By Washington Post columnist Michael Gerson.

Refuting an op-ed in support of the use of the word “retard,” Gerson says what is worst about the current public conversation is “a dismissive attitude toward the struggles of the disabled.”

People who wish to understand the context of the current debate, Gerson says, would do well to study a prominent 20th century American movement that sought to direct human evolution by eliminating the supply of people with developmental and physical disabilities in the population. Called the eugenics movement, it targeted for elimination a number of groups identified as “socially unfit,” including the “feebleminded,” “epileptics,” the “insane,” the “deformed,” and the “deaf.” Forced sterilization of the “unfit” was endorsed by the U.S. Supreme Court and did not end in the United States until the 1970s.

An excerpt:

Given this history, the r-word does not seem so innocuous. And defending it does not seem so heroic. [Christopher M.] Fairman can have his cherished f-word, which merely soils and trivializes the sex act. But defending the r-word is not the protection of free expression; it is the defense of bullies.

… There is not an exact correlation between vileness of speech and vileness of character, but there is a rough correlation. Words such as the r-word and the n-word often reveal aggression, contempt and hatred. They are a form of verbal violence. In these cases, what Fairman calls “self-censorship” is really kindness and moral judgment. And what he regards as free expression is just rude, abusive and cruel.

… Yes, government involvement in the censorship of words is dangerous. But what the Special Olympics is proposing –- encouraging people to take a personal pledge against the derogatory use of the r-word –- is not government censorship, it is social stigma. In this case, such stigma is a sign of moral maturity.

I have signed the pledge at www.r-word.org. I hope you do as well.

Related columns by Michael Gerson.

Writing in the Washington Post, Ohio State University professor Christopher M. Fairman opposes what he describes as efforts to censor the use of the word “retard.” An excerpt:

It’s not that I’ve come to praise the word “retard”; I just don’t think we should bury it. If the history of offensive terms in America shows anything, it is that words themselves are not the culprit; the meaning we attach to them is, and such meanings change dramatically over time and across communities.

… If interest groups want to pour resources into cleaning up unintentional insults, more power to them; we surely would benefit from greater kindness to one another. But we must not let “retard” go without a requiem. If the goal is to protect intellectually disabled individuals from put-downs and prejudice, it won’t succeed. New words of insult will replace old ones.

Words are ideas, and we should be reluctant to surrender any of them. Freedom of expression has come at a dear price, and it is not worth abridging, even so we can get along a little better. That’s one F-word we really can’t do without.

Washington Post columnist Kathleen Parker says Sarah Palin’s failure to reprimand Rush Limbaugh for his repeated use of the “R-word” serves to demonstrate that she has been “using her child as a political tool.” An excerpt:

Might Trig someday read his mother’s abortion thoughts and find them hurtful?

… Celebrities who embrace causes are valuable players in raising awareness and advancing policy. That said, the degree to which one uses another’s circumstances to achieve those ends requires a studious self-awareness that seems lacking in the equation of Trig and his mother.

Perhaps the erstwhile governor still thinks in first-person plural, viewing Trig as part of herself. But he is also a separate individual deserving of privacy, if unable to say the words she needs to hear: “No more, Mama, please.”

Writing in the [Toronto] Canada Free Press, Diane Grover explains why she wishes people would stop using the ‘R-word’ as an insult. An excerpt:

You see, it is personal. I spent many dark nights, crying over the words they are laughing about. They haunted me by day, and put fear into me by night. I had to learn their true meaning, and push forward to accept them. And I did! And so, when they use them so casually, to describe how they feel about people they do not respect, well, truly, it hurts my mama’s heart. It took me a long time to understand what these words would mean to my daughter. Yes, she is slow to learn. But she is more than that. She is a champion. She is a star. She is my daughter. If they want to know why those words hurt me, all they have to do is meet her, and they would understand. She is more than her diagnosis.

… My daughter is my hero! Please, think of her the next time you almost say those words. And on her behalf, don’t!

CNN Political Analyst Roland Martin says Sarah Palin should have confronted Rush Limbaugh over his repeated use of the “R-word.” An excerpt:

As the mother of a child with Down syndrome, Palin has often used her bully pulpit to demand respect for the mentally challenged. Nothing wrong with that. It is an issue that is close to her heart, and she should be a fierce advocate for them.

Yet when one of her biggest supporters, conservative radio talk-show host Rush Limbaugh, also castigated liberals by calling them “retards,” Palin provided him cover, even trying to explain away his comments.

… Sarah, when you hold yourself up as a fierce protector of the mentally challenged, politics shouldn’t enter into the equation. Either you criticize everyone who uses a word that you consider a slur, or you come across as a crass politician who is afraid to offend your chief booster.

… If you were true to your cause, you would have demanded an on-air apology from Limbaugh and scolded him for using the word. Instead, you showed your true colors.

Editors at the Idaho Statesman endorse proposed legislation that would remove the following words and terms from Idaho’s state code: “mentally retarded,” “mentally deficient,” “handicapped,” “lunatic” and “idiot.” An excerpt:

These words haven’t become merely archaic. They are hurtful. They should give us all pause and make us cringe a little.

Critics will accuse [the bill's sponsor] of indulging in political correctness. This argument is as flimsy as it is convenient.

If our state law contains language we know to be needlessly offensive to a segment of our population, shouldn’t we do the right thing and change our wording? Isn’t that just common sense and common courtesy?

See also:

Lawmaker: Nix ‘retarded,’ ‘lunatic’ from Idaho law — AP/Idaho Statesman

From Comedy Central’s The Colbert Report:

Following the logic of Sarah Palin’s defense of Rush Limbaugh, political humorist Stephen Colbert says Palin’s supporters should defend her by calling her a “f — ing retard.”   Transcript follows.

Colbert: … It reminds me to give Sarah Palin a big thumbs-up for standing up for the little guy. Rush Limbaugh. Last week, Sarah Palin rightfully demanded the resignation of White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel for calling liberal Democrats “f — ing retarded.”

Well, El Rushbo used the R-word himself when talking about liberal Democrats. Jim?

Video from Rush Limbaugh Show dated Feb. 3, 2010

Limbaugh: Our political correct society is acting like a giant insult has taken place by calling a bunch of people who are retards, retards. So now there’s going to be a meeting. There’s going to be a retard summit at the White House..

Colbert: But Sarah Palin explains to Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday why that’s okay.

Video from Fox News Sunday dated Feb. 7, 2010

Palin: Rush Limbaugh was using satire to bring attention to what this politically correct ..

Wallace: He used the R-word …

Palin: Used in satire … I didn’t hear Rush Limbaugh calling a group of people whom he did not agree with “f — ing retards.” And we did know that Rahm Emanuel, it’s been reported, did say that. There’s a big difference there.

Colbert: Thank you. Big difference. It was satire. Listen to Rush Limbaugh talk about the Democrats again.

Video from Rush Limbaugh Show dated Feb. 3, 2010

Limbaugh: Our political correct society is acting like a giant insult has taken place by calling a bunch of people who are retards, retards. So now there’s going to be a meeting. There’s going to be a retard summit at the White House..

Colbert: It’s so subtle, see. There’s so many layers. And Sarah Palin knows that it is okay to call someone a retard if, like Rush, you clearly don’t mean it. Which is why we should all come to her defense and say: Sarah Palin is a f–ing retard. Get it? You see? It’s satire.