[WikiEN-l] Regarding "civility"

[Fred Bauder]

I am somewhat at a loss as to how the arbitration request regarding  
Monicasdude has anything to do with mental disability. It seems to  
have a lot more to do with him being nasty about nominations for  
deletion.

Fred

On May 8, 2006, at 12:07 PM, Wiliam J. Clinton wrote:

> I was disgusted, but not terribly surprised, to see that six  
> members of the
> Arbitration Committee -- Dmcdevit, Fred Bauder, JamesF/James D.  
> Forrester,
> Sean Barrett/The Epopt, Charles Matthews and Jayjg -- condone hate  
> speech
> and hateful epithets directed at the mentally disabled, and consider
> condemnation of that hate speech to be unacceptable behavior on  
> Wikipedia --
> behavior, in fact, so unacceptable that they say they find it a  
> compelling
> reason to punish me.
>
> I was a bit more surprised when an earlier form of this letter  
> (differing
> only in describing the status of the pending arbitration, aside  
> from this
> paragraph) was banned without explantion from the Wikipedia mailing  
> list
> where such topics could supposedly be discussed. But I was appalled  
> when
> discussions on that list, regarding a named editor, turned to open  
> derision
> of the editor's supposed emotional/mental impairments, and that one
> Arbitration Committee member participated in the abuse.
>
> As someone who has been involved for more than thirty years,  
> professionally
> and nonprofessionally, in attempting to protect and to advance the  
> rights of
> the mentally disabled, and as someone who for many years has  
> served, and
> continues to serve as a guardian for such disabled members of my  
> community.
> I find the use of such epithets grossly offensive; they are clearly
> inconsistent with Wikipedia's supposed commitment to civility. They  
> form no
> part of civil discourse in any circumstances. They are particularly
> deserving of condemnation because they are directed toward, in very  
> real
> terms attack, and have the greatest tendency to injure, a class of  
> people
> who are less able, sometimes unable, to defend themselves, to  
> resist the
> impact, or to respond on equal terms. [And, as a note to the  
> politically
> correct, it is for that reason that I will not use the abominable term
> "mentally challenged," because it denies (sometimes grossly  
> minimizes) the
> imbalances of social power that inhere in the relationships between  
> the
> mentally disabled and the "unchallenged" elements of any community.]
>
> It should be no secret, no obscure facet of social fabric, that the  
> mentally
> disabled, particularly the mentally retarded, are at greater risk than
> almost any other segment of a society.  More likely to be the  
> victims of
> physical attacks. More likely to be neglected by governments,  
> particularly
> when their needs are greatest.  In the relatively rare instances  
> when they
> have substantial assets, they are more likely to have their assets  
> stolen,
> particularly at the hands of those actors on whom a government has  
> conferred
> power over them. They are more likely to be degraded and exploited by
> industries which purport to protect them and to serve their  
> interests. More
> like to be the victims of sexual assaults, particularly of  
> organized, group
> sexual assaults.
>
> The casual use of such hateful epithets does not only harm the  
> individuals
> it targets. It causes pain, often great pain to many others. It  
> regularly
> inflicts pain on those with brothers and sisters, with parents, with
> children, with friends, with acquaintances, even with clients, who are
> abused and dehumanized by such behavior. It regularly inflicts pain  
> on so
> many of those who deal, day by day, with lesser mental and emotional
> impairments, whether they choose to acknowledge those impairments,  
> publicly
> or privately, or not.
>
> I am quite proud that a self-styled community which apparently  
> condones such
> behavior and condemns opposition to it finds me such a danger to it  
> and its
> values that it is preparing to forcibly separate me from it.  
> Nothing I have
> contributed to this curious place makes me more proud, and I doubt  
> anything
> else could.
>
> User: Monicasdude
>
> Not licensed, no rights released
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