An Ugly Word That Hurts Thousands of Children is Called Out by Beautiful Little Girl Who Has a Name

Photo Credit: IJ Review In this photo, a little girl named Isabella wants people to know that she is a person, with a name, like anyone else. She is not defined by any word, especially not one that tries to belittle or degrade others.

Please don’t use the word retarded. I am a beautiful person. I am Isabella!

The website R-word.org, whose aim is to end the use of the term ‘retarded,’ explains how the word “retardation” went from a clinical description to a word of derision.

“When they were originally introduced, the terms ‘mental retardation’ or ‘mentally retarded’ were medical terms with a specifically clinical connotation, however, the pejorative forms… have been used widely in today’s society to degrade and insult people with intellectual disabilities…