Omaha - Along with the Special Olympics and a coalition of other national disability organizations, Mosaic signed on to a Statement of Support and Solidarity promoting a boycott of the film "Tropic Thunder" and encouraging the public to become aware of the effects of negative portrayals of people with intellectual disabilities.
"People with intellectual and developmental disabilities routinely face discrimination and harassment," said Linda Timmons, Mosaic president and chief executive officer. "As a society we should not stand by and allow this."
"Tropic Thunder," promoted as a satire of the movie industry and starring actors Ben Stiller and Robert Downey, Jr., opens this week. The groups organizing the boycott object to the frequent use of the word "retard" and the offensive portrayal of people with intellectual disabilities.
A full text of the Statement is available at www.specialolympics.org.
