Overview
The Provincial Strategy for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Newfoundland and Labrador is a framework that will guide and support actions to advance inclusion of Newfoundlanders and Labradorean’s who have disabilities.
This framework will support a long-term and integrated approach to inclusion. It provides a blueprint for government departments,community groups and private businesses. It provides strategic directions for reaching a common goal that will benefit everyone.
The foundation of the strategy reflects ideas and solutions from people with disabilities, their families, friends and organizations.Consultations were held throughout the province in the fall of 2010 and resulted in a wealth of rich and creative ideas. These consultations focused on solutions needed to address barriers rather than concentrating on the barriers themselves. It is these solutions that will guide actions to move the strategy from vision to reality.
The strategy brings together directions and goals which are grounded in the principles and priorities of the community. As recommended by the community, the strategy is based on asocial model of disability; a model that reflects human rights,respect and fairness.
The strategy is aligned with the Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Act, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It seeks to ensure Newfoundlanders and Labradorean’s with disabilities have the same opportunities and choices on an equal basis with other citizens.
Who is Included in the Strategy?
The strategy is developed from a cross-disability perspective. This means it is designed to achieve inclusion for all persons with disabilities. This includes people with various forms of disability,such as physical, mental, intellectual, developmental or sensory disabilities and whose participation in society is hindered by barriers. The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities does not define disability but, rather,describes it as an “evolving concept and that disability results from the interaction between persons with impairments and attitudinal and environmental barriers that hinders their full and active participation in society on an equal basis with others”.More information about how disability is defined is included in Appendix A.
Disability occurs in all communities and regions of the province,within all age groups, income brackets and professions.
Research shows that almost 75,000 citizens in this province report that their participation in society is limited because of a disability.When family members and friends are added along with unreported and temporary disabilities, almost everyone in the province is impacted by disability at some point in their lives.Research also demonstrates that the number of people directly affected will increase dramatically over the next few years,especially because of the link between getting older and having a disability. In this province, the percentage of people who are older is increasing at a faster rate than any other province in Canada.
The strategy is designed to remove and prevent barriers that people experience so that all Newfoundlanders and Labradorean’s take part in the economic, cultural, social, recreational and civic life of their communities. It will guide actions to ensure policies, services and attitudes are inclusive.
Social Model
The strategy follows a social model for understanding disability.This model is reflected in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and, most importantly, is supported and promoted by citizens with disabilities.
The social model looks at disability as being about the relationship between the person and their environment. In contrast to earlier models, the social model does not focus on medical diagnosis or ‘fixing a person’, nor does it focus on ‘taking care of people’ or acting out of charity. Rather, the social model seeks to understand barriers that limit participation and to develop ways to remove existing barriers and prevent future ones.
A major difficulty with earlier models is that they have fed into stereotypes and myths about disability. Medical models seek to’fix’ or change the person and charity models see the individual as someone in need of care. These perspectives do not see people with disabilities in a way that is respectful or that understands people’s needs, contributions and potential. The strategy seeks to change these attitudes and approaches.
Respecting Rights
Provincial, national and international laws are put in place to protect the rights of all, including people with disabilities, and to ensure people are free from discrimination.
Like all Canadian provinces and territories, Newfoundland and Labrador has human rights legislation that protects against discrimination, including discrimination based on disability. This legislation applies to all Provincial Government departments and agencies and private businesses. It can be viewed at: http://assembly.nl.ca/Legislation/sr/statutes/h13-1.htm.
Nationally, there is a Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It also protects against discrimination on various grounds,including race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, ageor mental or physical disability.
At the international level, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is designed to ensure that people with disabilities experience the same rights and freedoms as others and to ensure that their dignity is respected.
With provincial and territorial support, Canada signed the convention agreeing to meet the obligations contained within its articles. These articles include: raising awareness, accessibility of the built environment, legal capacity, transportation, disability-related supports, communications and access to public services such as education and health care. The convention, clear-language versions and other related information can be found at: https://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/.
Community Knowledge
People with disabilities, community groups and agencies have extensive knowledge of barriers to inclusion that people with disabilities experience in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Various reports based on community and government research have identified barriers in the areas of education, employment,transportation, health care, housing, home support, information and communications. Four different types of barriers have been identified:
- Attitudinal barriers, such as stereotypes and negative perceptions;
- Systemic barriers, such as programs and policies that do not accommodate disability-related requirements;
- Physical barriers, such as stairs, poor lighting, lack of visual alarms; and,
- Technological barriers, such as inaccessible websites.
These barriers have severe impacts for individuals, families, communities and Newfoundland and Labrador as a whole. They can prevent full participation in the economic, cultural, social, recreational and civic life of communities throughout the province.