swa#9

In Lynn Harris's The "Retarded" Renaissance she quotes Gail Williamson, a mother of a child who has down syndrome, as saying that the word "retarded" is hate speech. She says, "Bud do we need to ban the word entirely? Not necessarily...But we do have moral and societal guidelines that limit the use for the other derogatory words. Were just saying this word needs to be added to that list. It is hate speech."
1) I agree with Gail Williamson. The word retarded gets thrown around and is used so often that kids forget the true meaning behind the word and often unintentionally offend people. There is a large crowd that is involved in the "retarded" society. People say that they don't actually mean that the person is retarded when they call someone it, but in fact that are using the word to describe the person's actions to make fun of them and by calling them a retard they are actually making fun of people that actually have special needs. So in that sense calling some one a retard is hate speech.

2) I disagree with Gail Williamson. In today's society the word retard had taken on a new meaning. People use the word to jest and poke fun at their loved ones when they are acting stupid. In now way shape or form are they intending to make fun of people that require special needs. It is simply just all in fun and games. Hate speech is where a individual is purposely seeking out to harm an individual or a group and to demean their way of living. In no way are people that joke around and call people retarded trying to demean people that are actually mentally challenged.