CW: Ableism
According to podcaster, Joe Rogan, the manosphere’s most significant contribution to culture is the revival of the “R” word. “Every time I see people that disagree with any that’s happening, any gigantic world events, it’s one of these r—-ded shows where they’re screaming—there’s the word again,” he said, interrupting himself during an episode of The Joe Rogan Experience.
A clip of Rogan celebrating the slur’s resurgence is going viral on X. Even celebrities are taking notice. Actress Maureen McCormick, who played Marcia Brady on The Brady Bunch, slammed Rogan’s opinion. “Your statement that “the ‘R’ word is back and it’s one of the great culture victories,’ ignores the terrible hurt it causes to the millions of people with intellectual disabilities,” she wrote. “This is not a victory. It is a regression.”
The use of this language has also prompted criticism from disabled people. “When we, disabled people, speak out against its usage, our concerns are frequently ignored or minimized with excuses like ‘I’m not using it in a harmful way,’” Nila Morton, a 26-year-old disability advocate told USA Today in February. “This dismissive attitude implies that the feelings of disabled people are less important like our pain does not matter. In reality, the casual use of this word further marginalizes our community that already struggles to secure equal opportunities and fair treatment in society” Morton continued.
According to the nonprofit, The Arc, the “r” word was first used in the early 1960s as a medical term to describe people with intellectual disabilities. However, it has since become “a cruel insult.” National legislation known as Rosa’s Law advocated for the phrase “intellectual disability” to replace the “r” word in federal documents. The law was signed in 2010 by then-president Barack Obama. The law was named after Rosa Marcellino who was just nine years old at the time.
Disabled people have never stopped fighting for our rights. We can’t be silent about our rights. The use of ableist slurs is dehumanizing. Joe Rogan ought to understand that language is powerful. Disabled people deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.
Sources:
Brancolini, Janna. “Joe Rogan Resurrects Disability Slur in ‘One of the Great Culture Victories’ of the Manosphere.” The Daily Beast, The Daily Beast Company, 11 Apr. 2025, www.thedailybeast.com/joe-rogan-brags-about-the-manospheres-resurrection-of-the-word-rd/.
Cyphers, Luke. “Meet the Little Girl Who Wiped out Government Use of the R-Word.” ESPN, The Walt Disney Company, 20 July 2015, www.espn.com/espnw/news-commentary/story/_/id/13287823/meet-little-girl-wiped-government-use-r-word.
Dilworth, Jackie. “The R-Word: Why Language Matters and How We Can Do Better.” The Arc, The Arc, 14 Oct. 2024, thearc.org/blog/the-r-word-why-language-matters-and-how-we-can-do-better/.
Madigan, Mary. “Rogan Slammed for Celebrating Return of Slur.” News.Com.Au, News Corp Australia, 12 Apr. 2025, www.news.com.au/finance/money/culture/rogan-slammed-celebrating-return-of-vile-slur/news-story/f4f7644913385acb2f9c99f25e2a5608?amp.
Oliver, David. “Elon Musk Keeps Tweeting the ‘r-Word.’ Disability Advocates Say He Needs to Stop.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 25 Feb. 2025, https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/health-wellness/2025/02/25/elon-musk-donald-trump-disabled-people/80112602007/
Why would Rogan even go there?
It’s really not up to him to dictate the use of the “R” word or any other derogatory word/language.