This was suggested to me by another user in the current big thread about this. I haven't finished watching it yet. It's from Poddy Mouth, a black creator. Apparently the video has perspectives from black people with Tourette's included. Might be valuable in this moment.
This is a (very short, < 5 minutes) video from a black elected official with Tourette's. He takes the position that an acknowledgement or apology is necessary. I think this was before the subsequent statement mentioned in the video linked in the post title was made (the following day), so I don't know if that statement would meet the standard this person had in mind for addressing the harm caused.
As I said in my other comments, I don't have the energy right now to really engage with this discussion further, and I don't want to accidentally cause harm by doing so. I just thought this video also belonged in this thread. Also as I said, if you have other such videos please do post them in this thread or in their own post.
Edit: this video, similar to the one linked in the post title, I got from a comment by another user in the previous thread.
I have been asked by another user to include the following info in the post body, which might be relevant to the discussion.
i think you should link this article directly from the guy with tourettes in the post: https://archive.is/GS647
this bit in particular would be helpful i think
Since the fallout, Davidson’s team shares that he’s reached out to the studio handling “Sinners” in order to directly apologize to Jordan, Lindo and production designer Hannah Beachler.
It has been pointed out that the discussions that happened on this post can be hard to follow for people who did not see prior posts discussing this subject. I think I wanted to avoid encouraging directly transferring the arguments from prior posts, but that was probably ridiculous to think. I have added them below.
Previous post: https://hexbear.net/post/7763428
Post before that: https://hexbear.net/post/7750273
I have trouble speaking on this because being white and neurodivergent lends me an inherent bias on this that I can only really be conscious of and actively disclaim when discussing it.
There are three issues that alarm me in this debate from that perspective, and after that I want to self-crit regarding where I may be myopic.
First, the conflation of tics and Freudian slips. I don't have Tourette’s myself, but I am informed enough about it to try to capture the problems I have with people taking issue of him 'meaning it' or 'having it in his vocabulary.' Tics are essentially involuntarily-actualized intrusive thoughts. Have you ever been behind the wheel of a car on a bridge and your brain flashbangs you with "I could swerve off it right now," or held a knife and immediately thought of the harm you could inflict with it? I would describe it as your brain anchoring you against the thing you least want to do so you're cognizant of it as something to be vigilant about. One of the symptoms that can present with Tourette's is Coprolalia which, to relay my simplistic understanding of it, vocalizes that thing that you least want to do in a social situation. The reason people tic slurs is because people are educated about slurs and then internalize that they shouldn't say them to people, which backfires if you suffer from Coprolalia. It does not inherently mean you "say it behind closed doors" or "have internal animus," that is a Freudian slip, which is incomparable in all-but-presentation.
Second, the idea that Davidson has not apologized. Per Variety, he either has or is attempting to apologize to the individuals in question.
I am conflicted on the meta-discourse surrounding apologies. I understand the perspective offered by some that says he should not have to—or cannot in good faith—apologize for something he cannot control or prevent from happening in the future, and I also understand the perspective that ticking a slur is nonetheless dehumanizing for the subjects of it, and when it happens in a public setting it creates a fetid dynamic in the room that exponentiates the harm and humiliation suffered beyond personal offense. If someone called me the R-slur and then everyone in a room turned to look at me, I'd feel deeply humiliated and I'd probably have a fucking panic attack.
I think that ultimately it's between Davidson and the affected parties to decide if a personal apology is constructive/reparatory here, but Davidson should not have to apologize to the public. The malfeasance there is on the BBC, which selectively scrubbed speeches that brought up Palestine to not air those bits, but specifically and actively chose despite prior pushback from film execs to broadcast the Disability-Induced Public Humiliation Incident to the world, which is disgusting malpractice on their part and reveals their ability-based contempt for Davidson and racial contempt for the Sinners team.
