post by Afrofuturist Abolitionists of the Americas:
“When you quit using ableist language to describe politicians etc your critiques of them automatically become more accurate and useful.”
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If you have a knee jerk reaction to defend yourself and/or the use of ableist language, don’t.
Educate yourself instead.
Conflating harmful actions with lack of intelligence does everyone a disservice. To suggest that “stupidity” that is what makes people act badly undermines any real accountability. The causes of problematic behavior rarely have anything to do with mental acuity, and we can’t properly address harmful behavior while being so reductive about its causes. Carelessness, bias, hatred, greed, closed-mindedness, indifference – these are the traits that lead to oppression. Our intelligence is not the issue so much as our sense of compassion and justice.
A person can be “unintelligent” and still know right from wrong. There are people with cognitive disabilities who I respect a thousand times more than those who are supposedly more abled. They have stronger principles, seek to better themselves, and are committed to being good people. They are just capable of being sensitive and caring as everyone else. To imply that they aren’t is outrageous.
10 Questions About Why Ableist Language Matters, Answered
40 Alternatives to Ableist and Oppressive Words
Words and Offense