Intellectual Disability Definition

Fairman has a convincing argument that even if the word retard was gone from everyday use as well as clinical use, the new term for the mentally retarded would also soon be offensive and develop the same negative connotation. as the word retard does now. Fairman first talks about the taboo nature of words and talks about his book on the subject which establishes credibility on the subject. Fairman then explains how mental disabilities are taboo in America with a history that isolated those with them and those with mental disabilities being a source of shame for family members. The reader would not be making a large assumption calling the word retard a taboo word because of the example the author gives where a well known takes great offense from someone calling others retards. The whole point is that words that represent a taboo in culture is that “Offence-both given and taken-is inevitable” (Fairman 3). The fact that the author goes to the reason why the word is offensive and then explain that historical terms for the mentally disabled also became taboo and offensive is very convincing to the reader that the actual word retard is not the

Bauer’s argument is based on emotion which makes it hard for the reader to follow. It is solely an emotional essay. The writer seems to have a very personal stance on the subject. She has raised a daughter with Down syndrome and she has tried so hard to shelter her from the hurtful word “retard.” Emotional essays provide no new ways of looking at the problem. Bauer’s argument was mostly a lot of finger pointing at the movie industry and their lack of compassion when using the word “retard.” Furthermore, the writer expresses society’s lack of compassion for the intellectually disabled community. The writer demonstrates examples of people’s use of this word as a means for expressing careless acts. Bauer states, “A clerk in a store apologizes for being "such a retard" when she can't find an item for me. Ouch. Kids at the mall call one another "you big retard." Ouch. A friend tells a long, involved story at my dinner table about her recent fender bender, with a punch line about "some retard" who parked behind her” (119). Bauer does not argue either of these points but just expresses her feeling about

The word retarded hurts people so much that it makes them feel different from others. People who have a mental illness start to believe that they are below the average human and that they are not the same as others. The word is so offensive that it starts separating these people from the society. On top of that, in relation to this negative meaning, people as such will be ultimately feeling labbeled. Just like the Jewish people during the Holocaust, these people will be looked as differently, when in the end, we are all humans. This one word can ruin someone’s life which is why it should not be used. The word “retarded” is one of the many reasons why segregation still exists today; it separates innocent people for no reason.

Walking down the hallway you may hear someone say something a little outlandish followed with an exasperated, “That’s retarded!” This mundane use of the word “retarded” to replace the word “stupid” or “weird” has become too widely accepted and often not given a second thought. The word retard has transformed from a clinical word used solely by doctors to a word used to describe any and almost everything. Using “retarded” is disrespectful and hurtful in ways those who don’t have any mental disabilities can’t even imagine. The second nature, “slang” use of the word ‘retard’ to express disapproval, or distaste and describe a situation or person (with or without and intellectual disability) is unacceptable, hurtful and needs to be more carefully

Sweeney in “Stigma and Discrimination: A socio-cultural Etiology of Mental Illness” , the moment a person is found to have a mental illness, they are automatically labeled as someone who is not capable of taking care of the normal duties of life. A label that hinders the person’s growth both mentally and physically. Another unfortunate assumption towards mental disorders is that people with these disorders are believed to have a below average intelligence. They are not expected or even thought of as someone who is capable of excelling in the areas of education. Even though there has been a substantial amount of proof of individuals overcoming their mental disorders and accomplishing great feats, there still lies the stereotype that these same individuals hold a low

Looking into other sets of media such as in cartoons on the television or in the newspaper showcase the issue and the phenomenon of discriminatory language becoming the norm. Such jargon includes “idiot”, “dumb”, “crazy”, “insane”, and “moron”; all words which have had a history in labeling different disabilities. Archaically, “idiot” indicated a mentally handicap person; “dumb” was originally indicative of a mute; “crazy” of someone mentally deranged or their mind was slipping. These words have been used in such derogatory ways since their invention that they have become normal insults thrown at people who do not even show any true signs of being mentally handicap, deranged, or even mute. These words have become standard issue in the English language and reinforce misconceptions perpetuated by the

