Acceptable
Terms
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Unacceptable
Terms
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Person with a
disability. |
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Cripple, cripples -
the image conveyed is of a twisted,
deformed, useless body.
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Disability, a general
term used for functional limitation
that interferes with a person's
ability, for example, to walk, hear
or lift. It may refer to a physical,
mental or sensory condition.
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Handicap, handicapped
person or handicapped. |
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People with cerebral
palsy, people with spinal cord
injuries. |
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Cerebral palsied,
spinal cord injured, etc. Never
identify people solely by their
disability.
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Person who had a
spinal cord injury, polio, a stroke,
etc. or a person who has multiple
sclerosis, muscular dystrophy,
arthritis, etc. |
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Victim. People with
disabilities do not like to be
perceived as victims for the rest of
their lives, long after any
victimization has occurred.
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Has a disability, has
a condition of (spina bifida, etc.),
or born without legs, etc. |
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Defective, defect,
deformed, vegetable. These words are
offensive, dehumanizing, degrading
and stigmatizing.
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Deafness/hearing
impairment.
Deafness refers to a person
who has a total loss of hearing.
Hearing
impairment refers to a person
who has a partial loss of hearing
within a range from slight to
severe.
Hard of
hearing describes a
hearing-impaired person who
communicates through speaking and
speech-reading, and who usually has
listening and hearing abilities
adequate for ordinary telephone
communication. Many hard of hearing
individuals use a hearing aid.
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Deaf and Dumb is as
bad as it sounds. The inability to
hear or speak does not indicate
intelligence. |
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Person who has a
mental or developmental disability. |
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Retarded, moron,
imbecile, idiot. These are offensive
to people who bear the label.
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Use a wheelchair or
crutches; a wheelchair user; walks
with crutches. |
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Confined/restricted
to a wheelchair; wheelchair bound.
Most people who use a wheelchair or
mobility devices do not regard them
as confining. They are viewed as
liberating; a means of getting
around.
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Able-bodied; able to
walk, see, hear, etc.; people who
are not disabled. |
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Healthy, when used to
contrast with "disabled." Healthy
implies that the person with a
disability is unhealthy. Many people
with disabilities have excellent
health.
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People who do not
have a disability. |
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Normal. When used as
the opposite of disabled, this
implies that the person is abnormal.
No one wants to be labeled as
abnormal.
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A person who has
(name of disability.)
Example:
A person who has multiple sclerosis. |
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Afflicted with,
suffers from. Most people with
disabilities do not regard
themselves as afflicted or suffering
continually.
Afflicted: a disability is not an
affliction.
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