deaf’. Hey, I’m deaf. Completely and utterly, unless I use a cochlear implant. I usually only take offence when people try to correct my own usage however. For some reason it really annoys me when someone goes “no, no, you aren’t deaf, you are only hearing impaired”.
I agree with Iain that politically correct terms become a trend. When one stops working for people, they just move on to another one rather than focusing on what I believe is more important: education. We don’t need to educate people on the politically correct terms so much as the conditions they supposedly describe.
I’m deaf, I accept that, so why must people use fancy words to make themselves feel better about my disability?