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Legislation would
change name of Department of Mental Retardation
(June
2007 Issue)
By Pamela Berard
State legislation has been proposed in Massachusetts that could
change the name of the Department of Mental Retardation (DMR).
Self-advocates and others have been working for years to change
the name of the department, out of concern that the terminology
has come to be used in disrespectful ways in society.
If passed, Massachusetts would join an increasing number of organizations
and states to make such a change. In late April, the Connecticut
House of Representatives voted to change the name of its state DMR
to the Department of Developmental Services.
In Massachusetts, the bill, H 1876, which has been referred to
committee, proposes the name be changed to the Department of Developmental
Services, although some of its supporters say they are not set on
any particular new name and are open to suggestions. Proponents
of the bill stress that the name change will not change the function
of the department; eligibility for services will remain the same.
Sen. Karen Spilka (D-Ashland), chairwoman of the Senate Joint Committee
of Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities, which considers
issues related to mental retardation, is hoping to get feedback
from professionals in the field to come up with a different name
for the state agency.
"I have a sister with Down Syndrome and I have grown up hearing
the word retarded used in so many ways. Very often it's not used
in a positive context," Spilka says. "I believe there are better
ways to term a state agency that are more respectful."
The national organization ARC (which previously stood for the Association
for Retarded Citizens and the Association for Retarded Children
during various incarnations) is no longer an acronym for anything.
Laura Hart, director of communications at ARC's national headquarters
says, "Increasingly, organizations are moving away from the term
mental retardation."
On Jan. 1, the American Association for Mental Retardation changed
its name to the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental
Disabilities. Doreen Croser, executive director, says the move was
driven in part by the self-advocacy community, "who just absolutely
hate the 'retarded' word. Every organization in almost every disability
I know goes through this," she says. "Language changes over time."
AAIDD began in 1876 and at one point was called the American Association
of Medical Offices of Institutions for Idiotic and Feeble-Minded
People. For many years, it was also called the American Association
on Mental Deficiency.
State Sen. Stephen M. Brewer (D-Barre), a member of the Senate
Ways and Means Committee, says his support of a name change is "more
of a gut instinct than anything else. I'm 59-years-old, and I've
seen how language has an effect on our societal impressions," he
says. "I have seen the courage of those who have special challenges
in life. The word retarded does not do enough to explain who these
real people are. They are our sons and daughters, our brothers and
sisters."
Brewer says he believes the initiative has solid support. Among
concerns the state would need to look into before making a change
is how a change in name might affect funding. "They need to make
sure what's going on doesn't jeopardize federal monies that come
into the state," he says.
DMR provides services to about 32,000 adults and children with
developmental disabilities.
DMR Spokesperson Jennifer Kritz says the department has not yet
taken an official position on the proposed bill to change the name
of the department.
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