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Friday May 24, 2013

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Government guidelines: Disabled toilets now 'accessible' toilets

Posted by: Neil Mitchell | 12 November, 2012 - 8:45 AM
Reporting it right - Media guidelines for portraying people with a disability

NEIL MITCHELL: Let’s start the week with Ted Baillieu’s burst of political correctness. I wonder what this has cost us.

It’s a glossy piece of work. A guide to how to be politically correct.

And here are some examples.

Elderly people are no longer elderly. They must be older people or seniors (And that is only when they are over 65...)

If you are talking about somebody who is deaf. You should use a capital ‘D’ when referring to a group. Why?

Because it is recognising a culturally unique and diverse group who use sign language.

So capital ‘D’ for deaf. I’m not kidding.

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There is more. Disabled toilets are to be no more...And disabled car parking or disabled entry areas.

All banned. All gone.

They must now be accessible toilets, accessible parking space and accessible entry.

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No more use of the word disabled. Which causes a bit of a problem.

You see under these guidelines they don’t want photographs of wheelchairs. That is too negative.

So if you are driving along and you see something called an accessible parking space, with no illustration of a wheelchair, what would you do?

‘Oh that’s good...it’s accessible’.... You would bloody well park there!

You are not be epileptic any more either, You are a person with epilepsy.

....Or autistic. Not autistic an y more. You are a person with autism.

These guidelines from the Baillieu government are under the headline ‘Reporting it right - Media guidelines for portraying people with a disability’.

And I know it is all well meaning

But it is rubbish. Social engineering. Mind games.

3AW Mornings with Neil Mitchell

Neil Mitchell Neil is one of Australia’s most experienced journalists with success in newspapers, radio and television. He was one of the youngest editors of a daily metropolitan newspaper, The Herald.

 

Blog comments Your Say

  • Ted, I support you in most things, but this is Bloody Ridiculous. All it is doing is creating alternative meanings for words. It will only cause confusion.

    David T. Monday 12 November, 2012 - 5:50 PM

  • Nothing new re capital Deaf for D. It's recognised by World Federation of the Deaf

    https://wfdeaf.org/our-work/focus-areas/deaf-culture-2

    And Deaf Australia.

    http://www.deafau.org.au/info/terminology.php

    And what about 'hard of hearing'? Still people out there saying 'hearing impaired' or 'hearing loss'.

    http://www.ifhoh.org/wfd.htm

    mike Monday 12 November, 2012 - 3:42 PM

  • Another example of a do nothing government - well done Ted, you drongo!

    Steve Monday 12 November, 2012 - 2:49 PM

  • What a joke this is. Tell the Pollies to get a life.??????????

    IAN Monday 12 November, 2012 - 1:34 PM

  • At 73 I want to be known as elderly. Do I have a choice? I am also disabled, not accessible!

    lorraine Monday 12 November, 2012 - 12:11 PM

  • You beauty, now I can go to the disabled, sorry that toilet that has the wheelchair access now described as 'accessible', when there is a queue in the ladies, without feeling guilty.

    Gloria Monday 12 November, 2012 - 12:05 PM

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