Wednesday will mark the second annual “Spread the Word to End the Word” day of community awareness, a campaign created by youth worldwide in an ongoing effort to engage schools, organizations and the community by raising the consciousness of society about the dehumanizing and hurtful effects of the word “retard(ed)” and encouraging everyone to stop using the R-word.
Special Olympics Santa Barbara Regional Director Sara Spataro has teamed up with Ernesto Paredes, Easy Lift executive director and Special Olympics Leadership Council chairman; Kim Olson, executive director of the Alpha Resource Center; and Special Olympics athletes Jessica Simon and Nanette Clark to bring attention to the positive impact that serving people with intellectual disabilities has on the community.
“As an agency serving those with disabilities, Easy Lift is proud to be part of this campaign and helping bring attention to individuals that can’t readily advocate on their own behalf. In this vein, I believe that respecting our differences is vital and being sensitive to the words we use would be a major step in the right direction,” Paredes said.
Spataro encourages the community at large to become aware of the many gifts Special Olympics athletes have to share. “By making a pledge today, you can change attitudes and make our community a more accepting place for all people,” she said.
Olson added, “We received over 50 essays and poems from students in elementary, middle and high schools on the theme of ‘treating everyone with dignity and respect.’ I was inspired by these students and the depth of their understanding of the power of words. We hope the ‘R-word’ is replaced by respect.”
Best Buddies and CODE (UCSB Commmision on Disabilitiy Equality) on Wednesday will activate a student R-word pledge drive in front of the UCSB Associated Students Building on campus. UCSB students and schools across the United States and around the world continue to unite in their challenge for everyone to think before they speak.
Click here for more information about ending the R-word. To volunteer with local nonprofits serving people with intellectual disabilities, contact Spataro at sspataro@sosc.org, Melinda Johansson of Easy Lift at melinda@easylift.org or Marisa Bourke of the Alpha Resource Center at mbourke@alphasb.org.
— Sara Spataro is regional director of Special Olympics Santa Barbara.