People with disabilities are people first
Published 9:07 pm Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Dear editor,
I’m writing because I’ve noticed that many newspapers consistently use very negative language when writing about people with disabilities. This pattern influences how our society talks about disability, and in turn, shapes and impacts the lives of countless individuals in our communities.
It is quite common to read headlines that refer to a “disabled” individual. Using the word “disabled” to describe someone makes it seem as if a person’s entire identity is encompassed in whether or not they have a disability. The story that follows tends to be about a person who has done something, not done something, been injured, escaped danger or the many other things that people do over the course of their daily lives. In other words, the story is about a person living their life. Yet, almost without fail, if the individual has a disability, the disability inevitably becomes the focus of the article. A person’s disability is usually mentioned over and over.
Often, the article describes the individual with a disability using negative terms such as disabled, impaired, special needs, handicapped, wheelchair-bound and confined to a wheelchair. This kind of language perpetuates the attitude that disability is a terrible characteristic to have and that individuals with disabilities are inherently limited or different from people without disabilities. Someone who uses a wheelchair to get around is not “bound” or “confined” to it any more than you or I are bound or confined to our cars! It is simply another way to get around.
I understand that sometimes disability is relevant to a story, just like someone’s race, gender or sexual orientation could be important. Yet making it the focus of the story makes it seem like that’s the only thing that’s really important about the situation, when so many factors contribute to where we find ourselves in life.
By mentioning disability only when it is relevant, and using neutral language to do so, like “person with a disability” or “boy with physical and intellectual disabilities” or “individual who uses a wheelchair to get around,” we can be part of helping our community to see that disability is a part of life, and an OK one, just like other diversity characteristics.
Using neutral words to talk about disability is a simple way that newspapers, and the rest of us, can recognize that people with disabilities are people first. If you would like more information or have questions about disability language, please call Disability Network Southwest Michigan at (269) 985-0111 or visit our website at www.dnswm.org.
Joanne Johnson
Community Education and Systems Advocate
Disability Network Southwest Michigan
St. Joseph