International Day of Persons with Disabilities

December 3 is the United Nation’s International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD). It is a day to recognize and advocate for the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities at every level of society and development, and to raise awareness of the situation of persons with disabilities in all aspects of political, social, economic, and cultural life (UN, 2023). For the 2023 IDPD, the theme is “United in action to rescue and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for, with and by persons with disabilities.”

You may be wondering, what are these goals, and what do they have to do with IDPD? The seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are the United Nations’ guidelines for achieving a better future for everyone, and one that will be sustainable in the long term. The COVID-19 pandemic and on-going crises around the world have slowed progress in attaining these goals, which include issues related to peace, justice, reducing inequality, defending human rights, and poverty. In the Canadian context, combatting ableism, which falls under the SDG of reducing inequalities is of paramount importance. Ableism is the practice of discriminating or having prejudices against people with disabilities. While legislation, such as the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act2005 (AODA) and the Accessible Canada Act, has been passed, discriminatory attitudes, and subtle discrimination practices persist. Other closely related SDGs include ending poverty and building sustainable cities and communities with reliable, accessible public transit.

In recognition of this important day, the City of Ottawa is hosting an online event on November 30 at 10 am, which will feature Professor Jay Dolmage as keynote speaker. Professor Dolmage is the author of Academic Ableism: Disability and Higher Education and the founding editor of the Canadian Journal of Disability Studies and will be speaking on the topic of ableism and bias awareness. This event is open to the public. For more information, and to register, please visit the link below. The deadline to register is November 29 at 4:00 pm.

The International Day of Persons with Disabilities is an excellent opportunity to begin learning about human rights and disability justice. For more information on disability rights and combatting ableism, please consult the Ottawa Public Library’s IDPD booklist.

Registration Link: International Day of Persons With Disabilities Registration

Date: Thursday, November 30th

Time: 10 am to 11:30 am

Place: Online Event

This event will include simultaneous translation in French. Captioning in English and French will be provided, as well as American Sign Language (ASL) and Langue des signes québécoise (LSQ).