It Is NEVER Ok To Use Disability As An Insult

Our words matter.


words matter disability semantics


Remember the old saying, "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me."? Not true. Not true at all. 

Words can hurt. A lot. And there is real potential for lasting harm. It's not just semantics.

When I learned that an official in the Obama administration referred to the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu as "Aspergery", I was relieved that people were outraged.

The term “Aspergery” was used in a manner that is insulting to millions of people around the world with Asperger Syndrome. It is never OK to insult someone by referring to disability in a negative manner.



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Making Sense of Behavior: Girls, Boys, Attention Deficits and Stereotypes



This post contains affiliate links.

My friends at The Inclusive Class posted the following visual on Facebook:
ADD ADHD Girls Stereotypes Behavior


It resonated, but I found myself thinking much more about stereotypes than disabilities. 

You’ve done it, haven’t you? Referred to girls as “chatty”, categorized their behavior as “drama” or blamed the way she is acting on “hormones”? I certainly have. And there may well be truth to each of those descriptions. But we do our children a disservice when we simply use stereotypes to explain away their behavior. 

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