Tag: Ontario

Canada Must Develop Humane Housing for Developmentally Disabled People: A4A’s Statement to Government of Canada Housing Consultation

a4aontario

woman in white shirt with medium-length black hair, smiling and holding a set of apartment keys & giving a thumbs-up sign.Recently, the Government of Canada called for disability groups to submit statements/ideas on housing in Canada. The Government then issued a full report on the many statements by disability groups from across Canada. (Read the Govt’s full report here.)

Autistics for Autistics submitted a statement (below) on the abysmal state of housing for developmentally disabled people—and the simple solutions that can bring long-awaited relief to individuals and families. (You can also read our statement here.)

We hope you will share our statement & link with your member of Parliament.

Let’s hope that the Government of Canada reads, and acts on, the many important statements from disability groups. (If they don’t, was it truly a consultation at all?) We will update this blog and our socials—hopefully—about future meetings and consults on this.

Our statement

To the Government of Canada:
Autistic, non-speaking and developmentally disabled Canadians have been almost entirely excluded from accessible housing strategies nationally, provincially and municipally. 85% of new federally funded housing projects in our sector are segregated group homes, where autistic and intellectually disabled people are kept apart from the rest of the community and where their movements are controlled in a quasi-prison-like environment, kept in their rooms many hours of the day, only let out of their homes for sanctioned group activities they do not choose, and not allowed basic choices such as what they’d like to eat for a meal, or what time of day they would like to have their meals.

Having friends over, or having relationships, is often impossible in these settings, and in some cases, developmentally disabled people are even being shunted away in seniors’ long term care homes.

Group homes for the developmentally disabled in Canada are not regulated or monitored in any
standard way; as a result, many homes (which are typically run by private companies) employ care workers that are unqualified, with many high-profile reports of people with violent criminal records being employed by group homes and subsequently assaulting residents, including sexual assault, leaving some with permanent injuries and extensive trauma.

This federal and provincial approach is not being pursued in the best interests of developmentally disabled and autistic people, nor with any concern for their human rights, but rather because it is simply more convenient for the government to warehouse them this way, than to use creative new approaches as our neighbours in the United States do.

It is a national scandal that Canada, a wealthy nation, continues to treat this vulnerable population in a manner akin to the era of large residential institutions, merely replacing the large institutions with smaller versions that embody the same mentality, without regard for autistic and developmentally disabled people’s thoughts, feelings, preferences, happiness, quality of life and God-given, Charter-guaranteed right to basic autonomy and safety.

While people with other disabilities can live independently with supports, and choose their care workers, make choices, there are almost no [Canadian] programs in which our community can. In the United States and other similar Western countries there are many federal and state innovations that demonstrate how autistic and developmentally disabled people can live with supports in smaller settings, with a roommate and support workers, to varying degrees as needed.

These model programs give dignity, safety and quality of life to the residents, who are capable to make basic decisions and should have the right to do so (for example, who to socialize with, when to eat, when to go to bed). The ideal of “just enough support” means determining how much support each person needs, rather than imposing control over them in a punitive environment that is prone to abuse and dehumanization.

In Canada, groups like LiveWorkPlay have adopted these new models in an exemplary way, but they are not properly funded by our government and remain the exception, rather than the norm.

The solution is simple.

  1. The federal government can no longer entrust provinces and territories to adequately create, manage and oversee housing for the developmentally disabled and autistic people. All provinces and territories have failed at this for decades. Thus, federal oversight, as well as incentivizing programs for new models, are ESSENTIAL.
  2. The federal government, as well as provincial/municipal governments, should meet directly with Autistics for Autistics, Community Living, LiveWorkPlay and other advocacy organizations not merely to hear our “lived experience” but to hear our IDEAS for best practices based on experience.
  3. The government should research best practices in the UK and the US, and develop pilot programs, and be proud of these programs as a part of a humane country that cares for all its citizens.
  4. The federal government should disabuse itself of the idea that land developers and private care companies have the “right idea” for group homes, because in reality their segregated projects have been an abysmal failure. Start fostering new relationships and think outside the box.

    It’s not too late to end the national shame of Canadian group homes, and bring dignity to developmentally disabled/autistic/non-speaking Canadians and our families. It merely involves the federal government taking an active role and–importantly–refusing to continue to kick the can over to the provinces, who have failed us!

Thank you and we hope you will be in touch to discuss this more.

Autistics for Autistics-Canada

 

Autistics are not protected by the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. We should be.

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A teal blue rectangle with a white maple leaf design at the left, followed by white-lettered words: "Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act"
Accessibility should be for all


On October 18, A4A rep Anne spoke before a committee preparing a review of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (2005). As the legislation stands, autistic people are not listed among the disabilities covered therein. We believe autistic should be included among the disabilities covered in the AODA. This is our statement.

Intro
Autistics for Autistics is Canada’s largest autistic-led advocacy group. We are an international affiliate of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, the largest autistic-led advocacy group in the world. We consult governments, businesses and other entities on disability accessibility for non-speaking and speaking autistics, as well as those with intellectual disabilities.

Autistic people’s human rights and accessibility needs are frequently violated in schools; at college and university; in housing; employment; healthcare; and other settings. Our community also disproportionately suffers from poverty due to segregation, access barriers, bias and other discrimination.

Add “autistic” to the AODA
The words autistic or autism are not included in the lists of disabilities protected under the legislation designed to protect the human rights of disabled Ontarians, (the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, or AODA).

