Handicap International UK has its roots in a French charity which has been working since 1982 under this name. 'Handicap International' is actually the French name for the organisation, which happens to read directly across into English. There is no other word for ‘disability’ in French, and ‘handicaps’ are considered by Handicap International to mean the barriers which lead to people with disabilities being excluded from physical, social, economic and political life. Handicap International seeks to prevent and remove these barriers, or 'handicaps'.
The terminology used to describe impairment and disability is a politically sensitive topic, as disabled people have taken ownership of the terminology from the medical profession. Many of the words which were once in common use are deemed derogatory by the people they are used to describe and, for this reason, we feel that they should not be used.
However, the language of this debate about terminology is primarily English and little consideration has been given to how the new terms (let alone the concepts) are represented in translation in other languages. It is important to note that in many other languages, the terminology has not yet been developed at all. In many countries, there are no words to talk about the challenges faced by people with disabilities. Part of our remit is to raise awareness of these challenges and barriers, for example in our work on inclusive education.
Handicap International is a solidarity organisation (working alongside disabled people without being a disabled people’s organisation) and our vision is of a world where all disabled people can fully access and exercise their human rights. We believe that a twin-track approach to development and disability can support the inclusion of people with disabilities in mainstream services, at the same time as supporting organisations in the countries where we work to develop self-advocacy.
We don’t want a debate about our name to distract us from our core work supporting disabled and vulnerable people in around 60 countries worldwide. We want our achievements in our overseas projects and international advocacy campaigns to contribute to the success of the global movement that is the Handicap International Federation. For these reasons, retaining the name ‘Handicap International’ is important to us in the UK.
