Disability Etiquette/People First Language

People with disabilities are not conditions or diseases. We are individual human beings. For example, a person is not an epileptic but rather a person who has epilepsy.

First and foremost we are people. Only secondarily do we have one or more disabling conditions. We prefer to be referred to in person, in print or broadcast media as People with Disabilities.

Acceptable Terms Unacceptable Terms
Person with a Disability
Cripple, cripples - the image conveyed is of a twisted, deformed, useless body.
Disability, a general term used for functional limitation that interferes with a person's ability, for example, to walk, hear or lift. It may refer to a physical, mental or sensory condition.
Handicap, handicapped person or handicapped. This term originated from the street person - cap or hat  in hand – begging for money…  not a pleasant picture.
Person who had a spinal cord injury, polio, a stroke, etc. or a person who has multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, arthritis, etc.
Victim. People with disabilities do not like to be perceived as victims for the rest of their lives.
Has a disability, has a condition of (spina bifida, etc.), or born without legs, etc.
Deformed, vegetable. These words are offensive, dehumanizing, degrading and stigmatizing.
Deaf/hearing impairment. Deaf refers to a person who has a total loss of hearing. Hearing impairment refers to a person who has a partial loss of hearing.
Deaf and Dumb is as bad as it sounds. The inability to hear or speak does not indicate intelligence.
Person who has a mental or developmental disability.
Retarded, moron, imbecile, idiot. These are offensive to people who bear the label.
Use a wheelchair or crutches; a wheelchair user; walks with crutches.
Confined/restricted to a wheelchair; wheelchair bound. Most people who use a wheelchair or mobility devices do not regard them as confining. They are viewed as a liberating means of transportation.
Person who is able to walk, see, hear, etc.; people who are not disabled. People who do not have a disability.

Healthy, when used to contrast with "disabled." Healthy implies that the person with a disability is unhealthy. Many people with disabilities have excellent health.

Normal. When used as the opposite of disabled, this implies that the person is abnormal. No one wants to be labeled as abnormal.