Name changed to eliminate ‘hurtful’ words

The MRDD change reflects a desire for a more socially appropriate name.

YOUNGSTOWN — Removing the words mental retardation from the Mahoning County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities is an example of how the English language changes all the time, says a university professor.

“One of the ways change is brought about is our recognition that certain words might be hurtful,” said Rebecca Barnhouse, an English professor at Youngstown State University who teaches the history of English.

“Words that used to be taboo have gained acceptance. It seems to me now the worst kind of taboo words are racial slurs, and words such as ‘retard,’ which are meant to be hurtful,” said Steven Brown, also a YSU English professor who teaches linguistics, or how language is put together.

The local agency’s recently adopted new name, required by state law to drop the mental retardation phrase, is the Mahoning County Board of Developmental Disabilities, an umbrella under which mental retardation is included, said Larry Duck, agency superintendent.

The change reflects a desire, particularly among younger families, for a more socially appropriate name for the agency that doesn’t carry the stigma of mental retardation, Duck said.

“We have become a lot more careful to not be hurtful. That’s the reason, I think, for the name change,” Brown said. “Words are at the mercy of the speakers. ... They mean what we all agree they mean.”

Words do change, generally through usage. For instance, for thousands of years, a word such as wicked meant evil or bad. But, sometime in the 1960s, it came to mean good, such as a wicked curveball in baseball, he said.

“We make changes to language all the time. We add new words, and words take on new meanings,” Barnhouse said.

Sometimes taboo words lose their sting. For instance, butt used to be inappropriate but is now acceptable; and there are the “Walter the Farting Dog” children’s books, she noted.

The reason for removing retardation from the name is that people may feel it is insulting to a group, and people looked for more positive language because they don’t want to offend people, Barnhouse said.

“I think a lot of parents were reluctant to use the word mental retardation because they felt there is a stigma attached to it,” said Jennifer Bionci, head of the ARC of Ohio Northeast Branch. The local group was formerly known as the Mahoning County Council for Retarded Citizens.

“I think, with increased medical knowledge and more specific diagnoses, parents were reluctant to have the term ‘mental retardation’ used,” she added.

“I think parents are kind of half and half. Some prefer to use ‘retardation’ because its kind of protection for their kids because people have a general understanding of what it means. Some parents are comfortable using the word, some not,” said Bionci of Boardman.

For a while, mental retardation was the only term we had, she said. “Fifty years ago, we used the word idiot. It’s education and time-evolving and being more sensitive to the individual. It’s just changing with the times. As we grow and become more educated, we change the language to accommodate that,” Bionci said.

alcorn@vindy.com