The Arc memo: Prepare for ‘massive action’ on ‘Tropic Thunder’
August 7th, 2008
In a memo sent out on August 5, Peter V. Berns, executive director of The Arc of the United States, advised state and chapter leaders of the 140,000-member organization to prepare for a possible mass boycott and protest against “Tropic Thunder.”
The memo was sent out in advance of a scheduled Wednesday meeting between representatives of national disability rights organizations and executives of DreamWorks Pictures, makers of the big-budget comedy starring Ben Stiller that is due to be released next week.
Advocates had requested the meeting to state their objections to the use of the word “retard” in the film’s script and promotional materials, and to raise concerns about what they termed negative portrayals of a person with an intellectual disability.
In the memo, Berns said:
Depending on the outcome of the meeting, one option being considered is to call for a national boycott of the film and to urge state and local chapters of The Arc to go to the movies on August 13, 2008 with protest signs as well as appropriate informational literature.
… In short, please do your best to begin preparations for a massive action. Again, we will be back to you with further information after the meeting.
– Peter
The memo also said the organization is developing materials to help advocates explain why they view the word “retard” as hate speech, and laid out possible action steps for local leaders in organizing against the film.
The Arc of the United States is a membership organization that represents people with intellectual and developmental disabilities across the country. Its mission includes promoting and protecting their civil rights.
See previous: Meeting set between studio, rights coalition
This entry was posted
on Thursday, August 7th, 2008 at 7:58 am and is filed under NOT2BEMISSED, Tropic Thunder, advocacy, celebrities, intellectual/developmental disabilities, language, media, movies, public attitudes.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Email This Post
Our RSS Feed
August 18th, 2008 at 11:54 am
None of you idiots have even seen the movie. There are SO MANY better things to protest in this country than wasting your time on this movie. You protesters are as stupid as the “Simple Jack” character you say you don’t like. Go protest your hearts out, idiots. You will only end up promoting the movie you wish to stop.
August 12th, 2008 at 9:33 am
Well done. I’m sure Paramount/Dreamworks appreciates the free publicity. You’ve been played for suckers and in the process have undermined your own very worthwhile cause. I thought it was a Paramount viral marketing campaign, but it’s bafflingly real. Look up the Streisand Effect sometime.
August 11th, 2008 at 11:38 pm
This is appalling! People with disabilities have to work a hundred times harder for things then the average person does. We should encourage them and love them not make them the butt of the joke! I want to know where the different protest sites are so that I can be apart! I am boycotting the movie and I also started a group on the social networking site, Facebook, that I invited all my friends too that shows how horrible this movie is, and how they shouldn’t give their money to such garbage. My brother is both mentally and physically handicapped and it is hard enough as it is with people staring, laughing, and calling him a “retard”. Shame on Dreamworks, Paramount, and the actors that find this sick and twisted movie funny!
August 9th, 2008 at 10:06 am
Reading this is so discouraging. We advocate for our son constantly and try to promote respect for others, but we can only reach people one at a time. This will go out to millions. I feel like crying.
August 8th, 2008 at 4:21 pm
Lets go protest the heck out of this movie, it’s time we parents and advocates take a stand! I am ready!
August 7th, 2008 at 8:31 pm
Don’t the individuals with disabilities have enough obstacles to contend with without being ridiculed and laughed at for something they cannot control. I would have expected better judgment from these writers and actors. “Retard” is an offensive term and I am afraid that this movie will make it a mainstream phrase. Remember all the Napoleon Dynamite phrases? Come on, people! We are better than this trash! Don’t make us wish the screen writers were still on strike!
August 7th, 2008 at 2:18 pm
I feel that this is very sad, and discouraging. How much have we really grown from our past? Do we as a nation, ever learn to value and respect the people that make up our communities? A real community does not exclude anybody.
August 7th, 2008 at 10:39 am
I know that the filmmakers and Ben Stiller will say that the movie is attempting to mock the film industry, but they are neglecting to realize that there are many other lenses from which to look at this movie. Will children/teens understand or care about this message? I can just hear that line “don’t go full retard” being echoed in school halls. It’s so hard to believe that the people involved in this film did not consider how people with intellectual disabilities would view this movie and how could they not be offended?
August 7th, 2008 at 10:38 am
Anonymous: Ooh…if that’s the case regarding the entire movie, that makes the points I made in my own post analyzing the trailer, in which I contrasted how it handled issues of race and disability, even more salient.
August 7th, 2008 at 9:53 am
Patricia, my hat’s off to you for your work in making this issue a public debate. When I search the web I see the disability point of view everywhere. I had not heard of this controversy until your blog, and I have been able to respond in a small way to the issue. Without your work and leadership this would not have been possible.
Thank you.
August 7th, 2008 at 9:31 am
I saw an advance screening of ‘Tropic Thunder,’ and here’s what I thought:
1. There is one scene (“Never go full retard”), that is horribly offensive.
2. The scene is not critical to the narrative of the movie.
3. The studio will argue that the scene is between two unappealing characters, which is true, though it doesn’t make the scene any less offensive.
4. The movie is not an equal opportunity offender: The only other people who are made fun of are white, self-absorbed, Hollywood actors; hardly a class of people in need of protection.
5. What is heartbreaking is that the offending scene gets the biggest laughs.
6. We have a long, hard battle ahead of us.
From a parent