"This hatchling is d-rpy." (Response: Read it a book.)

That word's main use has always been to make fun of developmentally disabled folks for having speech issues, and the specific use here seems to imply that the sylesti is unintelligent or acting in certain other ways that DD people are also often mocked for. As a DD person myself, though I don't have pronunciation issues, this really, really bothers me and makes me very uncomfortable.

I would suggest changing the prompt text to "This hatchling is imaginative." That would remove the gross word and the implication of the phrase, and would also be more appropriate and make more sense in the context. (Since reading books isn't something that will remove any traits of my developmental disabilities, but it certainly is nice to read with my imagination.)

Adding my support to this. And to prempt posts saying "it's not meant to be offensive"... we know it's not. Ableism is often accidental. But the fact that the person who wrote it probably didn't mean to use it as a slight against neuro-divergant individuals doesn't mean it's not. It's like when someone steps on your foot by accident - you know that they didn't mean to hurt you but they did anyway, and no amount of good intentions can change that.

I suggest that the phrase is changed to "this hatchling is sleepy" which is what I mentally read it as, because what's better for a little one then having someone they trust read them a story as they drift off?

Thank you for posting this. Total support from me.

Support ^_^

This discussion has been had and responded to.

https://www.sylestia.com/forums/?thread=15126

Ah, I see, thanks for pointing that out! Disappointed it's still there, but glad it will be eventually removed.

Glad to see other people support the removal of the slur!

Me too, I don't like that word. Some other suggestions instead are "pensive" or "curious"

Okay, this is really bothering me.
There is no reason to change the word. Fai and Krin never meant it to be an insult! If it said "r-tarded" or "stupid" I'd be upset, too, because those words are meant to be insults. They're cruel words and are spoken to harm. Heck, I've even got my own beef with the word "r-tarded" But not Derpy. It's the name of a beloved character on a children's show [that has attracted more than children]! It was never intended to be an insult. I see this sensitivity to be comparable to those colleges that stop doing fun things because someone might have gotten offended. I read that one college had a big make your own taco buffet every year. It raised money and was lots of fun for students [because Tacos!] They shut it down, NOT because someone was offended, but because someone MIGHT have been offended. The entire campus lost a fun event that helped out because someone thought that students of Hispanic decent might have been insulted. There's another campus that has a big event and they'd bring in a camel as part of a petting zoo-type thing for fun. Again, that campus didn't get to see a camel because someone might have felt insulted. No one actually was, in these cases, but someone thought that someone might be.

I just feel that the word doesn't mean any harm so there's no reason to get upset. It's not a common derogatory term against mentally handicapped people. It's not a word that's used to hurt people. I've never heard of anyone calling someone with autism derpy. The words that they use are much harsher and are intended to insult and hurt.

I'm sorry, this has just really been bothering me since I first saw this thread. I know that Fai and Krin plan on changing this when the nurturing part of the site is redone and I am fine with the suggestions given both on this thread and on the other. I just can't help but understand that the admins never used the word in an attempt to make users upset. The admins on here are very kind and understanding and I, as an adult, really appreciate everything they've done on here. They get involved with the community and personally respond to threads to answer questions and set things straight. They are willing to change things based on suggestions given by the community. I appreciate this and am extremely proud to be a long-time member on a site like this.

I have to say I agree with Yumi about this. It just seems to be that, in this day and age, everyone is overly sensitive about everything because they take everything as a personal insult. And for the record, yes, there are things that could be offensive to me. I am female dating another female, but the term 'gay' being used as something derogatory, like 'that's so gay', doesn't bother me. Because I understand that it's not being meant as an insult to me personally, it's just a word that's being used. Personally I think that as long as Krin and Fai didn't meant it as something derogatory, which of course they didn't, that there's really no reason for people to take offence or for it to be changed.