What is People First Language?

In a nutshell, People First Language places the person before the “disability.” PFL is a manner of communication which describes conditions an individual might happen to be experiencing as secondary to their essential being – to who they are as a person.

Given that language is a powerful tool which often shapes our perceptions with respect to social interaction, this is not a trivial distinction. It is helpful in illuminating the unique, dynamic, and complex nature of any given individual versus simply pigeonholing people into restrictive and narrowly defined categories which neglect to reflect the entirety of one’s being.

Why the distinction matters

It might help to reflect upon that which defines the essential nature of what it is to be you. How do you define who you are? Do you believe it is accurate to define your existence by a single characteristic or attribute? How about several? Taken from the other extreme, can there ever be enough attributes to capture any given person’s essence?

Perhaps such philosophical questions are not always conducive to navigating through our daily lives in so far as interacting with others. So we often describe ourselves as: a parent, spouse, sibling, friend, professional, artist, musician – or maybe even as someone with a special need. When we label ourselves with a single word, there is a logical omission of an infinite number of other possibilities which might be just as accurate. Yet it would be cumbersome to relay such a dense array of information to others and still expect to carry on a conversation in a short period of time.

So how do we practically communicate what might be pertinent information about ourselves in a manner which does not subvert the notion that we as human beings are multi-dimensional and not defined by the narrow scope which language often boxes us into?

People First Language hinges upon an imperative that an individual is a person first – who may possess various qualities and conditions as secondary characteristics. Using language in such a way mitigates compartmentalizing people into typecasts as the central defining characteristic of their being. In the case of individuals who may happen to have special needs, this can be an extremely important distinction in parsing out such needs as secondary attributes versus the primary focal point of a person’s identity.

How VerySpecialCamps.com approaches People First Language

With regard to language used on the VerySpecialCamps.com website, we allow camp directors very wide latitude in describing the particular nature of their camp and program offerings, and almost never intervene in so far as editing content which appears on individual camp listing pages. We generally assume there to be a sufficient level of awareness by camp directors with respect to People First Language.

In addition to individual camp listings, we maintain a core set of information and search pages structured to allow visitors seeking camps and camp jobs to effectively locate a suitable camp of interest. And here is where there might be a point of contention: while we would like to promote the use of People First Language and have attempted to craft our language accordingly, we have realized that not everyone searching for camps on the internet is aware of or utilizes People First Language in the search terms they employ. Consequently, we have found ourselves in the position of sometimes utilizing terminology which is not necessarily in full accordance with People First Language principles – simply as a practical means of accessibility in the search engines and to help people make an initial connection with camps which serve individuals with special needs.

Hopefully, once a visitor has established a relationship with a camp director, they will be welcomed into and introduced to People First Language and adopt its manner of communication. We recognize there is a compromise being made, but our hope is that by straddling both worlds of language we will help the greater community and society as a whole to evolve in embracing People First Language – not necessarily just with respect to individuals with special needs.

Share your perspective

We invite you to share your thoughts and provide us with feedback. Feel free to contact us.