Greg.See-Kee@p0.f404.n714.z3.fidonet.org (Greg See-Kee) (03/06/90)
Index Number: 7081
EA> has been |determined that she is Educatibly Mentally
EA> Handicapped.
EA> I know many parents don't like the name of the
EA> organization, but have you tried the ARC (Association
EA> for Retarded Citizens)? [Caveat: some chapters have
EA> already changed their name to avoid the "R-word"
I don't mind being called crippled, because I AM crippled. I'm
glad that everyone around me acknowledges to I am not superman,
and that my Number One asset has nothing to do with physical
prowess.
I don't like all these circumlocutions. The big oscurring words
are trying to hide the truth. Why can't we call a spade a spade?
--
Uucp: ..!{decvax,oliveb}!bunker!hcap!hnews!3!714!404.0!Greg.See-Kee
Internet: Greg.See-Kee@p0.f404.n714.z3.fidonet.orgera@ncar.ucar.edu (Ed Arnold) (03/17/90)
Index Number: 7204 In article <10587@bunker.UUCP> normt@cbnewsc.ATT.COM (Norman R Tiedemann) writes: >People who have these stereotypes and use these labels do not care >what the word is, just what its meaning is. The word retarded would >soon be replaced by a new word, which had the exact same derogitory >meaning. I agree with you that the negative connotations of some word or phrase can be transferred to another word or phrase; I failed to mention that I had several contexts going thru my mind: e.g., how it is used in education, vs. how it is used by doctors/therapists/etc., vs. how it is used by the adult general public. The most important context to consider is the one you mentioned, education: >2.) If we teach people to be non-sexist >the we will eventually rid the language of sexist references. The >same argument applies to disabled references, I'm of the opinion to >educate the people and the derogitory words will leave the language >on their own. The question is, what does "educate the people" mean? Some believe that the absence of labeling is a good way to do this, and I agree with this approach. The following is an excerpt from one writer who believes in this approach. One consequence of trying not to use certain labels around children, is that one tends to use them less in other groups, also. ------- Biklen, Douglas, "Achieving the Complete School" (New York: Teachers College Press, 1985); page 49 Name-Calling Imagine a school that serves disabled and nondisabled students. And imagine that in this school one is not referred to as "autistic", "mentally retarded", "emotionally disturbed", "physically disabled", "learning disabled", or in any other way disabled. Rather, the staff refer to students by their names and, when necessary, refer to their learning needs or learning difficulties (e.g. John has difficulties in expressive language; Mary has difficulty with fine motor coordination). The point is simple. When adults use labels, students pick them up. If adults use language that humanizes and individualizes rather than categorizes students, students will themselves be less likely to use the labels. We have observed that principals can provide "language leadership" by setting an example and by openly discussing the labeling issue with staff. In the course of one of our integration studies, we spoke with a four-year-old-girl who attends a school which integrates severely autistic and non-disabled students. This girl has no disability. While talking with her, one of us used the term "handicapped". She asked, "What does handicapped mean?" We explained in a way that we thought she might understand. "Well, it means that a person has a hard time walking, or needs to use a wheelchair, or had a hard time talking, or has a hard time understanding things, or a hard time hearing or seeing,", we said. "Oh, you mean like John. He can't walk," she told us. "We have two kids in our class who have handicaps." Her response surprised us. First, because she has three students in her class who have severe disabilities. And second, it occurred to us that she had attended this unique school program for nearly six months and had not heard the term "handicapped" used before. Our own observers at the school also did not hear the term used during their six months of observations. Besides her academic program, this student was learning that some of her fellow students had various differences, like not being able to walk or talk, yet she had learned to see these as qualities of the students and not all-defining. She did not see these other students as "the handicapped." We asked her about these students and she was able to tell us about them as people, what they like and do not like, where they live, and what they are learning, and so on. -- Ed Arnold * NCAR * POB 3000, Boulder, CO 80307-3000 * 303-497-1253(w) era@ncar.ucar.edu [128.117.64.4] * era@ncario.bitnet * era@ncar.uucp "See, the human mind is kind of like ... a pinata. When it breaks open, there's a lot of surprises inside." --Jane Wagner/Lily Tomlin