Sidestepping Ableist Language

Sidestepping
Ableist Language

By Ashley Bischoff

tweet along at #NotSoAbleist

(You can move between slides with the arrow keys.)

What is ableist language?

“retarded”

“crazy”

“lame”

“insane”

“derp”

And in decades past, that also used to be a common refrain when people would use another word—

“gay”

And fortunately, in today’s world, we’ve come to realize that

Referring to things that you don’t like as “gay” also implies that people who are gay are unlikable.

When we use words like these—

What we may have intended doesn’t
really matter.

Because the power of words lies in how they’re received.

And those types of usages affect the way that we perceive those words.

Suppose you were to do a Google Images search for “crazy”

Let’s go through a few examples together.

If you get stuck, Lydia Brown has a handy list of alternatives to ableist words: bit.ly/ableistalternatives

Let’s tackle some stigmas.

Ableist language contributes to the stigma that’s associated with mental and physical disabilities.

And we can help reduce that stigma by using other words in those contexts.

But there’s also something else that we can do.

Another way to lessen stigmas is for people within those groups to become more visible within society. Because—

That helps show that they’re people just like anyone else.

A similar example over recent years is with LGBT people.

Society has come to realize that—oh—LGBT people are just like anyone else.

So when it comes to mental illness, I thought I’d do my part by stepping forward to say that

I have mental illness.

Now when I said that, did that conjure images of the cartoon stereotype?

In my case, I have severe ADHD.

Or to put it another way—

If my brain were on craigslist, it might be affectionately described as having a “patina.”

Fun fact: The craigslist company consistently spells its name in all lowercase.

For my coworkers, who are among those in the audience—

This may be the first time that you’ve heard me talk about my mental illness.

And that’s because the stigma of mental illness can carry a lot of baggage.

That’s partly because many people see mental illness as a personal failing.

Rather than as a medical condition that’s out of that person’s hands.

For many people, hearing the phrase—

“I have mental illness”

—somehow comes across differently than—

“I have strep throat.”

Even though they’re not all that different.

But if we can talk to people about our mental illness, we can take away its novelty.

And we have another trick up our sleeve—

We accessibility wonks tend to do a lot of writing.

So if you’re going through a document and you come across some ableist language—

Swap those ableist words for whichever concept that the writer is actually trying to convey.

Thanks!

• This talk is online at: bit.ly/ableistlanguage
• Lydia Brown has a handy list of alternatives to ableist words: bit.ly/ableistalternatives
• Bitch Magazine has a great article on ableist language: http://bit.ly/bitchchoir
• I gab about language at @FriendlyAshley and
  I talk about accessibility at @HandCoding