{"id":2004,"date":"2013-10-22T09:56:14","date_gmt":"2013-10-22T13:56:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myparkingpermit.com\/blog\/?p=2004"},"modified":"2024-08-01T03:54:30","modified_gmt":"2024-08-01T07:54:30","slug":"remove-handicapped-from-signs-ohio-law","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myparkingpermit.com/blog\/remove-handicapped-from-signs-ohio-law\/","title":{"rendered":"Handicapped no more, say Ohio lawmakers"},"content":{"rendered":"

A new Ohio law may soon repeal use of the word \u201chandicapped\u201d to refer to people with disabilities. Lawmakers are also working to remove the term from designated parking signs.<\/p>\n

State representatives Michael Stinziano and Cheryl Grossman have pushed for the new law that will take away all forms of the word “handicap” and replace them with phrases like \u201cperson(s) with a disability\u201d or \u201caccess\/accessible\/accessibility.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe word \u2018handicapped,\u2019 whether it appears on a sign or in Ohio Revised Code, is a pejorative reference to people with disabilities,\u201d remarks Stinziano. \u201cThe word is obsolete and often viewed as offensive,\u201d he continues.<\/p>\n

\"New

Ohio may soon adopt the active icon designed by the Accessibility Icon Project. The new icon replaces the old rigid symbol and meets federal standards. It can be seen in New York, Texas, Massachusetts, Canada, and western Europe. Image by npr.org<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Counties making progress<\/h2>\n

The change comes at a time when Franklin County, Cincinnati, Hamilton County, and other areas have started taking steps to remove handicap<\/i> from the new signs.<\/p>\n

Marci Straughter, member of the Self-Advocate Advisory Council of the Franklin County Board of Developmental Disabilities, says, \u201cWith handicap<\/em>, that sounds like they\u2019re making fun of us.\u201d The self-advocacy group has\u00a0requested Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio to stay away from using the word \u201chandicap\u201d when new accessibility signs are erected. Officials have agreed to remove the word handicap or handicapped from new and replacement signs for buildings, parking areas, bathrooms, etc.<\/p>\n

Marilyn Brown, Franklin County Commissioner, remarks, \u201cIt seems like a natural for us to just continue as we change signage, to change it to be far more positive and use the contemporary verbiage.\u201d<\/p>\n

Handicapped? Special? Words hurt, says Ouch!<\/h2>\n

BBC\u2019s disability website, Ouch!<\/a>,<\/i> reveals that people with disabilities don\u2019t like it when someone calls them \u201chandicapped\u201d or \u201cbrave.\u201d In a poll conducted by the website in 2003, about top ten worst words used around disability, the word \u201cspecial\u201d came in fifth. \u201cIt differentiates them from normal, but in a saccharine manner. Disabled people are different, but not better or more important,\u201d says<\/a>\u00a0the website.<\/p>\n

Considerate language, or political correctness gone amok?<\/h2>\n

However, some people view these words through an entirely different looking glass. Laura Laughlin, a journalist turned blogger, feels that the word \u201cdisabled\u201d is a harsher word and sounds permanent while \u201chandicapped\u201d sounds a little gentler. Laura, who lives with a disability, says<\/a>, \u201cIt is not correct, journalistically. But then I\u2019m not a reporter anymore, so I don\u2019t have to adhere to style rules. I can just write what feels right, no matter if it is proper or politically correct.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lydia Brown of Autistichoya.com<\/a> explains that she calls herself disabled in the same spirit that she calls herself a woman, and that there is nothing wrong with the term. However, referring to the disabled as \u201cdifferently-abled\u201d is something she has strong opinions about. \u201cI do not believe in referring to disabled people as ‘differently-abled’ because this language only serves to reinforce oppression of disabled people by systems that marginalize atypical bodies\/minds.\u201d<\/p>\n

How to address people with disabilities, then?<\/h2>\n

Quickly evolving language renders many words obsolete and makes other words assume different meanings\u2014at times having undesirable effect. With time, people learn what is acceptable language and what is not. \u201cYou just have to kind of figure out what offends people and what doesn\u2019t,\u201d says Richard Janda, a historical linguist from the Indiana University in Bloomington.<\/p>\n

One way to acknowledge people with disabilities: using \u201cPeople-First Language,\u201d for instance, saying \u201cchild with autism\u201d rather than \u201can autistic child,\u201d so that people come first, then the disability. Saying something is \u201caccessible\u201d likewise implies an environment that is easy and safe to reach, enter, or perform in, without commenting on the people who might require those alterations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A new Ohio law may soon repeal use of the word \u201chandicapped\u201d to refer to people with disabilities. Lawmakers are also working to remove the term from designated parking signs. State representatives Michael Stinziano and Cheryl Grossman have pushed for the new law that will take away all forms of the word “handicap” and replace […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[52,32],"tags":[56,64,129,66,123,206],"class_list":["post-2004","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-handicapped-parking","category-state","tag-accessible-parking","tag-handicapped-parking-2","tag-language","tag-ohio","tag-people-with-disabilities","tag-remzem"],"yoast_head":"\nHandicapped no more, say Ohio lawmakers \u2022<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"While Ohio removes the term handicapped through a change in law, we look at what advocacy groups and people with disabilities have to say about the taboo word.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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