New Language in the News

Section 401 of the DDRA makes "intellectual disability" the official term to be used in all District government laws, regulations, policies and government publications to describe a disability characterized by significant limitations both in intellectual functioning and in adaptive behavior. A companion bill removes the "R Word" from all District laws.

See this post for more on the DDRA's proposal, which is part of a national respectful language movement that's lately been in the news a great deal:

• In January Rahm Emanuel used the "R Word" and then apologized.
• In early February Michael Alison Chandler wrote an excellent WaPo article on developments in the Metro region and Michael Gerson signed the pledge to end the "R Word" at www.r-word.org.
• This Sunday WaPo's Outlook section featured an argument against banning the "R Word," and on Monday Timothy Shriver of Special Olympics responded.