Ricky Gervais in trouble again, after "mong" tweets ridicule people with Down syndrome
By Jeff MillsOctober 19th, 2011, 1:15 pmComments (35)Ricky Gervais is in hot water with the disabled community after a series of recent tweets in which he used the word "mongs," which critics say is a derogatory term aimed at people with Down syndrome. Gervais defended himself on Twitter, writing:
"Just to clarify for uptight people stuck in the past. The word means Down's Syndrome about as much as the word gay means happy. I never use the word mong to mean anything to do with Down's Syndrome."
Gervais was defiant in his unwillingness to buckle to "the humorless PC brigade," saying "the modern use of the word mong means 'dopey' or 'ignorant.' It's even in modern slang and urban dictionaries."
The first entry on urbandictionary.com defines "mong" as "lacking in physical and cerebral ability. General retardation. Generally: a total spastic." Subsequent definitions explain that "mong" is short for "mongoloid," the anachronistic (and offensive) term for someone with Down syndrome, but also state that the word is "commonly used to describe the state of one's lack of common sense," which would seem to back up Gervais' claim. But Gervais also posted a series of pictures of "mong-faces," which didn't really help his cause.
Gervais' reputation has suffered lately. His borderline mean-spirited jokes at the Golden Globes led to a backlash. In an episode of Extras, a Down syndrome boy was referred to as a "mongoloid," and during a U.K. stand-up appearance last year, he called singer Susan Boyle a "mong." Then, backpedaling to save face, Gervais sent a letter to the Down Syndrome Association, denying that he meant to be derogatory, though he had said, "Well, she's a mong, isn't she? She looks like a mong, doesn't she?"
Political correctness and oversensitivity can become overbearing, and especially frustrating for a comedian trying to ply his or her trade. People like Lenny Bruce and George Carlin were trailblazers when it came to attempting to break down restrictions on free speech, and we see the controversy alive and well today. We still have to try and discern intent, whether someone is being cruel and insensitive, trying to get attention and make a name for themselves, or genuinely trying to get a discussion going with benign motives. But Gervais, unfortunately, seems to find humor in individuals with a forty-seventh chromosome, and his track record is not reflecting well on his reputation.
Commentarium (35 Comments)
Technically, the words "idiot" and "moron" used to be specific medical classifications of mental disability. Is calling someone an idiot degrading to people suffering from mental retardation?
I don't think so because those terms passed from medical usage long ago. A better analogy is "retard" as an epithet, which is offensive to some people. The problem is that as medicine/social work tries to find a way to describe those with intellectual impairment, the term will immediately be seized upon in some way and converted to an epithet. Some comedian (George Carlin? I want to attribute every insight into language to him) made the point that five minutes after the term "retarded" became the medically accepted term, some kid in a schoolyard called another kid a "tardo." It's a losing battle.
All that said, "Mongs," which I'd never heard before (I would have intepreted Gervais's tweet as a typo for "tweetmongers," meaning a purveyor of tweets, like "fishmonger" means fish seller), is doubly offensive to both the "differently abled" (jeez, I know) and to Asians. Gervais used to be a gently funny guy; it's like since he lost the weight he's become a jerk and a bully.
"Gervais used to be a gently funny guy; it's like since he lost the weight he's become a jerk and a bully."
I don't think you know much about Gervais' career. He's arguably most famous for playing a character who was a mildly bigoted, un-P.C. sociopath. The bottom line is, whether people find him funny or not, a sense of humor does not have to have a sense of civility. Gervais is not a "family-oriented" (or pick your white-washed synonym of choice) comedian. Don't like it, don't listen.
I assume you mean his character from The Office? I took that to be making fun of that kind of person, just like Carroll O'Connor was a liberal who played the bigoted Archie Bunker to ridicule him.
I see a distinction between a lack of civility -- I have no problem with comedians uncivilly attacking targets with sarcasm, satire or vulgarity -- and using bigoted speech as part of how they actually express themselves, as opposed to playing a character who does so.
I honestly don't think Gervais' humor has changed at all. The only real change is people's perception of him. The only answer that makes sense to me is people were happy to laugh at a shlubby comic making jokes at people's expense but when a non-shlub does it, people see it as mean-spirited.
Do people with Downs Syndrome give a shit?
i agree
Hooksexup's resident conservatroll. Hey, Riiiight/Anon/Greg/jr/real jr/comma/Observer...does the word mong offend you?
Dude, let it go.
They do.
I've never heard the word "mong" until now. Eh whatever
It's an older term.
oh my god they need to move on with their lives. it's just words. ON TWITTER.
They are all a bunch of "Mongs"!!! =p
Are there any Twitter-using celebrities that haven't totally fucked themselves over? I guess we can see the importance of the job that their publicists and handlers do in keeping their mouths shut most of the time.
He really doesn't mean these jokes with bad intent, I think the Britishness to his general attitude may be misunderstood quite some bit by others. Here in England, the word 'Mong' - just as Gervais said - is used as a term for someone who's being stupid or silly and when he said that SuBo looked like a 'Mong', he really didn't mean someone with downs syndrome. A 'Mong' looking face is just like the face a clown would do, or you'd do if you were immitating a caveman - granted it may have originated from people with downs syndrome, but I can guarantee most people don't associate it with that when using the word. At all. He's a nice guy, and makes jokes by taking the piss out of people/things and pushing the limits...it's no deeper than that.
I'm a huge Gervais fan, but I think he may have crossed the line here.
Humor can be cruel, and that is nevertheless part of the fun -- but it should be weilded against the powerful, the hubristic, and the pretentious. Not the weakest, most vulnerable.
When he took a buzzsaw to Hollywood, I laughed out loud.
Whether he realized it or not, he was making vulnerable people the butt of his jokes. Not cool.
You have to take into account the cultural and language differences between the US and England. Sod and fanny have two very different meanings in England.
the word "cunt". No joke...
No shit? What does that mean?
Guy, if we're going to be name buddies, can you stick with the capitalized version?
Thanks! You're a real pussy!
Is much more common and non-offensive outside of the US of A. Just a fact...
Hey, thanks! We can really take a pounding.
Sorry. Wish granted. Yup
He's funny. I'll forgive him.
Only a mong could have a problem with Ricky's use of the word mong here.
I don't know enough about the UK meaning of "mong" to really make a call, but comparing mocking Down's Syndrome people to mocking celebrities at the Golden Globes is completely ridiculous. You always go up in comedy -- you make fun of those with a higher position in life, wealth, fame, whatever. When you mock those worse-off than you, unless you are exceptionally good at it, you look like an asshole.
Ricky Gervais is starting to get fucking annoying. Now he is resulting to being extremely rude and crossing lines just to cross lines to try to remain culturally relevant.
Not sure you're the real Julian on that one.
He's even resorted to resulting? That means he's really jumped the shark, me old china.
resorting* Yeah, it was me. I was kind of cranky last night.
Only wear me late at night after too many drinks!
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