Paralympics ad on TV

[wahwahwah]

...err 'I am a freak of nature'.

Um, the word 'freak' - I thought I midheard until it was on again last night. Am I being a bit 'PC' on this or is it really offensive?

.. DS is fascinated my amputees running on their blades. 'Mummy, can I do that when I am bigger?'

The same words have been used to personally abuse disabled children/adults for years.

If its all about how the words are intended and not as society has used them, as the original intention wasnt intended as an insult?

So for example i can call someone a cunt or use it in an advertising campaign and no one would take offence, as the orginal intention was "It appears to derive from an old Germanic root ku- meaning a hollow place - cf cubby; or alternatively, a knob or projection, cf. keel"

My point is that the athletes taking part are callning themselves fraks of nature. They are not labelling anyone else with those words.

If you choose to extrapolate their meaning to other people and/or blame this advert for any future offence caused that is your right...except that you are wrong to do so, in my view.

oops - "freaks"

And what were trying to say is maybe someone either the athletes themselves or the add agency should have apllied common sense and realise the potenial of harm abuse that will stem from it

as not everyone can look beyond the obvious of what's being labeled

And yes I do think everyone has a responsablity to the most vunerable in society I'm not talking about these athletes as I'm pretty sure they can and will deal with anyone refering to them as freaks when not talking about their sporting ablity

and notice you not answered my question so by not answering you have given your answer

Oh and sporting ablity is not a freak of nature they have trained long and hard to be at the top of their field.natrual talent will only get you so far

Ds3 is disabled but us not a freak ,yes he is getting good at wheelchair racing but not as a freak as a child that is determined and trys hard and is training weekly

as gets older he if wishes to continue will need to train more

But someone would miss u derstsnd the advert and call him a freak because he can't talk or walk properly and we know it will happen as has already been pointed out in the thread earlier about Joey and that became term of abuse very fast

Oh and I'm going to the paraolympics not to see "freaks' I'm going to watch first class athletes at the top of their fields who spend hrs each week trainingp

I see the point about elite athletes regularly being described as freaks AND using that word themselves. And that elite disabled athletes might be playing with the word to make a point that they are just as extraordinary as other athletes such as Usain Bolt.

But those who fear this will have an impact on other disabled people who are not elite athletes also have a point. It's all very well for powerful people to subvert a word, but what about the impact on people who have less power, less fame, no presence in the media?

We've seen this kind of thing backfire before - not only with Joey Deacon but with Alf Garnett, a character designed to show how pig-ignorant racists are but who was adopted by racists as a badge of pride. The actors and writers failed to realise quite how stupid racists are.

Btw, when there was all that fuss about whether the paralympian athlete who runs on blades who be allowed to compete with non-disabled athletes, I did wonder whether they should just run the damn race anyway. Without it counting towards any points or championships or anything. Would be interesting to see what happened...

Yes I know a few disabled athletes that could hold their own with non disabled athletes

Kinda funny that it was the able bodied side that was complaining about unfair advantages normally other way round

BA, they may well be calling themselves freaks of nature, but thats not to say that others with a disability who have been called freaks of nature will find it less offensive.

When most people with a disability have been referred to as freaks, their amazing abilities are not being referred to.

Anyone else noticed BA has not been able to answer my perfectly civil question

I didn't know about Joey Deacon. I just googled him and found the disturbing information that the term "joey" comes from his name. The following link shows how some people use the misfortune of others to call names and make jokes. I am ashamed to say that I have used the term "what a joey" many years ago, and never knew where it came from. This is what happens when language such as 'freak' becomes normalised, people use it without even thinking.

www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=joey%20deacon

Hi Claig just to let you no I hadn't disappered last night. I sent the message to my friend and when i came back mumsnet was offline so i went to bed.

As soon as I have a reply I will post what she said im not sure how long it will take as she is away at a training camp at mo.

Roundthebend4 I will also be going to the paralympics to see the amazingly talented athletes. Like wise I will be going to the aolympics with my dcs Taekwondo school o see thiose talented athlets.

It gets worse, even the insult to indicate stupodity, seen on many comedy shows on TV

"Insult often combined with a forcing of the tongue firmly into the lower lip with an accompanying "mmmmmmmuuhh" sound."

derives from Joey Deacon.

thanks tjacksonpfc

Its all well and good, successful adults reclaiming words and trying to turn them into something positive when describing themselves.

This doesnt change the fact, that it will still be used to describe, more vulnerable disabled people in a negative way.

Im sure when i tell my 6 year old ds, that the children in the playground refer to him as a 'freak' because others have amazing abilities, he will be reassured. Not only is he disabled, he also doesnt have amazing abilities. I will try explaining that when they refer to him, they are not talking about his amazing abilities, but his behaviour. That should help his self esteem.

