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Article: Disabled celebrate name change for state department
- Article from:
- The Boston Globe (Boston, MA)
- Article date:
- July 1, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2009 The Boston Globe. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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With the start of the fiscal year, the state Department of Mental
Retardation has taken on a new name.
The agency, which serves developmentally disabled children and
adults, adopted the name Department of Developmental Services
yesterday, signaling a victory for the disabled and their providers
who lobbied for years against the pejorative phrase "mental
retardation."
"I was always ridiculed because I was different," said Craig
Smith, 52, of Brighton, who suffers from chronic memory loss. "This
day changes everything. It's about respecting people."
Before the House and Senate approved the name change last year,
Smith and other members of the Massachusetts Advocates Standing
Strong, a ...