BARRIERS ARE NOTHING NEW TO PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

The beginning of June marks National Accessability Week, a time when disability organizations, advocacy groups and individuals celebrate the accomplishments and resiliency of people with disabilities and recognize the strides we’ve made to make our society more accessible and inclusive.

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected people with disabilities, from housing, to mental health, to food security.

We know that our communities and economy benefit greatly when all people have full participation in society and unimpeded access to employment, education and resources.

An inclusive and accessible society where people with disabilities are valued equally — one of the key tenets of independent living philosophy — has never been more important than right now.

This year’s National Accessability Week theme is “Leaving no one behind,” and it provides a unique opportunity to reflect on what “accessibility” really means: is accessibility exclusive to people with disabilities?

The pandemic is the first time many people have had to face restrictions and barriers to their everyday lives: no 3 a.m. trips to Wal-mart, no eating inside your favourite restaurant, no haircuts.

These barriers are nothing new to people with disabilities.

Indeed, more than six million Canadians living with a disability have to navigate discomfort and restrictions on a daily basis, from taking public transit to accessing healthcare.

On the other hand, the pandemic has opened up enormous opportunities for accessibility and inclusion.

Flexible access to resources and services is something we’ve all taken advantage of in the past year.

When the world needed to pivot and adapt to remote work, online classes and delivery of just about anything you could click on, it was done quickly and without second thought.

These are small but significant changes that people with disabilities have been asking for for years.

Before COVID-19, basic requests for flexible working arrangements and accommodation were met with resistance from employers, thereby shutting out the skills, talent and experience of people with disabilities in the workforce.

Now, working from home arrangements have opened the talent pool and increased access to employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

The shift to greater flexibility has benefitted us all.

When inclusion and accommodation are built-in and normalized, it gives all members of society the freedom and opportunity to meet their everyday needs, such as having a virtual doctor’s appointment without the worry of finding accessible transportation.

This is particularly important when we consider that disability is an open-ended category that anyone can join at any time.

When we embrace the enormous benefits that accessibility and accommodation can provide, then a person who is new to having a disability need not worry about how it will affect their job or the things they enjoy.

This National Accessability Week, let’s remember that accessibility and equal access belong to all of us.

And in a POST-COVID-19 world, let’s make sure we keep the accommodations and flexibility we have all come to appreciate.

Anne Macrae is the national executive director of Independent Living Canada (ILC), a national non-profit association of independent living centres led by and for people with disabilities. Kimberly Yetman Dawson is the executive director of Empower, the Disability Resource Centre, a local Ilc-accredited independent living centre.