Revisiting ‘Shooting Beauty’

I think this story was uplifting and well done however, I was a bit offended by the NPR host describing individuals who use a wheelchair as being “confined.” I understand some may consider this to simply be a slip of the tongue or a “PC” issue of semantics but I think it is important for people to understand the negative connotations with such language use and use this as an example to teach people about “people first language.” As an individual who uses a wheelchair I see it as a sense of freedom, a method to allow me to participate in activities that may not  have otherwise been possible had I been “confined.” An example of how to use person first language to describe the same individual who uses a wheeled mobility device would have simply been  a person who uses a wheelchair — placing the importance of the human not the machine. We are people too who just do things a little differently and perhaps with a little help! I’m sure an individual who wears glasses would not appreciate if their “visual enhancement device” is the first thing others zeroed in on and thus referred to them as having their face confined to a pair of glasses instead of using their name or other defining characteristics afforded to people outside of the disability community (i.e. students, workers, volunteers, PEOPLE). Please take this under consideration for the next time you do an interview involving individuals who have a disability and be more considerate and people friendly. Thank you and keep up with otherwise outstanding journalism!