By Meghan Roos
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State lawmakers in Tennessee are weighing the removal of the term "deaf and dumb" from the state code in favor of the phrase "deaf or hard of hearing" in an effort to eliminate what one representative called "offensive" language.
The legislation was proposed last month and serves as an attempt to promote inclusivity for the deaf community. State Representative Darren Jernigan, a Democrat representing District 60, filed the bill for introduction in the Tennessee General Assembly on January 10. It was recommended to pass in the House Health Subcommittee earlier this week.
The legislation has also been introduced in the state Senate by Republican Becky Massey. The bill "replaces the phrase 'deaf and dumb' with 'deaf or hard of hearing' wherever it may appear in Tennessee Code Annotated," according to a summary provided for the legislation.
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Jernigan said during a recent interview with the Nashville-based news station WKRN-TV that he decided to introduce the legislation after a librarian directed his attention to the phrasing that is currently used in the state code. He described the current phrasing as "very antiquated" and "very offensive."
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A review of Tennessee Code Annotated shows multiple instances in which the phrase "deaf and dumb" is used while instructing how witnesses are to be handled. Jernigan told WKRN that judges often refer to the text, which he described as "actually the law" in Tennessee.
"Words matter and so we need to have the correct language, so we took 'deaf and dumb' and replaced it with 'deaf and hard of hearing,'" he said.
Jernigan added that he has not received any pushback to the proposed legislation since introducing it in the state legislature last month.
The National Association of the Deaf (NAD), a nonprofit civil rights organization, identifies the phrase "deaf and dumb" as a "relic from the medieval English era" that is "the granddaddy of all negative labels pinned on deaf and hard of hearing people."
The NAD notes that "dumb" later became another word for "silent." The term is "offensive to deaf and hard of hearing people for a number of reasons," which the NAD says includes the mischaracterization of deaf or hard of hearing individuals as "silent" when the community has a wide variety of ways to communicate.
"Overwhelmingly, deaf and hard of hearing people prefer to be called 'deaf' or 'hard of hearing,'" the NAD says on its website, adding that "nearly all organizations of the deaf" use the phrase "deaf and hard of hearing."
When reached for comment Wednesday, NAD CEO Howard Rosenblum praised efforts by Tennessee and other states to update the terms used in state laws. He noted Michigan, Utah, New Hampshire, New York and Virginia have made similar efforts in the last six years.
"In the 21st century, it is long past time to remove all outdated and offensive terms such as 'deaf and dumb' and 'hearing impaired' from state laws," Rosenblum said. "The National Association of the Deaf (NAD) commends the efforts of legislators and advocates to change such terms to the more appropriate 'deaf and hard of hearing' such as in Tennessee now."
Update 02/02/22, 2:43 p.m. ET: This article has been updated to include comments from National Association of the Deaf CEO Howard Rosenblum.
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