Athlete, disability advocate calls driver’s licence denial discriminatory
OTTAWA — A former University of Ottawa baseball pitcher and disability advocate who has been driving for nearly a decade says he is being discriminated against by Quebec’s auto insurance corporation because he was born with part of his left hand missing.
Graham Spero, 25, tweeted that a clerk at the SAAQ (Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec) in Gatineau “saw that I am missing most of my left hand and denied me my driver’s licence.”
Spero, who recently moved to Gatineau from Ottawa, where he grew up, was trying to exchange the driver’s licence he has held in Ontario since he was 16 for a Quebec one.
During an exchange that Spero partially filmed and posted on social media, he was told he had to first see a doctor because of his “limitations.”
During his meeting with a clerk to exchange his licence, Spero said he was handed a sheet of paper and asked if he had any medical conditions. According to him, he said he didn’t have any physical limitations, but he was then given a medical form.
“I was really confused,” he said.
He then spoke with others in the office who said he was being asked to see a doctor because of his limitations. He was told a supervisor had been consulted and it was “too late” to change the decision.
Spero is heard to say: “It doesn’t make any sense to me. There is no physical limitation.”
Spero said he grew up facing “unconscious bias” in some people about what he was able to do, but said this marked the first time he had faced real discrimination.
“When it was going on, I was very upset and pretty emotional. I thought: You should take out your camera because this is a human rights violation.”
His life has been a lesson in not making assumptions about peoples’ abilities based on their differences.
Born with a congenital limb difference, Spero is missing most of his left hand. In addition to a pinky finger, there are stubs instead of other fingers. His left arm is also slightly shorter than his right arm.
That has not slowed his athletic endeavours and has helped fuel a career with a focus on advocacy.
Before he obtained his driver’s licence at age 16, he was a competitive BMX racer.
Later, he pitched for the University of Ottawa’s baseball team, becoming the first one-handed pitcher to compete in post-secondary baseball in Canada. He was inspired by former majorleague pitcher Jim Abbott, who was born without a right hand.
Spero also plays hockey and lifts weights. He won a Canadian sprint kayaking championship and is the subject of a short documentary about his athletic achievements called: One-Hand Wonder.
“There is no excuse for this.”
Spero has contacted the War Amps organization for legal support.
“I am not getting a doctor’s note. That goes against the privacy act and is also discriminatory.”
Spero, who used to do advocacy work with the organization, said the War Amps had helped someone in Ontario get a licence for driving with their feet.
He now works for Public Services and Procurement Canada on making sure the parliamentary precinct is accessible for people with disabilities.
He said he hoped his story shed light on the issue and helped others who may face discrimination.
The SAAQ did not respond in time for deadline to a request for comment about this story.