Lawmaker wants to change language in state code about deaf

A bill moving through the Tennessee state legislature would remove the phrase "deaf and dumb" from the state code.

image from darrenjernigan.com

Instead, the code would use deaf or hard of hearing. State Representative Darren Jernigan introduced House Bill 1670. WKRN-TV quoted Jernigan as saying:

“The language ‘deaf and dumb’ still being on the books is very antiquated and it’s very offensive, frankly. 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.”

The legislation has made its way through the House Health Subcommittee. Becky Duncan Massey introduced similar legislation in the Senate as Bill 1752. Read the House bill here and watch the progress of the legislation here.