Pocket full of poesy.: the issue of 'herp derp'.
okay, so this is probably going to lose me followers but whatever. no one here seems to be saying anything even though there’s a lot of people going NUH UH all over livejournal, so here it is.
herp derp is ableist. it really is, okay. i literally flinch every time i see…
I had been wondering about this so I checked out Know Your Meme.
It seems as though the origination of “herp derp” (or more specifically, “derp”) was not about ableism (although it did come from a really awesome fat joke, apparently. cool.)
So, here’s my question: does “herp derp” become intrinsically ableist just because others have created ableist macros using the term? If I am, as is often done, using “herp derp” as a placeholder for words in a comic (see the example given at KYM), is that ableist?
I think the issue is that you have some people using “herp derp” in obviously ableist ways (I’m thinking of Carlos Mencia’s dur dur dur thing he did a lot, and “herp derp” being used as a corollary to that in macros about disabled people) and some people using it entirely differently.
Again and again, I think the issue is not simply banning people from saying words, but in educating people about their attitudes, where they come from, and why, when they use certain words in certain ways, they are contributing to oppressive systems.
I was curious about the origins of the phrase so I googled it and this is one of the first links that came up. I find it interesting, too, that it didn’t start as an ableist slur but quickly became one with the help of South Park and the Internet. I think, though, that because it has become an ableist slur in some contexts, like “queer” and “gay” or “fag” or “cunt”, we should avoid using it in ableist contexts. I mean, if the (specifically mentally) disabled want to reclaim it (though that is doubtful considering where it originated), that is one thing, but to impose it upon other people is disgusting. And to impose it on ourselves is questionable at best since it’s trying to stereotype and mock something that cannot and thus should not be generalized.
Thanks Bri for bringing this up!
