"People-First" Language
"People-First" language is a way of talking about people with disabilities.
What People-First language is about is changing sentence structure. When you talk about someone with disabilities, you name the person first and the condition second, in order to emphasize that "they are people first".
For example:
PEOPLE-FIRST - “She is a person with disabilities”
NOT PEOPLE-FIRST - “She is a disabled person” or "she is disabled"
PEOPLE-FIRST - “He
has schizophrenia”
NOT PEOPLE-FIRST - “He is schizophrenic”
- Why does it matter?
When you acknowledge the
person first, before
the condition
or disability,
it indicates what
a person HAS, not
what a person IS.
This
reduces stereotyping
and
stigmatising.
Not using People-First language is something most if not all of us have been guilty of at some point,. We do it without realising. But if we can get into the habit of doing it, it will help those it affects.