“Tourette syndrome is a disability, and the tics you’ve heard tonight are involuntary, which means the person who has Tourette syndrome has no control over their language. We apologise if you are offended tonight.”
A man with Tourette's shouted the N Word at black actors attending the BAFTAs.
I'd like to point out that it wasn't the Tourette's per se, it was the fact the man held these beliefs.
Every time someone commits a murder and says their actions happened because they were God's avenging angel or Satanic forces possessed them and forced them to commit the heinous acts, it was dependent upon that person buying into and believing the underlying religious ideology.
This man shouted out what he had inside him. It is part of who he has become.
I was also reminded of men who have the so-called "killer gene", a low-activity variant of the MAOA (monoamine oxidase A) gene, often called the "warrior gene. Having the gene may mean you are more inclined to act out. Yet there are people with the genes who do not become killers.
There are people with Tourette's who do not, and never have yelled out racist language. It isn't in them. It isn't part of who they are.
