Words matter: why PWD prefer "accessible" over "handicapped"

[kestrell]

Lorraine Woodward, a disability advocate and influencer in the short-term rental industry, explains the origins of the word "handicapped" and why people with disabilities prefer businesses that focus on describing their properties and services as "accessible."
https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7005658860921257985/

Comments

[conuly]

Her etymology is false and wrong.

The original meaning does involve hands and caps, but it's a betting game and has nothing to do with begging or disability at all. From there it moved on to the "give a weaker competitor an advantage" sense, and from there to the "disability" sense.

That's not to say that it's not offensive to use about PWDs today. The only justification needed for "this word is offensive" is "this word is arbitrarily considered offensive, use this other word instead". There is no need to make up folk etymologies.

https://www.etymonline.com/word/handicap

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/handicaprice/

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/handicap

[siderea]

Thank you.

[kestrell]

Thanks for providing the correct etymology and the link.