Tjackson I can not wait will be taking ds3 and dd with me even better if a good friend makes the team and is looking promising . He is going to canvas opions at training today bit last night his opion and several others was that is was a Badly worded and thought out advert

claw that's exactly my fear to or bunch if teens or even adults calling ds a freak because they saw it on a tele and that makes it allright

Before I eventually gave in and went to bed in the early hours, I know that I was not so much defending the campaign as I was picking up on what seemed to me to be claig's hugely patronising attitude to these disabled athletes.

The word "cripple" has been subject to the same treatment, as has the word "spastic". Both terms, in fact, had more or less neutral meanings in the beginning. "Spastic" is still used to describe increased muscle tone; it's just not used to describe a whole person who has cerebral palsy any more.

Afaik, the use of these words by disabled people themselves has not been something embraced by all disabled people; as I said before, disabled people are as diverse as any other large minority in their views. I believe it's the same with "nigger" and might also be so with "queer". The point is not that you can stop people who intend to insult from using these terms - you can't. It's the others -those who believe that they have the best of intentions (those who might see a world class athlete as "vulnerable" simply because he uses a wheelchair, for example) whose behavious is being targetted.

By influencing people's language, you can change how they think. OK, so "freak" is less of an obvious candidate than "cripple" - I'm a lot less likely ever to have used it believing I was being nice about it - but it, too, has an ostensibly neutral meaning.

It occurs to me that, to understand where these athletes are coming from, it might help to think of them as athletes rather than as disabled athletes.

Gosh, you don't think maybe that was the point of the ad, do you?

The advertising executives are responsible for the advert and it is them that I hold responsible for it. I admire the athletes and am sorry that you don't understand that I am not being patronising towards them. I think you should consider what the effect of the advert will be on disabled people in general, not the athletes. This is what worries me, the insensitivity and lack of understanding of the advertising executives who devised this ill thought out campaign.

Ma were not talking about those atheletes they don't need our protection are no more vunerable than you or I and probably a dam site less

what is being discussed is how it will be seen by some areas of society who missunderstand that advert and see freak and think straight to the person not their ablites

and some groups of society that makes it right to apply to every disabled person including those that are vunerable because they saw it on tele and if hey that disabled person calls himself a freak I can use that word

it's just a badly worded add someone has not thought it through and yes even the athletes themselves might not of thought it through either just because there disabled does not mean they always think of other more vunerable disabled people .There just as capersble of being thoughtless or not even care

But it's those of us that maybe have disabled child/adult work with them .Can see from past experiance what will happen next and how some people will apply it

Oh and erm I call my friend who is a wheelchair a stupid pratt amongst other names at time he'll even tipped him on his arse .He needs no protection from anyone will give as good as he gets

but were not talking about the athletes were talking about the people who are disabled that are vunerable and there are thousand that are who will potentially labled a freak that can't stand up for themselves

Roundthebend, children in the playground already call ds a freak. In fact so much so at the last school, ds even refers to himself as a freak, when he is feeling he cant do anything right, a 'stupid freak'.

The impact being called a 'freak' has is very powerful. These athletes calling themselves freaks, because of their amazing abilities, will be just another kick in the teeth, for others with disabilities, who dont have amazing abilities.

Yeah, we might be disabled, but we have amazing abilities, so we turn the double meaning around. Great very inspiring.

I've not seen the ad, but calling disabled people "freaks" in ANY way is NOT OK! Because there will be some smart alec who shouts it in the street, as has been said.

If anyone shouted ANYTHING at my mate when we're out, she'd a) give them a mouthful back and b) probably try and take their ankles out with the wheelchair (that's A JOKE! before anyone jumps on me for condoning violence!) To be fair, the number of times we've had to deal with ignorance while out and about astounds me and things like this don't help at all. I think this sort of thing is why my disabled uncle only leaves the house for hospital appointments :(

Oh, and BA. It seems to me you find any thread relating to disability, come on and start attacking posters who are living in situations far more difficult than you or I can imagine. You have no idea what it's like, truth be told even with a disabled relative and several disabled friends, I still don't. So why don't you grow up, stop taking shots at people and leave them be. You are the kind of person that this ad will probably encourage, and that saddens me.

This is probably going to get deleted but I am sO SICK of people like BA coming on here, attacking posters and giving off the general vibe that insulting the disabled is OK!

And I'm usually quite a reserved poster!

Exactly claw it worries me to with ds3 going to school

no matter what there are peole will misunderstand it and will apply freak to those that are unable to speak defend themselves.Be they in wheelchair or have disablites

And if we don't Defend them who will

Note am not talking about athletes or anyone in a chair or is disabled

I'm talking about the ones that are vunerable

Claig, I'm really sorry that you don't see that you are being patronising.

LollipopViolet, I suggest you watch it before making up your mind what the ad does and what it intends.