💾 Archived View for zaibatsu.circumlunar.space › ~visiblink › phlog › 20190117 captured on 2023-03-20 at 18:45:25.
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I read an article in the National Post newspaper this morning that seemed to me to be one more piece of evidence of a disturbing trend in recent years. The article discusses the case of a Quebec comedian who repeatedly ridiculed a disabled child as part of his routine[1]. Quebec's human rights tribunal ordered the comedian to pay over $40,000 in damages and the comedian is appealing that ruling. The subtleties of the legal case were not what concerned me. I've noticed that in recent years, more comedians seem to have taken license to ridicule people based on their appearances. I used to watch Seth Meyers, for example. But between the policy critique in his segments, Meyers routinely and quite intentionally derides people based on their appearances. I know nothing about Eric Trump. Meyers seems to know little about him either. But jokes based on his appearance and that of Trump advisor Stephen Miller are a regular feature of "A Closer Look." Likewise, John Oliver often takes shots at the subjects of his stories based on their physical appearance. I may or may not like those people and their policies, but I don't think it is fair to comment on their appearance. To me, that's crossing a line. While we all have the capacity to change our values, principles and beliefs as we learn and adapt, there's not much we can do about our physical characteristics. That's why I don't have a problem with criticizing people's views (which are the product of conscious decision and can be altered), but I can't abide the ridiculing and humiliation of people based on their appearance. So this trend has been bothering me. I've puzzled about it and wondered if it has something to do with social media and the image-based nature of so much of what we consume these days. I'm not sure. Blaming social media seems like a reflex action. The causes may be more complex. Then this morning, as I drove to work, it occurred to me that the reason that these comments on appearances bother me so much is because they're about white men. Sadly, I could really empathize when men's appearances were being criticized. Because they're like me. I hate that my ability to empathize is that limited, but apparently it is. It's been normal (not acceptable, but typical) to criticize women's appearances for .... I don't know how long. Probably forever. Female politicians and executives, for example, can expect to have their appearances commented upon. Likewise, racial and ethnic minorities have suffered judgment (and discrimination and enslavement) based on nothing more than appearance throughout history. What's happening today is the democratization of discrimination. Everyone's a potential target. I don't like it and I hope you don't either. Maybe -- in a completely unintended way -- it will make more of us empathize and speak up when we see it in the future. And like I said, I'm saddened that it took this long for me to see it the way that I now do. [1] https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/quebec-comic-mike-ward-in-court-defending-joke-about-disabled-singer