Help Us End the R-Word

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Originally Posted by Strangler Lewis

Okay, I'll play devil's advocate. While I don't condone making fun of disabled people, I feel that the word is often an apt criticism of the presumptively abled--even though I think it more than say it. If we can't say "retard," may one/must one then say, "He repeatedly engages in conduct, the foolishness of which should be obvious to anyone of even borderline normal intelligence"?

No. “Retard” is a slur. “Retarded” works in a developmental context to describe intellectual development. It's nicer and more accurate to keep the linguistic focus on the individual, not the disability.

Call my brother developmentally disabled, autistic, or impaired. Call him a "retard" and all bets are off.