Who would the gimp offend? It’s not claiming gimps are good or bad, it’s just called the gimp. You could reasonably say it was unnecessary sexual but it’s not trying to hurt anyone.
I'm not an artist, but I'm curious as to how digital artists are making money online. Is it comission based? Is it more like only fans, but for art? What platforms are popular?
Back in the day I knew a few people doing a particular type of art, often with mild adult content on deviantart, or in some cases not so mild, and they were able to fulfill commissions that came direct from enquiries. Those days were quite a while ago, however. That particular topic has continued to grow, despite all its stigmas though I'd imagine with growth came more artists and that likely drove prices down for most.
I'd never heard of it being used as a slur, growing up in 70s/80s/90s. It just wasn't a word used in my circle/area. Was introduced to it in... late 90s or maybe 2000 at a local Linux group. No one mentioned anything about the name then, and I don't think I actually heard it referenced as a slur until around 10 years ago. Not saying it wasn't used or known as one, but it's certainly not a universal thing.
Perhaps if we ignored some of these reactions to words after... 80+ years, and just let the 'new' meaning become the default... we can move past censoring words that someone, somewhere, used as an insult?
As a general principle, I do think that the level of offense taken should generally be proportional to the context in which a word is used. This particular circumstance is really at worst unfortunate.
That said...
> Perhaps if we ignored some of these reactions to words after... 80+ years, and just let the 'new' meaning become the default... we can move past censoring words that someone, somewhere, used as an insult?
The world we live in today lets black rappers use the n-word in their music while also seeing white teachers get fired for using it in the context of a classroom discussion about why it is a bad word and ought not be used.
The mental gymnastics of accepting a word which could be either a term of endearment or the most deeply offensive pejorative are too messy for my liking.
> It just wasn't a word used in my circle/area
This highlights the problem, I think. You've moved from a circle where it wasn't even in use, to a circle where it is in use with one meaning (an acronym), and now another circle where it has been used for 100 years with an entirely different meaning (a slur).
You have a decision to make. Acknowledge that other people see the word differently than you do, or try to convince everyone that only your view of the word is the right one. Personally, I think it would be easier for the gimp to be renamed, but I'm also making an assumption (based on the circles I've run in) that more people are familiar with gimp as a slur than they are with it as an acronym for a software program.
So the fact you personnally were never inconvenienced by a word means it must become ok for others. And whenever we hear a slur, we have to somehow give it a pass because the word wasn't a slur before?
I'd recommend you read up on the aids health supplement, and how that attitude didn't help them. Simple fact is that GIMP has an unfortunate name, it's not getting any better despite your wishes to single-handedly control the most important language on the planet. Its name makes the whole product less appealing, making it a harder sell to switch from Photoshop. A better name would be in order.
The use of the word is enormously exaggerated by crybullies desperate to exert some power over a project. Words have contexts, and this context is not a slur. This is on par with the mental defectives claiming "blacklist" is a reference to slavery.
The noun gimp is sometimes used to describe a limp or another physical disability, although it's an outdated and offensive word to use.
If you comment on someone's gimp, call the person a gimp, or say, "Look at that guy trying to gimp across the parking lot without his crutches," you've chosen a very objectionable way to talk about a disability. People will know what you mean if you use the word, but they're likely to be offended by it. Gimp was first used in the 1920's, possibly as a combination of limp and gammy, an old slang word for "bad."
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New Oxford Dictionary of American English
gimp(2) | ɡimp | North American informal, derogatory
noun
1 a person with a physical disability or leg injury.
• a limp.
2 a stupid or contemptible person.