Instead, the French would say "retardre" to replace other terms like idiot and moron and emphasize its meaning to "slow down" or "keep back." Now, If you were to put the meaning of this term into the phrase "That's so retarded," logically, it wouldn't make sense. However, back at that time period, people were not aware that the term "retard" would potentially transform itself into something clinical. Years later, people from the professional medical field described the term "retard" as to something slow with limited intellect or emotional development. According to the American Association on Mental Retardation, APA, and the DSM -5, the medical phrase " mental retardation" has now been eliminated. Instead, Doctors and individuals amongst the professional field are advised and expected to use the phrase "intellectually disabled." As you can see, organizations like the APA and AAMR have taken into consideration that the term "retard" can not only be hurtful to those who are intellectually disabled, but, can be expressed as a professional standard as well. Though, these organizations have not undoubtedly helped diminish this language by themselves, our President has also taken action to help those who have taken this term as an offense. In the article " Obama Signs Bill Replacing "Mental Retardation" with "Intellectual Disability"," the author proposes the decision Obama makes. Peter Berns states "This is a really important step, particularly for the self advocacy community. Self advocates have been working many years to remove hurtful languages. This takes our community on step closer. " Even though the phrase "mental retardation" has escaped from the lives of professionals, many people still find it admissible to say

       People have always been intrigued and highly interested in studying people with disabilities. The first trial to make records about mental retardation took place in 1552 B.C. Greeks and Romans considered themselves as powerful and developed nations, which implied that cases of disability presupposed that the person was from a lower background.

Mental retardation is considered to be old label of diagnosis, according to The American Psychiatric

The label Mental Retardation have been used to discriminate, limit and hurt children with Intellectual Disabilities since the beginning of formal education. Children with special needs have not been treated well in history. They have been victimized, institutionalized, hidden away in attics, and refused to be allow to attend school. Unfortunately, the negative connotation of being Mentally Retarded was a central part of the justification of treating these children as less than. Even today the label of mental retarded leads to bullying, low expectations, and an unfair bias towards children with Intellectual Disabilities.

Mental retardation has replaced words such as idiocy and mental subnormality as they became pejorative. However, mental retardation also turned to be a hurtful language, since the adjective “retarded” has been used in a demeaning manner. Every label stigmatizes people, and “mental retardation” has a strong negative connotation since the definition of the word “retard” is “delay”. So, if the person is retarded, he or she is behind the others in terms of intelligence. For this reason, this term does not confer respect or dignity to the person.

Many terms that pertain to mental disabilities have been replaced. The term began its existence as a medical descriptor without implicit value judgment. Over time, as society began to use the term as an insult, the term was enveloped with negative connotations that being mentally impaired is shameful.

Mental retardation is a very serious illness, and most of the American population is ignorant regarding the subject. Approximately 3 percent of people in the U.S. are considered mentally retarded. With a percentage like this, the ignorance on the subject is bizarre. The nation has adopted slang terms such as “retard”, to insult others. Using this term is a way to call someone stupid. But there is a lot that people do not understand about mental disabilities. The study of the illness is actually a very complex topic. There are many parts that build up the subject. The definition of mental retardation is: significantly sub-average general intellectual functioning, existing concurrently with

Yet despite the discrimination these beliefs cause, they are traditions and are engrained into the minds off all Chinese people who are not disabled. Helen McCabe writes, in "Parent Advocacy in the Face of Adversity: Autism and Families in the People's Republic of China", about the lives of autistic children and their families, as well as the educational and life struggles both the parents and children face because of genetics. She adds even more discriminatory labels onto the points Walden discusses, arguing that many people refer to autistic children as “children with mental retardation” (McCabe). Disabled people are merely handicapped and may not be as capable of as many things as a lot of people are. Calling this particular group mentally retarded only adds to the challenges imposed on autistic individuals. While many people are working towards better living situations for autistic children, categorizing them into this very offensive phrase harms them rather than helps them. The people who say mentally

Stereotypes constantly accompany different groups of people. This is true of mentally handicapped people as well. Labels such as “slow”, “stupid”, “ignorant”, and even “dangerous” are some stereotypical values that are disrespectfully bestowed on mentally challenged people. (Lewis, 2006) The public is now able to view mentally handicapped conditions through the media. Ideas gained from viewing various forms of media coverage of handicapped persons can prove to be both positive and negative.