Except that...
As Valerie Sinason has shown in her work with 'mentaly handicapped'
'mentally subnormal' 'backward' , 'learning impared' 'cognitively disabled'
people (all are histoical labels used for similar grouping of individuals
with 'common' features) the labelled person takes on the atributes of the
label. There is not nor can there be a 'neutral' label because individuals
perform differently depending on their audience and how much danger there
is to acting out of the label-role.
Cognitively impared/learning disabled people are often safer if they act
'stupid' and smile a lot than if they challenge their socially imposed role
and act with autonomy. The 'group' makes up one of the most vulnerable and
disavowed sub groups of our society and like black people who learned to
act the 'stupid nigger' role much of what presents as cognitive imparement
is in fact carfully contrived defensive 'idocy'.
Amaryllis
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