spread the word

to END the word.

March 6th, 2013 was Spread the Word to End the Word Day. I'm two days tardy in posting this- but given it's a subject I care passionately about, it's better late than never.

'That's so retarded...'

I've used it. You've used it. We've all carelessly said it over and over again.

"People who use these words are often really good friends. Those people usually catch themselves and say something like, “I’m sorry…I know that’s not PC.” While I appreciate that they catch themselves, I cringe at this statement because it’s not really taking any steps to acknowledge that the word hurts. It’s not PC, this is true…but it’s also just cruel to use this word. Period. Please hear this: if you use the word retarded, you are making fun of people like Colden. You are essentially saying that Colden is stupid, silly, dumb, damaged, broken, imperfect, etc. THAT HURTS. It hurts him. It hurts me. It hurts our family. It hurts all people with intellectual disabilities."

Above is an excerpt from a blog post by Our Eyes Opened that puts how I feel so perfectly into words I'd rather not try to rewrite it (hence the need to include Colden's name in it instead). Take a moment to read the full post here, and please...pass it on...to your friends, your family, your coworkers...and everyone you know.

Our sweet Colden is reason enough to spread the word, to end the word.