It was announced this month that Minister Carla Qualtrough, an MP from Delta, BC will be taking on an expanded role to include Accessibility. She is now the Minister of Public Services and Procurement and Accessibility. Carla Qualtrough played a leadership role in developing Canada\’s first Accessibility Legislation, which was tabled in Ottawa in June.

On July 16th, the Vancouver Sun published an interesting article detailing how many BC residents believe they need to have a say on the proposed accessibility law being developed by the province.

Many feel that having disability legislation on the provincial level is critical to ensuring that human rights are respected. More than 600,000 people in BC have disabilities. Many of them encounter barriers in society that keep them from fully participating. While they are protected by human rights legislation, they must prove on a case-by-case basis that their rights have been denied.

To address that — and after federal legislation was proposed last month to improve accessibility for people with disabilities — the BC government will begin creating a provincial disabilities act this fall. People with disabilities in BC are making it clear they want to play a major role in its design.

CVS agrees that in order for the legislation to be adequate, a diverse group of people with disabilities must be involved in drafting it – not just nonprofits in the sector but individuals who are dealing with disabilities daily.

The federal government says its legislation will “identify, remove and prevent” accessibility barriers in areas under its jurisdiction, such as buildings and public spaces, employment, information and communication technologies and transportation.

But that jurisdiction includes only Parliament, government of Canada agencies, the federally regulated private sector (transportation, broadcasting, telecommunications and finance), Canadian Forces and the RCMP.

In an interview, Shane Simpson, NDP MLA for Vancouver Hastings and minister for social development and poverty reduction, said he is committed to bringing legislation to BC and pledged to ensure people with disabilities play a substantial role in its creation.

Now that federal legislation is in the works, the province is moving toward consultation with British Columbians about provincial legislation in the fall, though there is no deadline for its completion, Simpson said. He plans on a made-in-BC approach drawing from work in other provinces.

Simpson said his first priority will be to understand what his government and people with disabilities want to accomplish. What he hears most is that they want access to employment.

Simpson admitted that he does not “have a good handle” yet on all aspects of creating accessibility legislation, such as how to appropriately change building codes and other laws. But he vowed he will get it done.

Hopefully, as this provincial legislation is drafted they will involve the right people. Now that something is in-the-works, it\’s imperative that we have a good team providing input into an accessibility plan for BC\’s future.

On July 9th, Ron McKinnon – Member of Parliament, Coquitlam-Port Coquitlam, announced the launch of Community Champions, an award that recognizes the neighbours who work hard to make Coquitlam-Port Coquitlam the best community in the Lower Mainland.

Whether this is a dedicated parent who wakes up extra early to carpool the neighbourhood kids to school, the passionate coach who puts in countless hours to shape young athletes, or the fundraising superstar who collects donations to help the less fortunate – they all are champions! These Community Champions deserve to be recognized and now you can nominate them from an award!

How do you nominate? To nominate someone, visit Ron\’s website and fill out the form

Nominations are open until August 15^th, 2018.

All nominators, nominees and award recipients are also invited to celebrate with me at my annual September Social at Lions Park on September 9^th.

It was announced on Wednesday, that Robert Latimer is applying to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould for either a pardon or a new trial for the killing of his daughter in 1993. Latimer killed his severely disabled 12-year-old daughter, Tracy, in 1993 by piping exhaust fumes into the cab of his truck.

In an application filed on Wednesday, Latimer\’s lawyer claims the circumstances of his client\’s 1997 conviction amount to the kind of miscarriage of justice that deserves a rare ministerial review.

Latimer\’s case has already proven one of the most polarizing in Canadian legal history. He has appeared twice before the Supreme Court of Canada — first in 1997 when the court ordered a new trial due to jury interference and a second time in 2001, when the court upheld a life sentence with no parole for 10 years.

Latimer told police he did it — he said he loved his daughter, who had a severe form of cerebral palsy and was thought to be in chronic pain, and couldn\’t bear watching her suffer. The case has divided supporters who believe the case is one of so-called mercy killing and those who argue that failing to adequately punish a man for killing his disabled daughter devalues Tracy Latimer\’s life. The judge at Latimer\’s second trial called the murder \”compassionate homicide.\”

Latimer\’s application for ministerial review is based on an argument that while doctors could have managed Tracy\’s pain with strong medication like opioids, she was denied stronger drugs because they might have killed her.

On July 12th, the Canadian Association for Community Living (CACL) released a statement in response to Latimer\’s request for a pardon. The CACL strongly urged Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould, and the Government of Canada to do deny Robert Latimer\’s recent application for a pardon.

CACL noted that –

\”The taking of another life represents the most serious crime in our criminal justice system. A suggestion that Mr. Latimer had no option but to murder his daughter has already been soundly rejected by the Supreme Court of Canada after an extensive and exhaustive analysis.\”

The evidence at the trials of Mr. Latimer was clear – Tracy was not dying, and her pain could be managed. Joy Bacon, President of the Canadian Association for Community Living (CACL), said, \”The court found that Tracy\’s life was, in fact, worth living while her father had not. Tracy was robbed of her opportunity to flourish as a human being. As such, a pardon for Mr. Latimer would be a direct injustice to Tracy and her legacy and perpetuate society\’s stigmatization against persons who have disabilities.\”

Canada\’s Supreme Court highlighted in their decision that Tracy, enjoyed music, bonfires, being with her family and the circus. She liked to play music on a radio, which she could use with a special button. Tracy could recognize family members, and she would express joy at seeing them. Tracy also loved being rocked gently by her parents.

