People First Language

Some people would call this a pet peeve, and others may call it complete nonsense . . . But I think it's a form of showing respect.

People first language means that you and I, and everyone else are first and foremost people. As people, we deserve the respect to be known for who we are, what we have and will accomplish, and where we want to go, rather than what our disability is.

For example:

"I have two younger brothers, Alex and Todd, who are both diagnosed with autism." as opposed to "I have two autistic brothers, named Alex and Todd."

Both sentences share the same information, yet the first one sounds a tad more positive. It recognizes that my brothers are firstly people who have names, and secondly that they do have autism. When I tell people about my brothers, I want them to have a positive view of them, a view that is open-minded to getting to know them for who they are, and for what they are diagnosed with. Why should my brothers be labeled as being "autistic"? Is it really fair that they be stuck with that label for the rest of their life? No. No one deserves to be labeled.

Another example:

"The students from the DC Class." as opposed to "The DC students" I personally would hate to be labeled by the class that I am in. I wouldn't want teachers and other students referring to me as the sociology/physics/chemistry/French student day in and day out.

People first language doesn't just apply to people who have disabilities - It can be applied to anyone.

"Someone who has diabetes" as opposed to "A diabetic".

"The guy who happens to be gay" as opposed to "The gay guy".

The way I look at it is that everyone has strengths and qualities - those should be the characteristics that you recognize first and foremost. If you really feel the need to label someone, why not make it something positive?

Some people say that "autistic" or "diabetic" is just an adjective, and not a label . . . But what I want to know, is why those need to be adjectives for people in the first place? Yes, there may be circumstances where those facts may be needed, but in everyday life . . . Not really.

If you were being introduced to someone, would you want the first thing that they knew about you to be that you were bad at math, or lactose intolerant, or "autistic"? I wouldn't want to be labeled like that. I would want to be known as Becky. I would want positive aspects to be mentioned about me, or have them aware of what my strengths are - not judging me on my flaws, or on things I can't control (like the fact that I wear glasses, for example).

After reading this entry, I hope you think about your language more, about how you describe the people you care about, even those who aren't that close to you . . . I know that after my mom made me aware of all this I began to notice it every single time it happened. Now it just bugs me, because it happens so naturally and I really feel like it shouldn't.

I believe that everyone is who they are for a reason, and that is what needs to be recognized.