Disabling Poverty/Enabling Citizenship: End Exclusion 2010

Media Advisory
 

October 28, 2010

Poverty is the reality for far too many Canadians with disabilities. Some Canadians with disabilities are living on less than $10,000 per year. At the personal level, this means poor people with disabilities must adopt a wide array of coping mechanisms: couch surfing instead of having a place of your own, pan handling to earn extra money for the necessities of life, eating at soup kitchens, children not participating in extracurricular activities because their parents cannot afford the fees. This all happens in a country where the general public assumes that Canadians with disabilities are well taken care of. At End Exclusion 2010, people with disabilities will be speaking out about the realities of living in poverty during an economic downturn. In addition to explaining how poverty limits the choices and opportunities available to Canadians with disabilities, the organizers of this event will be sharing policy for addressing disability poverty. People with disabilities have partnered as researchers with leading Canadian social scientists to undertake groundbreaking research on poverty and disability. (This research has been funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.) The first results of this research will be showcased by the researchers at End Exclusion 2010.

What: End Exclusion 2010—Disabling Poverty/Enabling Citizenship

Where: Delta Hotel, Ottawa ON

When: November 1, 2, 2010

November 1, 2010 - 7:00 pm

• Remarks: Hon. Diane Finley
• Keynote Address: Cindy Blackstock, First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada

November 2, 2010 – 9:00 am – 4:00 pm

• Current trends and research findings on poverty
• Roundtable Discussions on poverty and disability

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For more information contact:

Laurie Beachell, National Coordinator, Council of Canadians with Disabilities - 204-947-0303 (office)
204-981-6179 (cell)
laurie@ccdonline.ca (email).