The Special Olympics is hosting its seventh annual Spread the Word to End the Word Day on Wednesday.
This year’s theme: “Got Respect.”
“It’s like the ‘Got Milk’ campaign,” said Jennifer Marcello, director of young athletes for Special Olympics Illinois. “The idea is getting respect for everyone. It’s not necessarily just individuals with intellectual disabilities, but for every person, regardless of race or religion or ethnic background.”
The Spread the Word campaign was started in 2009 as a grass-roots movement by college students Soeren Palumbo, of Notre Dame, and Tim Shriver, of Yale. Their aim was to push for more respectful and inclusive language for people with intellectual disabilities. The R-words — “retard” and “retarded” — are widely considered pejorative because they perpetuate negative stereotypes.
Christy White, a spokeswoman for Special Olympics, said it’s about being respectful of all people.
“It’s more than just taking a pledge not to use this word,” she said. “Our goal is to get more youth and adults engaged, to take it outside of the classroom and make a bigger difference.”
White said 48 states have passed legislation changing the term “mentally retarded” to “people with intellectual disabilities.”
Marcello said she has seen a big difference since the campaign started.
“More and more people are starting to think about what they say before they actually say it,” she said. “It’s nice seeing people inherit these values. Even greater, our athletes now have the competence to stand up for themselves and ask people to use a different word. That’s the greatest accomplishment I’ve seen.”
More than 500,000 people have registered to take the pledge to spread awareness, according to the Special Olympics website. Participants are encouraged to share photos using the hashtag #GotRespect.
“Every year more people have embraced the campaign and more people have taken the pledge,” Marcello said. “More people want to be part of this and show respect. It’s all about raising awareness about how dehumanizing that word is.”
The Spread the Word campaign is an ongoing effort to further acceptance. It is held on the first Wednesday of March each year.
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