6.10.3 Avoiding Disability Bias
Avoid using labeled nouns when talking about people with disabilities. Try to use emotionally neutral expressions rather than ones that assign a role, such as victim as can be seen in Table 6.6
| Avoid | Try |
|---|---|
| the disabled people | Individual with disabilities / people who are differently abled |
| the schizophrenic | the person diagnosed with schizophrenia |
| an AIDS victim | a person with AIDS |
| a person suffering from epilepsy | a person with epilepsy |
| handicapped parking | accessible parking |
| normal / healthy | people without disabilities |
This section is adapted from “Eliminating Bias in Language” in Communication for Professionals by Susan Oaks, licensed under CC BY-NC: Attribution NonCommercial 4.0 International, except where otherwise noted.
