Macomb, Ill. — The Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) at Western Illinois University is asking students, faculty, staff and WIU community members to pledge to remove the “R-Word” from their vocabularies.
According to Lacey Busby (Pecatonica), a sophomore special education major who is a member of the CEC organization at WIU, Western will be commemorating the national “R-Word: Spread the Word to End the Word” campaign Thursday, April 26 and Friday, April 27. Busby said, on those dates, there will be a banner hung in various places on the WIU-Macomb campus.
“People will be able to sign the banner, which will serve as their written pledges to remove the ‘R-Word’ from their vocabularies,” she said. “We will also be hosting a display at Celebrating Disability Culture Day Wednesday, March 28 in the Multicultural Center.”
Busby said the times and locations the banner will be available for signing will be as follows:
April 26
9 a.m.-2 p.m. at Horrabin Hall
April 27
9-11 a.m. at Morgan Hall
11 a.m.-1p.m. at University Union Concourse
1-3 p.m. at Stipes Hall
Busby also noted that t-shirts with the “3E Love” symbol (a wheelchair heart logo) will be available for sale for $15 each at the CEC display during the March 28 event. She said all proceeds from the t-shirt sales will go toward CEC fundraising profits, which are used for service activities in various special education classrooms and professional-development activities for CEC members.
The “R-Word: Spread the Word to End the Word” campaign is sponsored Special Olympics, Inc., an international non-profit organization incorporated in Washington, D.C. More information about the national campaign is available at www.r-word.org.
According to the “R-Word” website, the American Medical Association (AMA) House of Delegates has recommended the AMA editorially revise its policies to delete the term “mentally retarded” and replace it with “individuals with intellectual disabilities.” The site notes that, “While the recommendation still needs to be approved, this is a huge step in the recognition of people-first language in the medical community.”
Busby added that organizing the “R-Word: Spread the Word to End the Word” event at Western is a way to support this effort, as well.
For more information about the “R-Word: Spread the Word to End the Word” event at Western, contact Busby at LL-Busby@wiu.edu.
# WIU University Relations
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