Third, the alarming discussions about "solutions" to Davidson's Tourette's. I have seen at this point dozens of accounts on social media attempt to propose "solutions" or "responses" to this situation that range from disinviting Davidson (who was there because a film about him was nominated for and won BAFTAs) because of his Coprolalia to physical violence and abuse, including assault and muzzling. I am unhappy that the latter category has examples that I don't want to go back into X: The Everything App to dig up and make myself feel more harrowed by. The ability-based animus towards Davidson is already foul in its character, but there is also a class concern here, because Davidson does janitorial work for a living. Davidson is a proletarian that was elevated into the public sphere due to a high-profile documentary on his Tourette's at 16. As such, I do not expect him to have the capital to hire a security team to stave off anyone who would actually follow up on that threat, which actualizes the physical safety concerns I have with that rhetoric being brought to the table. Speaking of, Davidson has also been assaulted prior after ticking an insult:
Per Variety, again. I have to spotlight this because I see the frustrations with the humiliation of the incident boiling over into people suggesting what would amount to ability segregation at best and hate crimes at worst as 'appropriate responses.' It disgusts me and makes me deeply uncomfortable personally, because I have severe ADHD and as soon as we start assaulting or "physically correcting" things that people cannot control, I see myself on the end of that baton.
To self-critique here, I cannot offer much else besides the things I articulate here, rooted in the spheres and perspectives I have more personal familiarity with, of which I have enough confidence in my ability to fairly represent. Therefore, I cannot communicate the other side of the issue as well and I'm choosing not to because I don’t want to speak for or over my black comrades on here. I'm sorry if I didn't offer a counter-perspective in places where I could have, but I just do not feel equipped enough to do so with the nuance and grace it deserves, as I'm trying to do here now presenting the issues from the perspective of being neurodivergent. I don’t want to go on the Elon Musk Torture App any more today to immerse myself further in the arguments being made by both flanks there.
It makes me sad to see a public tension between two historically-oppressed communities be stoked by the fuckers at the BBC and the rest of the capitalist media. This discourse is a cesspit and I think at this point there's nothing productive to be gained from furthering it, as I believe it’s already in a territory that has stepped well-beyond the incident itself.
Thanks for the excellent post! I am lucky to not have coprolalia, but I do have Tourette's among other things, so I'd like to say that your analysis is very well-researched and is full of great points. If you or anyone is interested, I'd like to add a tiny bit more to the mechanism of Coprolalia and TS.
Firstly, individuals with coprolalia are categorized as having a significantly higher severity of Tourette's symptoms than those without it. This includes the strength of their tics, as well as a higher association with comorbidities such as OCD, ADHD, self-harm, and more. However, it is not known to what degree these neuropsychiatric disorders are linked.
Social situations, especially those with a high degree of social observation (an awards ceremony for example) are linked with a higher degree and severity of tics.
Before a tic event, the most individuals experience a "premonitory urge" before release, which can be described as the feeling of needing to sneeze or scratch an itch. In my experience, this feeling is quite strong. However, this is not always the case. Notably, this is shown to be less prevalent before the release of a vocal tic. Also, this premonitory urge is not necessarily tied to coprolalia. In fact, it's considered likely that this is a natural rise of involuntary emotional outburst as well (for example, a person without TS who submerges their foot in freezing water may experience a "buildup" before giving a motor or vocal response).
Based on the language structures of the brain, the area where words, including swear words, are stored is predominantly the left hemisphere. However, an automatic response involving a taboo word activates primarily the right hemisphere of the brain, which indicates a neurophysiologic difference between words that are used in an automatic release (such as coprolalia) and those that share overlap with the functions used for structured language.
To put it more simply, the brain stores taboo words differently than it does other language, in a different area of the brain, which is why taboo words are associated with phenomena such as pain reduction and "normal" language isn't. A coprolalic event triggers this function, essentially skipping over the sections of the brain used for linguistic structure and meaning. This is influenced by external sensory data picked up by the brain, but is not a voluntary response to that sensory data. This is why coprolalia appears "targeted", because it is based on the involuntary trigger of "what not to say". Ironically, if a person did not consider a word to be as taboo in a situation (such as a racist who casually uses slurs often), this involuntary trigger would not be as prevalent, in the same way that someone who swears all the time is shown to reduce pain by swearing far less than a person who never swears casually.
It should be noted that there remains a lack of data or methodology to fully analyze coprolalia, due in a large part to the social stigma associated with the condition.
Again, I myself do not have coprolalia (it's estimated that 10% or fewer individuals with Tourette's do), so I am not a primary authority and cannot share a perspective on it as well as someone who does, nor would I ever claim to know more than them. This is all based on academic research mixed with some small elements of my own experience. This is also intended purely as a quick analysis on coprolalia and TS, and is in no way intended to commentate or discuss my thoughts or research about the Davidson BAFTA situation. I merely just wanted to write and share something interesting.
