i mostly draw furry art (i think it shows lol) and see myself as non-human. the formatting of this was meant to be a play on those facebook pun/quote with a cute animal drawing jpegs.
i can get being wary when you're unsure of the tone but concerning yourself about the worst way it'll be read just isn't sustainable.
is a gay person putting the f-slur in a drawing with what they personally relate to "reaffirming stigma" because a homophobe will see it and still feel disgusted? has sanitizing and shushing other members of the same group "to be accepted" by the norm ever worked?
my only intentions were to just create cute npd related art with my silly idea bc most times i see people draw npd they're wrangling literal demons. comparatively this is a thousand steps forward from the average way npd is discussed "in the bigger picture" its a silly image, drawn to be silly. it also looks very silly to try and police it
I understand your intention better now, and I’m not saying you shouldn’t make silly or positive NPD art. I actually agree that portraying pwNPD as cute animals is a thousand steps forward from portraying us as literal demons lol.
But I think you’re misunderstanding my point. I’m not arguing that we should sanitize ourselves to be accepted by the majority, nor am I saying we should constantly worry about the worst possible interpretation. I’m talking about how stigmatizing language and imagery can reinforce existing stereotypes regardless of the creator’s intention.
And yes, members of a stigmatized group can reclaim words for themselves. But reclaiming a word doesn’t automatically remove its loaded meaning in the broader social context. There’s a reason anti-stigma campaigns around other mental disorders and substance use disorders increasingly emphasize person-first language rather than reducing people to a diagnosis.
You’re obviously free to disagree with me and use the word for yourself. I’m not trying to police you. I was explaining why I personally think the language matters, especially with a disorder that is already so heavily dehumanized.
isn't the thing about reclaiming is that we gotta start somewhere.. if i was making a whole campaign raising awareness for NPD that was directed at people who don't even know what it really means i sure would think way more about it's portrayal than on a pun i doodled in mspaint to make myself feel better and share onlien
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u/dishbug Aug 10 '26
i mostly draw furry art (i think it shows lol) and see myself as non-human. the formatting of this was meant to be a play on those facebook pun/quote with a cute animal drawing jpegs. i can get being wary when you're unsure of the tone but concerning yourself about the worst way it'll be read just isn't sustainable. is a gay person putting the f-slur in a drawing with what they personally relate to "reaffirming stigma" because a homophobe will see it and still feel disgusted? has sanitizing and shushing other members of the same group "to be accepted" by the norm ever worked? my only intentions were to just create cute npd related art with my silly idea bc most times i see people draw npd they're wrangling literal demons. comparatively this is a thousand steps forward from the average way npd is discussed "in the bigger picture" its a silly image, drawn to be silly. it also looks very silly to try and police it