Tropic Thunder will open today. No changes may have been made to the movie, but as Dave writes, progress was made.
The Simple Jack website was pulled. The trailors were changed. The 'Don't Go Full Retard' clip was removed from You Tube. The tee shirt was taken off the market. Our protests were heard all over the media. Ben Stiller had to address the controversy and found himself explaining his 'humour'. Our voices were heard, in unison, around the world.
My boss is on holiday up in hinterland Ontario, she sent me an email that the local radio station, The Moose, actually editorialized against the movie suggesting it is not appropriate for teens and advising parents of the hateful language. Everywhere I have gone this week, people were talking about the issue. Not just the movie, the issue of hate speech regarding disability
And the biggest progress is the dialogue about speech regarding disability.
It's the knee jerk, assumed responses which belittle or demean people with disabilities that require a dialogue. That applies not only to actions, but to speech.
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There's a post up over at Catholic Media Review about the movie by Leticia.
To see what other bloggers are saying, click here for an excellent gathering of posts.
An excerpt from the dialogue of the movie is in What Tropic Thunder Thinks is Funny, by Timothy Shriver. He writes:
Sadly, they're such an easy target that many people don't realize whom they are making fun of when they use the word "retard." Most people just think it's funny. "Stupid, idiot, moron, retard." Ha, ha, ha.
I know: I could be too sensitive. But I was taught that mean isn't funny. And I've been to institutions where people with intellectual disabilities are tied to beds or lie on concrete floors, forgotten. I've heard doctors say they won't treat them. I know Gallup found that more than 60 percent of Americans don't want a person with an intellectual disability at their child's school.
I've talked to people with intellectual disabilities who cry over being insulted on a bus. I've received too many e-mails from people who are devastated not by their child's disability but by the terror of being laughed at, excluded and economically devastated.
It wasn't funny when Hollywood humiliated African Americans for a generation. It's never funny when good and decent human beings are humiliated. In fact, it is dangerous and disgusting.
This film is all that and more. DreamWorks went so far as to create a mini-version of Simple Jack and posted it online. The studio has since pulled it down, realizing it had gone too far, even in an age of edgy, R-rated comedies.
and a great article over at Media and Mayhem that sums it up well:
But never, ever — if you claim to have even a minimum of guts or decency — mess with people who cannot speak back.
UPDATE: Via CNN by Timothy Shriver, Why Tropic Thunder Shouldn't Be Seen
13 comments:
Have you seen the movie? I didn't think it was out yet. But maybe it is -- I'm so far behind (and don't really care about movies anymore).
Anonymous- It's out. There are also clips on the internet available for viewing of some of the offensive scenes but not all of the offensive scenes. In fact there's one posted on my blog.
Don't you love those anonymous commenters? NOT Good post,Ruth.
I don't think most people care about this issue or see it as a moral obligation to tell their kids that retards are not retards or shouldn't be called that. The PC stuff in this country is overblown. You're adding to it.
anonymous- I don't "get" the PC argument related to name calling people with disabilities. Does that mean people feel inconvenienced having to remember to not use negative and derogatory words as insults and slurs toward vulnerable people?
No I don't mean that at all. We have to watch every word we say nowadays. That's what PC is about.
Anonymous: But watching what we say, learning what's appropriate and how to treat each other is part of socialization. An argument based on it's too much trouble just doesn't fly with me because that means it's okay to draw the line with certain groups which is a judgment based on worth which then proves the point in the first place: that the aforesaid group is not worthy of the respect.
Furthermore, I urge the PC argument folks to look around on the web to see what fans of the movie are doing with the "r" word usage. It's that fallout that's the problem - the everyday usage, putting it on shirts, etc.
I'm never going to agree with you on this. There's no way I think I should have to watch what I say or not be able to call someone retard. I think the movie fans have a right to use the word any way they want.
Anonymous- I'm not particularly surprised by your last comment since I'm seeing it all over the internet - claiming the right to use the "r" word no matter how people want to. Knowing how that usage affects people, I disagree that it's a "right" that should be defended. It is my belief that's a one sided argument based on a feeling of entitlement to do something that hurts others, many of whom are vulnerable.
Having a dialogue about it is a good thing- and whether we agree or not, I appreciate you keeping a civil tone and listening to what I had to say.
Sorry Ruth, I don't agree with the civil tone compliment to anonymous.
Of course anonymous has the right to say what he or she wants, and he or she did listen to what you had to say. Bravo.
My standards of civility simply dop not include 1) people without the courage and decency to give their name and 2) people who say that "there is no way I am going to watch what I say."
Both of those are certainly protected under the first amendment. I am glad "anonymous" gets those rights.
He or she doesn't get -- from me, at least -- the "civil" label when he or she proclaims that there is "no way I am going to watch what I say."
Steve Gorelick
www.mediaandmayhem.com
Steve- thanks for your comment and your points are well taken.
In my line of work, I define civil as the lack of profane language from a person on some days :)
I like the new logo for the Special Olympics campaign on your blog. I read your blog daily. I find your comments even handed and think you pick your battles. This is one I join in as a Catholic school teacher. After the number of times I've had to deal with families with a disabled child and issues of social ostracizing and ignorance, I'd never defend a movie that made things worse for one of God's children.
"There's no way I think I should have to watch what I say or not be able to call someone retard."
Anonymous, did you really mean to say this? Basically, "There is no way I should have to alter my speech so as not to hurt another human being. I am the only one that matters. I should be able to do what I want." Is that the sort of society you really want to live in, where no one cares about anyone else's well-being?
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