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Often people with a disability are referred to collectively
as the disabled, the mentally retarded, the blind, the deaf,
or paraplegics or spastics or epileptics and so forth. These
terms have the effect of depersonalising the description of
people.
It is therefore recommended that the
impersonal reference to people with disabilities be avoided.
The following terms are generally preferred
to describe a person with a disability or people with disabilities,
as they recognise that the disability is only one characteristic
of the person or persons:
- Person with a disability
- Person with disabilities
- Students/employees with disabilities.
If it is necessary or desirable to
be more specific about the type of disability involved, the
same strategy is recommended - that is, not to focus entirely
on the person's disability in the description. Do not put
the disability first and the person second. The following
are some commonly used phrases and suggested alternatives.
Alternatives
The following terms are generally preferred to describe a
person with a disability or people with disabilities, as they
recognise that the disability or impairment is only one characteristic
of the person or persons:
- A person with a disability
- People with disabilities
- People with visual impairments
- People with alternative needs etc.
- People with epilepsy
- Students/employees with disabilities
If it is desirable or necessary to
be more specific about the type of impairment or disability
involved, the same strategy is recommended - that is, never
use the article 'the' with an adjective to describe people
with disabilities.
The terms 'able-bodied', 'physically
challenged', 'differently abled' and 'sufferer' are strongly
discouraged.
Be careful not to imply that people
with disabilities are to be pitied, feared or ignored, or
that they are somehow more heroic, courageous, patient, or
'special' than others. Never use the term 'normal' in contrast.
A person having to use a wheelchair
is a 'wheelchair user' or 'uses a wheelchair'. Avoid terms
that define the disability as a limitation, such as 'confined
to a wheelchair', or 'wheelchair-bound'. A wheelchair provides
mobility and new opportunities rather than confines the user.
Never use the terms 'victim' or 'sufferer'
to refer to a person who has or has had a disease or disability.
This term dehumanises the person and emphasises powerlessness,
e.g. use the term 'person with HIV' rather than an 'HIV sufferer'.
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