I know many of my readers wouldn’t consider going to the movie Tropic Thunder simply because of the R rating, given for “pervasive language including sexual references, violent content and drug material,” but I would like to suggest another reason to refrain from attending this movie and to encourage others to do the same – the R word.
It may seem funny or satirical or edgy to Mr. Stiller and his associates, but that doesn’t matter – it’s just not okay. And the effects are already being seen, as evidenced by this Open Letter to Mr. Stiller written by Dave Hingsburger of Chewing the Fat.
If you need more convincing or want to know how to take action and make your voice heard, read these:
- Once Upon A Time There Was A Retard…
- Insensitive Hollywood People Thought It Felt Right to Use Hate Words Against People Living with Disabilities
- Words Hurt: The “R” Word
Ban the “R” Word
A grass roots effort, The “r” Word Campaign was started by Rick & Wanda Felty of Norman, Oklahoma. Click here for the button code. Here is a statement from their website:
Some people have mental retardation. While mental retardation is not a bad word, when used to describe someone or something you think is bad it becomes another thoughtless hurtful word. People with mental retardation are not bad, their condition is not bad, the prejudice and discrimination to people with mental retardation is BAD…and WRONG! Please stop using the word ‘retard’, it hurts people with disabilities.
So what else can you do?
I think Timothy Shriver (chairman of Special Olympics) says it best in his article What ‘Tropic Thunder’ Thinks Is Funny:
So, enough. Stop the hurtful jokes. Talk to your children about language that is bullying and mean. Ask your friends, your educators, your religious leaders to help us to end the stubborn myth that people with intellectual disabilities are hopeless. Ask Hollywood to get on the right side of dignity.
I hope others will join me in shutting this movie out of our lives and our pocketbooks. We don’t live in times when labeling and humiliating others is funny. And we should send that message far and wide.
Respectfully submitted,
