NPR: Rethinking 'the R-word'
(Retarded) Should It Leave The Lexicon? by Neda Ulaby 9/8/09, via Johanna at the
Down-syn Discussion Group.
" ...
E. Duff Wrobbel never gave the word much thought � until his daughter
was born with Down syndrome. When she was just a baby, Wrobbel was
driving with her when another car cut them off.
"And I actually said that word," says Wrobbel, who is a professor of speech communications. "And then I stopped my car and got teary. And I thought, 'Oh my gosh, I can't believe I just said that.' "
Now, Wrobbel has joined other activists who campaign against the word ... To them, it's not a hilarious put-down; it's hate speech. ..."
"... What happens is, if you're lucky, you come to understand those words describe actual human beings."
"...It's not about freedom of speech," the Feltys write on their Website. "Its simply about respect."..."