Because autistic people are not included as a group in AODA legislation, we are not able to effectively utilize the legislation when seeking redress for human rights violations.

It is false to claim one can imply “autistic” under the umbrella of intellectual disability in the AODA. There are thousands of autistic people with significant disability, whose IQ is over 70. If the autistic person has an IQ over 70, AODA rights legislation is not seen to apply to them because autistics are omitted from protection under it.

Conclusion
Autistic people are sometimes told that parent groups can speak for us. But of course the viewpoint of a disabled person is different than the experience of their parents. Parents should not be speaking as the sole representatives of “autism,” nor as architects of AODA legislation. Nothing about us without us.

We at Autistics for Autistics would like to meaningfully consult on this policy to make sure our community is included. We were not included in past consultations. We want “Autistic” listed as a condition, directly, in the AODA.

Thank you.

Ontario may change legal definition of “child” in legislation to include disabled adults: A4A responds

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A4A was contacted by the Ministry of the Attorney General to give our view on a proposed legislative change of the definition of “child” that would include disabled adults, potentially over-riding the Substitute Decisions Act, which governs decision making for developmentally disabled adults in their decisions in housing, health care and more.

Below is our response:

Response to the proposed definition change of “child” in Ontario policy

As an autistic-led advocacy organization, Autistics for Autistics opposes the proposed change in the Province of Ontario’s definition of “child” so as to align with the federal definition of child in its Divorce Act, to include disabled adults.

Context

We present this response with the understanding that although autistic and/or developmentally disabled adults are not children, unfortunately many in Canadian society still hold that view. This includes policymakers at both the provincial and federal levels.

That regressive approach to policy has profound negative effects on the lives and safety of autistic and/or developmentally disabled adults in Canada, due to residential segregation (which is sadly a norm in Canadian policy); poverty; unemployment; and the denial of communication access rights (AAC) for many nonspeaking autistic adults.

The bulk of Canada’s federal and provincial disability-related legislation has been applied only to disabled adults without intellectual disability, meaning that:

  • developmentally disabled adults in Ontario and across Canada do not have their access rights protected (despite promises in legislation);
  • developmentally disabled adults are not able to choose their own support workers (as other disabled people are); and
  • there is no commitment to independent living in the community by either the Government of Canada or the Government of Ontario.
    • In fact, 80 per cent of housing in the I/DD sector is still allocated for residential
      institutional models       (large institutions or group homes).

Proposed change to the definition of “child”

After surveying our members and reviewing case law in the US and Canada, we’ve identified two significant risks with the proposed definition change, outlined below.

Risk 1: The new definition could be used in court proceedings to infantilize an adult who may otherwise be a candidate for independent living and supported decision making.

This infantilization would have a devastating effect on disabled individuals’ capacity to live independently with supports if they are presented in court as a “child” rather than an adult with the needs and rights of all other adults.

  • All disabled adults – including those with developmental disabilities – should have the right to housing and supported decision making that is independent of their parents.
  • Some parents wish to retain control over their adult children’s finances and independence for a variety of reasons; many have good intentions, others are doing so for their own fiduciary gain.
  • Regardless of those parents’ intentions for limiting their adult offspring’s living options, it leads to a lack of basic freedoms as identified under the Charter and a grim future as the person ages through young adulthood, midlife and into their senior years.
  • Judges are not immune to bias. The use of the term “child” would reinforce any existing biases about developmentally disabled adults having unequal rights with other adults.
  • Robust policy is a form of insurance against bias in decisions; the current definitions provide an important degree of protection.

Risk 2: If the definition of child is changed as proposed, it would raise problematic issues for the interpretation of the Substitute Decisions Act –with the Children’s Law Reform Act being utilized where it is not appropriate.

  • Currently, the Substitute Decisions Act governs issues around decision making for developmentally disabled adults.
  • While there is room for improvement in the Substitute Decisions Act, it remains a critical tool for ensuring rights of developmentally disabled and other disabled Ontarians.
  • Without a rigorous Substitute Decision Act, decision-making bodies could easily relegate disabled adults to the status of children, limiting their rights and freedoms.
  • With decisions applying the new definition of “child,” individuals would more often be denied access to independent living and supported decision-making.
  • Those individuals able to access the resources to appeal a decision that deprived them of supported decision making would have less recourse if the Substitute Decision Act loses its rigour.

Policy Discussion

Autistics for Autistics supports independent living and supported decision making. We oppose the existing regressive approach to guardianship in Ontario, which need a complete overhaul. We advocate for provincial (and federal) politicians to study best practices in other countries and to reach out to groups such as ours when making policy–instead of their current approach of giving millions in discretionary funds to organizations that profit from segregation and abuse.

Our hope for the future is that our province will move towards recognizing newer models of housing independence such as the “money follows the person” model in various US jurisdictions and the wonderful work of currently underfunded organizations such as LiveWorkPlay in Ottawa.

Perhaps this is a moment where our province could lead the way towards Canada-wide reform by contemplating why, in 2021, it has considered labeling disabled adults as “children”. Perhaps policymakers could use this moment to learn and grow, studying best practices and consulting with autistic and/or developmentally disabled adults across the province about the kind of lives they want and deserve—independent lives in the community, reflecting the overarching values of our province and our democracy. This discussion is long overdue.

Please feel free to contact Autistics for Autistics to read our provincial and federal policy reports or to discuss any other issues.

Thank you.

Anne Borden King

Board member, representing the Board
Autistics for Autistics, Ontario