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Prepared by JM John ArmstrongHarbinger Consultantshttp://harbingerconsultants.blogspot.com
INCLUSIVE LANGUAGE :: DISABILITY AWARENESS
WORDS TO AVOID ACCEPTABLE ALTERNATIVES
 Abnormal, subnormal. (These are negative termsthat imply failure to reach perfection.)Specify the disability. Afflicted with. (Most people with a disability do notsee themselves as afflicted.)Person has (name of disability).Birth defect, congenital defect, deformity. Person with a disability since birth, person with acongenital disability.The blind, the visually impaired. Person who is blind, person with a visionimpairment.Carer. (Is sometimes preferred by older people witha disability, particularly applied to a family member.)Support Worker.Personal Assistant, PA (sometimes preferred byyounger people with a disability.) Companion.Confined to a wheelchair, wheelchair bound. (Awheelchair provides mobility, not restriction.)Uses a wheelchair.Cripple, crippled. (These terms convey a negativeimage of a twisted ugly body.)Has a physical disability, has a mobility disability.The deaf. Person is deaf. (This refers to people who cannothear but do not necessarily identify with the Deaf community.)Or The Deaf. (This refers to people who identifythemselves as part of the Deaf community and whouse sign language. The Deaf community is onlyappropriate when referring to this particular community.)Deaf and dumb. (This is sometimes used todescribe an inability to hear and speak, which doesnot imply any intellectual disability.)Person who is deaf and non-verbal.Or Deaf people (this refers to people who identifythemselves as part of the Deaf community and whouse sign language.)Defective, deformed. (These are degrading terms.) Specify the disability.The disabled. People with a disability.Disabled toilet. Accessible toilet.Disabled parking. Accessible parking space.Dwarf, little person. (Have negative connotations.) Short-statured person.Epileptic. Person with epilepsy.Fit, attack, spell. Seizure.The handicapped. Person with a disability (If referring to anenvironmental or attitudinal barrier then ‘person whois handicapped by a disability’ is appropriate.)
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