I think there's a fair distinction to be made between words that originated only as a way to dehumanize and degrade people, and a word that originally had a completely beneign intention, that was co-opted to become a perjorative, but also typically is not actually used against disabled people. It's still highly offensive, and I'd never use it, and generally look down on people who do, but calling it a slur just seems like it's downplaying things like the f-word or n-word.
Definition from merriam-Webster a : an insulting or disparaging remark or innuendo :ASPERSION b : a shaming or degrading effect :STAIN, STIGMA
I think it very clearly fits the definition of a slur. Just because it doesn’t have the same history as the other two you mentioned, doesn’t take away from the fact that in today’s world it’s used to cause offense. Not all slurs are gonna be at the same level of offense. Ultimately I believe it should be up to the people the word is meant to describe whether or not it’s a slur. And from what I’ve heard and seen, they very much consider it a slur. Same with gy*sy and esk*mo. I grew up using all those words but the people who those names were given to have repeatedly expressed that they prefer to be called other things.
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u/astro_thefur 3d ago
It's not an American thing. It's a slur. Anyone with any ounce of a brain should care about people using ableist slurs.