Upcoming 10th Anniversary of Major Event in the Long Campaign for Strong Disability Accessibility Legislation

October 29, 2008 is the 10th anniversary of an extremely important event in the decade-long battle for the enactment of a strong Disabilities Act, to achieve a barrier-free Ontario for persons with disabilities.

There is so much about October 29, 1998 that remains important to Ontarians with disabilities. First, this stunning achievement was the result of hard work by Ontarians with disabilities and their friends, families and other supporters, from right across Ontario at the grass-roots. They tenaciously visited, phoned, faxed and wrote to their members of the Ontario Legislature to urge them to support this important resolution. Their hard work paid off. They waged this battle with determination, in the face of the brick wall they kept slamming into, whenever they tried to discuss a Disabilities Act with the ruling Mike Harris Conservative Government. In the 1995 provincial election, Mike Harris had promised that he would pass the Ontarians with Disabilities Act (ODA) in his first term. Yet for the next years, his Government showed no real interest in taking this promise seriously.

The MPP who championed this resolution ten years ago was Opposition Liberal member Dwight Duncan. How can you help mark this important anniversary on the road to a barrier-free Ontario? We encourage you to circulate this update widely. Encourage others to come up with creative ways to mark this anniversary in your community. Let your local media know what progress has been made in the past ten years, and what progress still must be made, to make Ontario fully barrier-free to over 1.5 million Ontarians with disabilities.

What have you done to encourage the implementation of the AODA? 

If you are interested in learning more about Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) or how to make accessibility a natural part of your business through the application of Corporate Social Responsibility, please contact Sandra Broekhof @ 416-579-1035 orsandra_broekhof@sympatico.ca

What does the AODA say about alternate format (e.g. DAISY) production of required reading materials for post-secondary students in Ontario?

The proposed Information and Communication Standard is not as prescriptive. Let us not forget that the OHRC has primacy over such legislation and students have a right to be accommodated and in a timely manner. Which is why around 1992, the offices for students with disabilities were set up in post secondary institutions. Having said this, what I can share as the AODA coordinator at George Brown College and member of the Post Secondary Advisory Committee on Disability Issues(PACDI) - (MTCU) is that there is a very exciting pilot project that is supported by the Ministry of Ed - where some (not all) colleges and some of the major publishers are involved, whereby a repository is being currently set up so that all e-texts can be readily accessed by higher educational institutions to ensure students have access to accessible texts and in a timely manner. Of course the project is much more involved and there is a lot of work being done - the goal is that eventually all accessible reading material will be available in one central location and thereby making it easy for access to students with disabilities. It was presented in our last PACDI meeting that pending all goes well, this project may be ready to be rolled out to other institutions in a couple of years. If you would like further information, I would be happy to send you more on this very exciting project

Is your organization following these guidelines??

If you are interested in learning more about Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) or how to make accessibility a natural part of your business through the application of Corporate Social Responsibility, please contact Sandra Broekhof @ 416-579-1035 orsandra_broekhof@sympatico.ca

Promised Health Care Accessibility Standard, and About the Government's Earlier

We are preparing a brief for the Accessibility Directorate of Ontario on the barriers that people with disabilities face in the health care system. This is part of the Government's "pre-consultation" on the Health Care Accessibility Standard that the Wynne Government promised 18 months ago to create under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA).

A photo of this barrier was tweeted to all members of the Ontario Legislature who are on Twitter, as an "#AODAfail. This was part of our ongoing "Picture Our Barriers" campaign.

In recent revisions to the Customer Service Accessibility Standard, the Wynne Government refused our request to require accessible signage for such public washrooms. The Wynne Government says it is leading by example on accessibility. This is not a good example by which to lead. To learn more about the Government's refusal to include our proposals in recent revisions to the Customer Service Accessibility Standard.

Will an accessible help standard help you or your family?

If you are interested in learning more about Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) or how to make accessibility a natural part of your business through the application of Corporate Social Responsibility, please contact Sandra Broekhof @ 416-579-1035 orsandra_broekhof@sympatico.ca

AODA Alliance's News Release Responding to the Wynne Government's Announcement on School Supports for Students with Disabilities

Even though Ontario is required by law to become fully accessible to all people with disabilities by 2025, less than eight and a half years from now, Ontario's publicly-funded education system is still full of barriers that can impede 334,000 students with special education needs. The Wynne Government still has no plan in place to ensure that Ontario's education system becomes fully disability-accessible.

What is the Government doing about this? On August 8, 2016, the Wynne Government announced that it would not close any of Ontario's provincial or demonstration schools for students with learning disabilities, students who are blind, low vision or deaf-blind, or students who are deaf, deafened or hard of hearing. This came after the Government held a consultation on the future of the schools for children with learning disabilities or who are deaf, deafened or hard of hearing. The Government had made it clear from the outset that it was not going to consider closing the W. Ross Macdonald School for children with vision loss.

As the AODA Alliances news release shows, the Government's August 8, 2016 announcement helps illustrate the need for much more comprehensive reforms to Ontario's education system, which is full of barriers impeding hundreds of thousands of students with special education needs. the Government's announcement commendably commits to a new Government initiative to explore better supports for students in local schools who have learning disabilities, or who are deaf, deafened, or hard of hearing.

Learn all about our campaign for a fully accessible Ontario by visiting http://www.aodaalliance.org

Will an accessible education standard help you or your family?

If you are interested in learning more about Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) or how to make accessibility a natural part of your business through the application of Corporate Social Responsibility, please contact Sandra Broekhof @ 416-579-1035 orsandra_broekhof@sympatico.ca