‘Screw them!’ Ann Coulter refuses to apologize to the ‘word police’ for using the ‘R word’ in tweeted Obama insult
Ann Coulter says she is fed up with ‘word police’ and will not apologize for calling President Obama a ‘retard’ — despite criticism from advocates for people with disabilities, including Special Olympian John Franklin Stephens.
By Michael Walsh / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Ann Coulter is unfazed by the onslaught of criticism she received for calling President Obama a “retard.”
The conservative pundit told Alan Colmes of Fox News Radio that the people who denounced her glib usage of the R word were “liberal bullies.”
“Look, no one would refer to a Down’s syndrome child, someone with an actual mental handicap, by saying ‘retard,’” Coulter said.
“Where do you think the words imbecile, idiot, moron, cretin come from?” she asked. “These were all technical terms at one time. Retard has been used colloquially to just mean ‘loser’ for 30 years.”
Liberal commentator Colmes countered that many Americans consider the R word deeply offensive, reported The Washington Times.
But Coulter would not budge.
“Screw them!” she said, “You just cannot go around saying this and that word is offensive. I’m sick of this.”
The controversy arose when Coulter tweeted, “I highly approve of Romney’s decision to be kind and gentle to the retard,” after the most recent presidential debate.
Arguably the most poignant response came from Special Olympian John Franklin Stephens, who penned an open letter asking Coulter to reconsider her word choice.
“You assumed that people would understand and accept that being linked to someone like me is an insult,” he wrote. “Well, Ms. Coulter, you, and society, need to learn that being compared to people like me should be considered a badge of honor.”
Coulter told Colmes that Stephens’ message for her was unnecessary.
“I do not need to be told this,” Coulter said.
But Stephens does not buy Coulter’s argument, as he made clear to Piers Morgan on Friday.
“The word ‘retard’ is offensive and I should not be a symbol for someone who is dumb and shallow. If they wanted to use me as a symbol, use me as a symbol for someone who fights adversity,” Stephens said.
1 comment:
she's still relevant, why?
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