Hate speech against us Nerds!

[Sheridan]

https://www.theregister.co.uk/2019/12/18/nerds_hate_speech/

 

Interesting article, but I think its out of date now. Personally speaking I was called nerd/geek etc at school as I had a VIC20 (and then a C64!)

 

Back then it was meant as an insult and was intended as derogatory. But now? Seems like its got no sting anymore and people actively like to call themselves geeks. Comparing it to genuine hate speech just seems a bit silly to me.

[FishCustard]

Comparing it to genuine hate speech just seems a bit silly to me.

Agreed. It is in no way the same as calling someone a racial slur.

[elsiegee40]

I call myself a Geek... I don’t regard it as an insult.

 

Lots of words can be used as insults. It doesn’t meaning using those words should all be criminalised.

[FishCustard]

Looks like it's a way to get column inches for her new book: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/12/17/nerd-geek-insults-should-classed-hate-crimes-academic-claims/

 

Ignore and move on I think!

[Koldov]

Interestingly enough the meaning of 'geek' has changed over the years...

 

I was working on something that needed sorting quickly and hadn't put the lights on in my office (so just me in the dark illuminated by the glow of a monitor) and a teacher knocked on the door.

 

In my reply to his questioning why I was working in the dark, I jokingly said "I'm a geek, that's what we do..." and he said "what, you bite the heads off chickens?"

 

I was confused until I did a bit of Googling...

 

A carnival performer specializing in bizarre and unappetizing behavior. 'I once saw a geek bite the head off a live chicken.'

 

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/geek

 

The term geek is often used interchangeably with the term nerd, but geek has always had more negative connotations, perhaps due to its earlier association with carnival performers.

In 19th century North America, the term geek referred to a performer in a geek show in a circus, traveling carnival or travelling funfair sideshows (see also freak show).

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geek

[TechMonkey]

The term geek is often used interchangeably with the term nerd, but geek has always had more negative connotations[/url]

 

That's interesting as I've always taken nerd to be the worse term, geek I've always taken to be someone that is really good at something whereas nerd was someone that was overly immersed in something. Though I've just read something that defines geeks to be collectors, where as nerds are practitioners.

[Lonix]

https://www.theregister.co.uk/2019/12/18/nerds_hate_speech/

Interesting article, but I think its out of date now. Personally speaking I was called nerd/geek etc at school as I had a VIC20 (and then a C64!)

Back then it was meant as an insult and was intended as derogatory. But now? Seems like its got no sting anymore and people actively like to call themselves geeks. Comparing it to genuine hate speech just seems a bit silly to me.

Depends. I wasn't called a geek in school because I wasn't one. In my first job I called it a few times and I'd bite back.

 

Some people may take it as a insult though.. in a derogatory way. If said to me, wouldn't bother me at all but at others.. it might be a different story.

[PotNoodleTech]

Geek it up to the max people!

 

geeky nerdy and Proudy!

[Explorer]

Definitely not hate speech I'd say. I haven't come across this IRL anyway.

[jthompson]

People can use whatever words they like to try an intimidate or belittle, if that's what they're intent on doing. Given that geeks and nerds have conquered the world now, the joke is on anyone still using those terms as weapons.

[southhamster]

I remember leaving one of the schools I supported and a couple of year 6 girls asked "what do you do here?" I replied "l help fix your computers".

Their response was "wow, that's cool!"

[lewisVeryPC]

It is a societal shift as almost everyone uses technology so to try to belittle someone based on the fact they take a keen interest in technological systems is like finding out someone is a plumber and trying to insult them based on their knowledge of plumbing systems!

[mikeprice]

In my experience kids use the word geek to criticise clever kids for being clever - or working hard - or whatever

 

Which is one reason I always wore my EduGeek lanyard - if kids see someone grown up* happy to be a geek and considering it as a compliment then it kills the insult the bully is trying for

 

 

 

* in some people's opinion