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Ableism// Can we talk about how the #Halo 
community has a serious ableism problem? Because I’d like to talk about it.
community has a serious ableism problem? Because I’d like to talk about it.
I’ve mentioned before how a lot of the discourse around mobility and gameplay ignores disabled players and its effect on them, and you can talk about how all FPS fanbases are toxic, but 1. this goes beyond that and 2. JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE DOESN’T MEAN THEY SHOULD BE.
So often so many Halo YouTubers and streamers, including ones I really, really liked up to that point, ones very popular in the community, drop a “REEE” or a “triggered” joke, and I’ve even heard r*t*rd uttered on occasion by a few.
This NEEDS to stop. I’ve tried to explain, but Twitch and YouTube comments can only go so far, so I’m going to lay these out one by one for those not in the know.
“REEE” jokes literally came about from the meme “autistic screeching” deliberately targeting autistic people and the supposed sounds we make while having meltdowns. It is ableist because we cannot control our meltdowns nor do we enjoy them. To mock us for them is shitty.
Source, though you can also just google “REEE autistic screeching” to find information. https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/autistic-screeching, https://stayhipp.com/glossary/reeeee/, http://antiintellectuals.blogspot.com/2017/03/autistic-screeching-is-not-funny-meme.html?m=1
“Triggered” is an appropriation of language used by people with PTSD & anxiety, among other disorders, to describe uncontrollable psychological triggers that incite meltdowns, flashbacks, & panic attacks. Its memeification has literally damaged patient-therapist conversation.
Sources: https://www.verywellmind.com/what-does-it-mean-to-be-triggered-4175432, https://thedailytexan.com/2018/01/29/triggered-is-more-than-a-buzzword-should-not-be-freely-trivialized, https://augsburgecho.com/2019/11/11/the-underlying-impact-of-triggered-jokes/
F-slur// And I REALLY shouldn’t have to explain this one, but r*t*rd is literally a slur. It’s been used by common bullies to deride disabled people for YEARS, much in the same way as f*ggot. It is even frowned upon in the legal and medical communities nowadays.
Sources: https://www.verywellfamily.com/what-is-the-r-word-3105651, https://www.sbs.com.au/news/insight/it-s-time-to-end-retard-as-an-offensive-slur, https://www.wired.com/2012/10/stop-saying-retarded/amp
Halo is truly supposed to be for everyone, and a lot of streamers and YouTubers make a big deal out of that. But if they truly want to live up to that ideal, they need to cut ableist language out of their vocabularies, and refuse to allow it from others.
This is not a callout post, nor is it telling you who to watch (despite my opinion that people who continue this behavior should be deplatformed). It’s not even saying these people are inherently bad people.
It’s just that there’s a widespread problem that NEEDS to be fixed.
It’s just that there’s a widespread problem that NEEDS to be fixed.