Community Ventures Society supports the position of the Canadian Association for Community Living.

The mother of a 7-year-old disabled girl who’s nonverbal and bound to a wheelchair is questioning an age restriction for HandyDART after her daughter was found ineligible for the service because she’s too young.

Tina Lanzi Ricard wanted to sign up her daughter, Stella, who has Rett Syndrome for summer camp this year. The hope was to do something fun over the summer out in the community, with her caregiver picking her up at 9:00am and they would take the bus to the camp and back in the afternoon.

But TransLink denied the girl because she’s under the age of 12. Ricard feels that there are already so many barriers just by being disabled and this is an additional one. In a statement to NEWS 1130, TransLink Senior Media Relations Advisor Chris Bryan confirmed the policy but did note that they are also reviewing the policy itself –

“Our current age eligibility policy is long-standing, and is similar to policies for custom transit found in other jurisdictions. That said, we are evaluating this age policy to determine if an update is required to expand eligibility to better serve our customers’ needs.”

Ricard says the experience is just another barrier her and other parents of disabled children have to face. “We struggle every day with trying to advocate for our child and this is just another area.”

To read more about Ricard\’s story, click here.

A Coquitlam-based woman who uses a wheelchair was left waiting for an accessible taxi for three hours on Canada Day. After this experience, Merle Smith, is calling for more enforcement of BC\’s transportation laws.

Smith, 70, has been a disability rights advocate since she become quadriplegic when she was 14. She says she was evaluating the Canada Day event for the city to make sure it met accessibility needs like ramps and adequate seating.

Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart was at the event and noticed Smith waiting – in the rain – and tried to help her. Stewart said 15% of the taxi fleet in Coquitlam must be accessible and whenever a taxi company has applied to expand its fleet, the city has requested that it include more accessible vehicles, too. By 12:30am (after the initial call at 8:30pm) Merle\’s taxi finally arrived. Stewart even shared his views and the story on social media.

Stewart and Smith are calling on the Passenger Transportation Board to enforce its requirements.

CVS supports an initiative to increase accessibility across the community, including taxi services. We hope that Mayor Stewart and Merle Smith are successful in their plight to make taxi services more accessible across our community.

For more information on this story, please read the original CBC article here.

As we head into a warmer time of year, we wanted to remind you again of the importance of taking care in the summer. Sunnier days typically brings warmer temperatures and a decline in air quality .

Remember that during times of extreme heat, it is important to take extra precaution to prevent heat-related illness, particularly for those who may be more vulnerable to these conditions such as the elderly, people on certain medications and those with respiratory conditions.

At Community Ventures Society, we hope that everyone takes the time to ensure that individuals who are being supported understand how to recognize that they may be overheating and how to prevent this from happening.

Consider the following –

• Never leave anyone alone in a car
• Stay in the shade when possible
• Drink plenty of fluids
• Wear lighter clothing, hats and sunglasses
• Close curtains during the daytime to block the sun
• Open windows to promote air circulation
• Use fans to promote a cross breeze in rooms
• Apply sunscreen when spending time outdoors

These preventative measures are fairly standard in terms of managing care during the summer months. CVS and all of its staff are committed to taking these extra precautions to ensure that the proper safeguards are in place to reduce the incidence of heat related illness.

To keep a close eye on weather warnings across BC please click here.

Enjoy the summer & let\’s all stay safe while enjoying these sunnier days!

Two articles published last week highlighted a need for improved support and services for children with special needs and autism.

On June 21st, News 1130 published an article about the reality of shortages facing families with special needs students in Surrey. Parents of special needs students reflected on how the shortage of teachers in BC has translated into fewer hours of individual assistance for their kids. For many students with autism, there is a lack of Educational Assistants (EA) assigned, leaving students in a position where they are not fully supported for educational success. Additionally, there has been a lack of consistency with workers and many are being pulled in different directions and unable to give the focus that\’s needed to support the student.  For its part, the Surrey school district says it has 3,000 special needs students, and that parents who are unhappy with their kids’ education plan can appeal.

A day later, on June 22nd, the Surrey Now-Leader published a story noting that an estimated 40 parents wearing “Team Maya” T-shirts attended a Surrey school board meeting last week. Their purpose? To ask for support worker “continuity” for children with autism and other disabilities. Team Maya was started by Nicole Kaler, a mother of a daughter named Maya who has autism. Kaler filed a Human Rights Tribunal complaint against the Surrey School District and CUPE 728 last year. She said it resulted in her daughter receiving the support Kaler wanted, but that it inspired her to help other parents fight for “systemic change.” Kaler said the issue boils down to some children with disabilities receiving new support workers too often, and the disruption in their care and education that results in. Asked what the school district would do after the parents’ turned out in force to the June 20 board meeting, Strachan said they will each have their individual questions answered. If the school district and CUPE 728 don’t make a change, Kaler said parents are organizing to file further Human Rights complaints. For more on this story, please click here.

CVS believes in the importance of offering the right level of support for the individual. We hope that the concerns expressed by parents are taken seriously by the school district and positive change is taken to improve the level of care for these students.