Crip and Cripple are different words
So this might be opening up a CAN OF WORMS but as a physically disabled person I just wanna throw out a clarification that I personally think is useful to have explicitly articulated. These two words are DIFFERENT:
Crip: a reference to crip theory and its friends. Refers to ALL disabilities (not just mobility/physical). Similar to queer, it's a way of seeing the world: disability is socially constructed, fuck eugenics, fuck capitalism, fuck colonialism, being disabled means you HAVE to be creative to navigate a world not built for you, disabled people are the OG makers/hackers, and so on. "Crip" is used as a verb to apply to this way of seeing the world to analyse different facets of society (e.g. cripping the arts, crip technoscience). Seen in academic terms like cripistemology and eco-crip theory but also nonacademic contexts like krip-hop and crip time.
Cripple: refers to physically disabled people ONLY. Seen in terms like cripplepunk, which is exclusive to physical disabilities. (Punks with other disabilities are encouraged to use other terms like dyspunktional.)
Yes, "crip" was coined as a shortening of "cripple". Yes, they are both reclamations of the same slur. But I think it is productive for us to understand these two words as distinct, and to be mindful of the difference.
Crip at this point has a very well established usage that is pan-disability, while at the same time we physically disabled we need space to talk about cripple-specific stuff.
I hope this clarification is helpful! I know the two words sound similar and share a root but I think it's a nuance that matters. <3
