dis)ABILITY RIGHTS: A Forgotten Claim

Social work needs to be aware of ableism, (dis)Ability discrimination, and the oppression of people with (dis)Abilities. The probability that we ourselves will experience a (dis)Ability within our lifetime is close to 100 % (Zola, 1982). Further, given the statistics cited below, there is a strong likelihood that social workers, regardless of their field of practice, will work with clients who are (dis)Abled. People with (dis)Abilities face economic oppression as the more severe the (dis)Ability the greater their chance of living in poverty (Wall, 2017). They deal with social marginalization created in part through limited access to transportation. For example in Nova Scotia Access-A-Bus is only available for medical appointments booked a week in advance (Halifax Access-A-Bus, 2013); the thought of a (dis)Abled person using this service to attend a concert or to go to the bar with friends is unthinkable. People with (dis)Abilities experience psychological abuse sometimes delivered through public stares or worse, being totally ignored, and made to feel invisible (Garland-Thomson, 2009). Physical barriers, such as inaccessible physical structures like stairs or heavy doors keep (dis)Abled people isolated or dependent upon others for assistance. Discrimination can also come in the form of political discrimination where people with (dis)Abilities' voices are not heard and their concerns and needs are not validated (MacDonald, 2016). For example, it was only after organized protests and strategic lobbying that people with (dis)Abilities were included in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms(1982);(dis) Abled people were almost left out of this foundational bill of rights that forms the first part of the Canadian Constitution.