This word is verbal blackface. Sure, it’s offensive on the surface, but it’s sooo much more disgusting when you consider the vulnerable people abused and tortured for centuries because of what it represents.
Governments have used this word — and others like it — to imprison and kill people for simply not being “normal,” or a “burden to society.” Knowing this agonizing history and still using the word says far more about you than anyone else.
Not convinced? Read “An Open Letter to Ann Coulter” by John Franklin Stevens.