My guest today was Margo Schlanger, professor at the University of Michigan law school. Over her decades of legal advocacy, Margo has been heavily involved in prison reform and decarceration efforts- with a focus on prisoners with disabilities. 

Although I had known that people with disabilities were disproportionately incarcerated and subject to forms of carceral violence, I acknowledge that there is and was a lot I didn’t know.  

I found this interview especially challenging. I struggled first, to find a Canadian guest who would be able to speak to disability issues and the prison industrial complex in Canada. I realized that there was a well-developed prison abolition movement in Canada, but no organizing specific to disability and the prison industrial complex was apparent. So, this interview is a way to get that conversation started closer to home. 

The issues facing inmates with disabilities are numerous and apparent at every stage of the incarceration process- intake, assessment, and discharge.  

The use of solitary confinement for people with severe mental health concerns was seen as cruel and unusual punishment but despite regulations, it remains in use. The issues are numerous and would require a more in-depth discussion. 

What I would like to do, perhaps in future episodes of the program, is to build on this conversation and ask about the possibility of prison abolition and think about alternatives to policing, prisons and the carceral state.  

My guest today was Rabia Khedr, who is a former Ontario Human Rights Commissioner and President of Deen Support Services.  

If you were to ask me if I had any role-models as an immigrant woman of colour with a disability- Rabia Khedr would be pretty much at the top of the list. For years, after arriving in Canada, I struggled to find my place. I wondered who I was and where I was going. 

Rabia’s story and her lifelong dedication for social justice, intersectionality, and civic engagement for disabled people - of all backgrounds, is an inspiration to me and to Nisreen.  

This was the very first time I considered the linkages between faith and disability. We know that faith (religion or a personal belief system) often helps people deal with adversity. We also know that faith-based communities often regard people with disabilities as objects of pity or the recipients of charity. (Think about the many, many times, someone on the street has offered to pray for you).  

I also realized that faith could afford a sense of belonging, a community and affirm a sense of purpose. Faith-based communities, at minimum need to follow the law to make their facilities and services accessible, but also want to go beyond that legal mandate to ensure that no one is left behind. 

I found out during the interview that DEEN Support Services is organizing the first-ever Global conference on Disability and Islam. It’s actually proved to be both cost-effective and possible to bring together a larger audience over Zoom. There’s still time to register! The conference takes place on August 18 from 9:00 AM- 6:00 PM eastern (I’ll be there!) 

My guests today were high school teacher, Jason Kunin and disability rights advocate David Lepofsky. We discussed the announcement by the Ontario government to reopen schools this Fall, five days a week, with some provisions put in place to ensure social distancing and curtail the spread of COVID-19. 

I’m still unclear how I feel about this. I think that eLearning has been a letdown for everyone- not just students with disabilities. Parents, as far as I know, are struggling to balance full-time jobs with full-time childcare responsibilities and teaching curriculum. I think a return to school, and whatever approximates normal in these times, would no doubt be a relief for many parents and students.  

With that said, I was struck by what Jason said during our conversation. He cautioned against valuing teachers only as child-minders. I admit I found my thinking going in that direction. There are so many challenges with teaching safely and effectively come September, many of which I had not even considered before my conversation with Jason. So, I’m chewing on that. 

Less surprising, at least in its overall tone and the issues raised, was my conversation with David Lepofsky- which I nevertheless found deeply engaging. Students with disabilities and visual impairments particularly, are getting left out of back-to-school planning. This on its own has ceased to surprise me. But setting aside my cynicism, I think the concerns for learners with disabilities go beyond questions of safety and preventing the spread of COVID, which are of course important. I think what parents, educators and students truly need to grapple with is that students with disabilities are not learning as they should.  

I myself have been taking online University courses. It’s been going great for me. But then, I’m an adult, I’m capable of advocating for myself and I have an able-bodied partner who can help out when something is inaccessible. 

For a lot of young students with disabilities and their  parents, it’s never  so straightforward and online learning or the powers which would allow school administrators to simply keep students with disabilities at home in September will simply widen the knowledge gap between students with and without disabilities. 

Visit the AODA Alliance at www.aodaalliance.org or tweet them @aodaalliance.  

I spoke today with Keith McArthur, CEO of the CureGRIN Foundation and host of the podcast, Unlocking Bryson’s Brain. We spoke about the ethical questions and dilemmas around curing disabilities. Keith’s son, Bryson, who is now in his teens, has a rare genetic disorder which means Bryson has difficulties communicating, walking, forming memories and learning. Bryson is deeply loved by his family.  

Keith wondered if part of his advocacy efforts for Bryson might include finding a cure- some course of treatment which would allow Bryson to have more agency. Here’s the thing, although I’m a person with a lifelong disability, I’m wondering the same thing.   

I know there is a debate within the disability community about whether finding a cure is ableist, whether the Right-to-Die is ableist. And this is not a hot-take by any means, but I think we need to spend less time taking a position on a “controversial” issue and instead try and come together to talk about solutions, options and seek common ground.  

Disability is a fact of life. It is a function of attitudinal barriers and social limitations, but there are also things that a person with some kind of impairment or disorder simply can’t do. We need to bring compassion, an open mind and thoughtful deliberation to difficult questions and ethical quandaries.  

Whether you are a parent, a person with a disability, a researcher or someone in government or the private sector, I’d like to think everyone (despite our superficial differences) wants to leave a legacy of a world that is accepting of all kinds of bodies, ways of belonging and giving people the right to choose how to embody their disabilities.  

Here’s the link to the podcast if you want to follow Keith’s journey: 

https://www.cbc.ca/radio/podcasts/unlocking-brysons-brain/

I just spoke to Dr. Sarah Bell at the University of Exeter about her research called “Sensing Nature.” I have been fascinated for some time about decentering vision from our discussion. If you have been listening regularly you know this has been a recent theme on The Pulse with some of our more recent guests. 

For the longest time, when I was outdoors, on a hike for instance, I felt like a pretender or an interloper. I frankly wondered what I was supposed to get out of it as a person with a disability. Certainly no one told me that hearing, feeling, and exploring with the other senses were equally valid ways of being in the world. 

I loved finding out that I wasn’t alone in craving a degree of solitude as a person with a visual impairment. I took great comfort in the notions of perceived independence and interdependence put forward by Sarah and the role that skill-development (such as excellent White Cane skills) have on nature exploration. 

I would encourage you to explore outdoors to your heart’s content and also to check out the Sensing Nature website at www.sensing-nature.com