Advocates for People with Disabilities Want Offensive Ohio Laws Rewritten

Advocacy groups are urging Ohio lawmakers to rewrite certain state laws to take out antiquated language now considered to be offensive against people with disabilities.

There are around two-dozen such sections within the Ohio Revised Code as well as two sections of the Ohio Constitution that have been identified as needing to be edited, the groups say. They have offered substitute language with the hopes that lawmakers will take up this issue with the new legislative term underway.

Five years ago, the state adjusted language within the Ohio Revised Code to take out references to “mental retardation.” Katherine Yoder, executive director of Adult Advocacy Centers, described this as an important step toward providing better respect for individuals with disabilities.

But other terms considered to be derogatory remain, including phrases like “crippled children,” “deaf and dumb,” “lunatics” and “mental defective.”

Read more: https://www.citybeat.com/news/blog/21148403/advocates-for-people-with-disabilities-want-offensive-ohio-laws-rewritten
(Cincinnati Citybeat)