Originally Posted by deacongirl
people first language is very important to the self-advocates that I know, so they would strongly encourage "daughter with Trisomy xx". Thanks!

There's no consensus on this one. Some argue that "person first" language has exactly the reverse of the intended effect.

This article from Neuroskeptic puts it well (though the tone starts out a little snarky): http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/n...guage-that-is-person-first/#.UUXvSxnldWt

This seminal piece from 1999 was written by an autistic person: http://autismmythbusters.com/genera...air-why-i-dislike-person-first-language/

This one covers much of the same territory, but adds an important point about the "euphemism treadmill": http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3519176/

Just some food for thought!

Last edited by MegMeg; 03/17/13 09:49 AM.