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Opponents of R-Word Win Key Legislative Victory in New Jersey

Published August 17, 2010
| FoxNews.com
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New Jersey Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, left, and New Jersey Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney, right, (D-Thorofare) look on as Gov. Chris Christie shares a vacation story with reporters Monday, Aug. 16, 2010, in Trenton, N.J. (AP)
A movement to eliminate references to the disabled as "mentally retarded" from laws and regulations gained steam this week after New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie signed legislation replacing the terms with "intellectual disability" and "developmental disability."

This month, the U.S. Senate passed a similar bill and the House will take up its version next month.

While advocates for the disabled have campaigned for years against the R-word, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel drew attention to the issue this year when he apologized for privately calling a group of liberal Democrats "retarded" last year. Sarah Palin, who has a son with Down syndrome, criticized Emanuel in a Facebook posting.

The bill Christie signed Monday eliminates outdated terms such as "mentally retarded" and "feeble-minded." Preferred terms are "intellectual disability" and "developmental disability."

The new law also promotes so-called "person-first" language. For example, it's preferred to say "a person with a disability" rather than a "disabled person."

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Senate President Stephen Sweeney, the Senate sponsor who has a daughter who is learning disabled, said the legislation is important "because words matter."

Dennis Donatelli, the president of the New Jersey Self-Advocacy Project, told FoxNews.com that people with disabilities don't want to be degraded.

"They want to have equal opportunities just like everyone else," he said.

The Senate bill, known as Rosa's Law, passed this month and eliminates the terms "mental retardation" and "mentally retarded" from federal education, health and labor laws.

"The bill was driven by a passion for social justice and a compassion for the human condition," Sen. Barbara Mikulski, author of the legislation, said in a written statement.

The bill has drawn support from the other side of the aisle.

"The bill is simple in nature but profound in what it will do when it is enacted," Sen. Mike Enzi, R-Wyo, a co-sponsor, said in a written statement."For far too long we have used hurtful words like 'mental retardation' or 'MR' in our federal statutes to refer to those living with intellectual disabilities. While the way people feel is important, the way people are treated is equally important. Rosa's Law will make a greatly needed change that should have been made well before today – and it will encourage us to treat people the way they would like to be treated."

A companion bill in the House has 63 co-sponsors but is stuck in committee for now.

Joan Bertin, executive director of the National Coalition Against Censorship, told FoxNews.com that the New Jersey law doesn't make it illegal to use the term and doesn't fall into the category of political correctness.

"It's not censorship," she said. "No one said you can't use it."

But she added the new language is "probably more appropriate" because it reflects contemporary use.

In comic strips the person on the left always speaks first. - George Carlin

The only problem with these kinds of changes is that people need to keep up with them or they appear to be insensitive. It's no biggie, but I thought it worth mentioning at least.

You'll understand when you get older, but calling blacks "colored" or "negro" was just what was done when I was a kid... which is why the NAACP is named the way it is.

Some of this stuff is just silly. We all know that. Like on the airlines, they say want to "preboard." Well, what the hell is "preboard?" What does that mean? To get on before you get on? They say they're going to "preboard those passengers in need of special assistance." Cripples! Simple, honest, direct language. There is no shame attached to the word 'cripple' that I can find in any dictionary, no shame attached to it. In fact, it's a word used in bible translations. 'Jesus healed the cripples.' It doesn't take seven words to describe that condition. But we don't have any cripples in this country anymore. We have 'the physically challenged.' Is that a grotesque enough evasion for you? How about 'differently-abled.' I've heard them called that. 'Differently-abled!' You can't even call these people 'handicapped' anymore. They'll say, "Were not handicapped. Were handicapable!" These poor people have been bullshitted by the system into believing that if you change the name of the condition, somehow you'll change the condition. Well, hey cousin! Doesn't happen! Doesn't happen.

We have no more deaf people in this country- 'hearing impaired.' No ones blind anymore, 'partially sighted' or 'visually impaired.' We have no more stupid people. Everyone has a 'learning disorder,' or he's 'minimally exceptional.' How would you like to be told that about your child? "He's minimally exceptional." "Oohh, thank god for that." Psychologists actually have started calling ugly people, 'those with severe appearance deficits.' It's getting so bad, that any day now I expect to hear a rape victim referred to as 'an unwilling sperm recipient.'

And we have no more old people in this country--no more old people. We shipped them all away, and we brought in these 'senior citizens.' Isn't that a typically American twentieth century phrase? Bloodless, lifeless, no pulse in one of them. A senior citizen! But I've accepted that one, I've come to terms with it. I know it's here to stay. We'll never get rid of it. That's what they're going to be called, so I'll relax on that, but the one I do resist--the one I keep resisting--is when they look at an old guy and they'll say, "Look at him Dan! He's ninety years young." Imagine the fear of aging that reveals, to not even be able to use the word "old" to describe somebody, to have to use an antonym! And fear of aging is natural. It's universal. Isn't it? We all have that. No one wants to get old. No one wants to die, but we do! So we bullshit ourselves. I started bullshitting myself when I got to my forties. As soon as I got into my forties I'd look in the mirror and I'd say, "well, I...I guess I'm getting...older." Older sounds a little better than old doesn't it? Sounds like it might even last a little longer. Bullshit, I'm getting old! And it's okay, because thanks to our fear of death in this country, I won't have to die...I'll 'pass away.' Or I'll 'expire' like a magazine subscription. If it happens in the hospital, they'll call it a 'terminal episode.' The insurance company will refer to it as 'negative patient-care outcome.' And if it's the result of malpractice, they'll say it was a 'therapeutic misadventure.' I'm telling you, some of this language makes me want to vomit. Well, maybe not vomit. Makes me want to engage in an involuntary personal protein spill.

You're saying everything's moving too fast and you're having difficulty keeping up?

The English Language passed the Million Word threshold on June 10, 2009 at 10:22 a.m. (GMT). The Millionth Word was the controversial ‘Web 2.0′. Currently there is a new word created every 98 minutes or about 14.7 words per day.

YMMV, but I've never heard someone referred to by a noun descriptor like "retard", "cripple" or "nigger" without negative connotations. In my experience, it's always been possible to tell who has sympathy for the object of discussion and who looks down on him/her by their usage of phrases like "that retarded boy" or "that handicapped woman" vs "the retard" or "the cripple".

Usually when they are, it's in reference to a person that isn't really retarded or crippled, and so has no excuse.