Person-first language: it’s like insisting on saying “person with a penchant for skydiving” instead of “skydiver”—it’s all about putting the humanity before the hobby, or in this case, the disability. This linguistic dance is all about emphasizing the person over the disability, as if to gently remind us that there’s a human in there, not just a collection of symptoms or diagnoses.
Advantages:
Reduces stigma by not allowing the disability to overshadow the person’s identity.
Helps in framing disabilities as a part of the individual’s life, not the entirety of their identity.
Promotes a more respectful and inclusive way of speaking.
Comments