Sources used:
Swearing and coprophenomena – A multidimensional approach (Note: this was my main source)
Neuroanatomy of coprolalia in Tourette syndrome using functional magnetic resonance imaging
Ictal coprolalia occurs due to the activation of the temporal-orbitofrontal network in patients with epilepsy
Thank you so much for this post, I appreciate the research so much! The last few days have had me research TS for obvious reasons since I always felt like I did not know enough about it to begin with. I am amazed at some of the details you mentioned about the buildup to the tic, but it also made me curious. If you feel comfortable sharing this, I would like to know how you experience your tics, meaning, do you feel like you are an onlooker in your own body, or maybe something is just making your tic happen?
I wanna thank you again for sharing both your post and the links. It means so much to be able to learn from someone who's affected, and it really beats just reading research.
I'm glad you enjoyed!
As for the function of my tics and the premonitory urge, I can't speak for all cases of Tourette's because the feelings seem to differ to varying degrees between people. But my own motor tics are thankfully very easy to describe. They mostly involve either extending or compressing my joints, notably my elbows, knees, neck, and fingers, but occasionally my body wants to flex my bicep or calf muscles. Not painfully or anything, just a basic urge to crack my joints. Usually the tics come in a quick succession, so I'll just do them all.
I was surprised to read that the research description of the premonitory urge matches my own almost exactly. It really is the same as the urge to sneeze or scratch an itch or anything like that. A very obvious, physical tingling sensation will build up in the joint or muscle every minute or so, and go away when I crack or flex it. I imagine it's essentially the same process as anyone who gets an urge to crack their joint. It just happens anywhere from every 10 seconds to every couple of minutes for me. There's also some stuff involving my facial muscles, but I can't get a good read on what they're like, since they're rare (and I can't see my own face lol). The urge can build to be quite strong (never painful), especially if I consciously resist it for longer than a minute or so, meaning I learned when I was really young that there's no point in fighting it at all.
My vocal tics are much harder to describe. Unlike the motor tics, it's hard to tell what the build-up feels like. It's not like my tongue or brain tingles the same way that my joints do. I'll just make a small noise with my lips like a pop or whatever every so often. Lots of people do this, so it's really hard to tell the extent of what is a tic, what is my ADHD, and what is something else. Similarly, I tend to repeat words or phrases that I hear, but it's hard to tell if it's just normal conversation stuff, or if it's echolalia. Finally, I don't really think any vocal tics take the form of words (unless I'm repeating something I hear).
To give a sense of how it can be hard to identify vocal tics, it's the same process as counting how many "filler words" you use in a sentence, or how often you repeat a question back to someone.
Finally, just as a clarification, none of my tics are what I would describe as painful or otherwise physically debilitating. There's no point where I personally don't feel in control of my body. To me, I'd say it's like if I had a small itch every minute: irritating at times, but mostly in the background. I am very lucky in this regard, and if my tics get noticed at all, the most social pressure I will typically receive (especially growing up) was just telling me to sit still or stop fidgeting. I know that many people even without Tourette's can relate to that experience. Honestly, I have always considered my Tourette's to be rather minor in comparison to my ADHD, which as far as I can tell is pretty severe and affects much more of my life. Both were diagnosed at the same time when I was very young, and I wasn't surprised at all to read in the research that they're very common together.
Uh... sorry lol, I didn't mean to type this long of a reply. I've honestly just never really described it (at least not since I was like, 9) so I got carried away haha. My experience isn't particularly notable, but I hope it answered some of your questions! I'd be happy to answer anything else if there's more that I can add!
Thank you so much for the in-depth explanation! That was what I was going for with my questions, and I truly appreciate you sharing this. I'm also somewhat glad I brought that explanation back from when you were 9, if that makes sense? But just in general, I'm really glad you shared this and gave me/us a little glimpse into your lived experience with Tourette's.
While you make it sound like it's not as bad as your ADHD, I can still imagine Tourette's presenting you with issues that people without wouldn't encounter. I am however glad you seem comfortable with it, which makes your explanation almost comfy to read. But since I mentioned it, is there anything you wished people knew/understood about Tourette's that they usually don't? And maybe as less intense questions, are their outside factors that can make tics worse or better for you? I read anxiety is one part that impacts Tourette's immensely, so I was curious how you see it.
GOOD post
GOOD post