Call for Support – Rally May 15 from Noon – 1 pm

42 million in cuts to services for the disabled in Alberta!

Over the past several months you may have been aware that Persons with Developmental Disabilities (PDD) has been directed, along with many other social programs, to make arrangements for budget cuts. These cutbacks are happening alongside an effort by PDD to better regulate funding models for people. These changes, unfortunately, make what we need to present at this time more complicated. Administrative changes around assessing support needs is co-mingled with the severe funding cutbacks being experienced across the province of Alberta.

Advocate for the Disabled. Dr. Heidi Janz is a Woman of Vision

Living Archives Team member Dr Heidi Janz has been recognized as a Woman with Vision. Heidi is a playwright, author, researcher, PhD scholar, adjunct professor and a woman with cerebral palsy. Lesley MacDonald from Global Television Edmonton calls Janz a “remarkable woman.” When I asked Heidi if I could share this article on the Living Archives blog she said “Sure. The headline kind of makes me sound like a 21st-century female Ironside!” I’s true I thought. All we need is a picture of Heidi with her side-kicks – cue the music!

The article by Lesley MacDonald can be found here: http://www.avenueedmonton.com/blogs/janz-crime-victim-is-an-advocate-for-the-disabled

Disability is a political issue not a personal one –

The Right to Not to Work: Power and Disability by Sunny Taylor

“The disabled are viewed with sympathy as victims of “bad luck” who will simply have to accept disadvantage as their lot in life, not as an identity group that is systematically discriminated against. Unlike sexism and racism, which are perceived to be significant social problems, disability falls under the social radar and disablism is not recognized as a damaging or even particularly serious form of prejudice.” The public remains unconvinced that the struggle for disability rights is actually their sturrgle as well….

The entire article and self-portrait can be found here: http://monthlyreview.org/2004/03/01/the-right-not-to-work-power-and-disability

Hope is NOT a Plan

Canadians with disabilities are about one and a half times as likely to be victims of violence as other Canadians. People with disabilities in Canada have civil rights on paper but not in practice. Canadian citizens, everyday, have their civil rights ruthlessly violated by their government.  This has to be stopped, because Hope is Not a Plan!

Why The Michener Centre Must Close

Recently, the Alberta government announced the future closure of the Michener Centre, an institution that houses people with developmental disabilities in Red Deer, Alberta. The centre is home to some 125 Albertans with developmental disabilities and has been in operation since the 1950′s.

Life is better outside Michener Centre

Support for the closure of Michener Centre

Our family supports the closure of Michener Centre! Everyone can live in community!

Family members write about their support for closing Michener in the Red Deer Advocate. Many supportive comments follow the article. Follow the link at the bottom to view the letter online.

Special Issue of the International Journal of Disability, Community & Rehabilitation (IJDCR) with the theme What Sorts of People Should There Be?

Special Issue of the International Journal of Disability, Community & Rehabilitation (IJDCR) with the theme What Sorts of People Should There Be?
Edited by Gregor Wolbring, Associate Professor Community, Rehabilitation and Disability Studies, Department of Community Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada is now available.

Visiting Scholar – Associate Professor Rob Sparrow

Professor Rob Sparrow will be giving two talks in Edmonton at the University of Alberta on Monday April 8 and Tuesday April 9, 2013. Both talks are open to the public and free! Talks are being held on campus in ETLC (Engineering Teaching & Learning Complex) located just off 116 Street between 92 Avenue and 91 Avenue. Public Parking can be found in Windsor Car Park. On Monday April 8th from 3:30 Pm – 5:00 pm ETLC room E1-003 (wheelchair accessible) Professor Sparrow’s lecture is called “In Vitro Eugenics” and on Tuesday April 9th from 3:30 pm – 5:00 pm his lecture is titled “The paradoxical ethics of PGD”. The abstracts for these talks are as follows:

Parents try to force surrogate mother to abort their disabled baby

Blogger Cassy Fiano writes about parents who try to  force their surrogate to abort their disabled baby. Cassy is has two sons, one has Down Syndrome.

Crystal Kelley wanted to give the gift of a baby to a family who couldn’t have children. She also needed the money that surrogacy brings. And so, she ended up becoming a surrogate mother to a couple in her state of Connecticut who had three children but wanted more. The first half of the pregnancy was friendly and happy, with Kelley and the parents communicating regularly.

Then there was an irregular ultrasound. After several more ultrasounds, the picture was clear: this was a baby who would be born with some disabilities. She had a cleft lip and palate, a cyst on her brain, and a heart defect. The baby’s parents immediately began to pressure Kelley to have an abortion, claiming it was the more “humane” option. Now, most decent people wouldn’t consider it humane to rob a child of her life simply because she might have a disability. This was the way that Kelley felt, and she refused to have an abortion

Meet the New Eugenics, Same as the Old Eugenics

From the Center for Genetics and Society blog, by Gina Maranto, Biopolitical Times guest editor, March 4, 2013

The unfortunate truth is that discredited ideas never do die, they just rise again in slightly altered forms—witness eugenics. Despite the horrors perpetuated in its name, including forced sterilization and the Holocaust, the eugenic impulse is with us still. One of the forms it takes is schemes for “improving” offspring through the selection and manipulation of embryos.

In the last year or so, one neo-eugenic advocate in particular has been garnering media attention. He’s Julian Savulescu, holder of an array of titles, including an endowed chair and directorship of a center at the University of Oxford funded by the Uehiro Foundation on Ethics and Education.

Reproductive Autonomy: Control of Sexuality A Panel Discussion at Pride Week, University of Alberta

Wednesday March 20, 2013 at 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm in Education South Building at the University of Alberta the Living Archives on Eugenics is sponsoring a panel discussion featuring Professor Lise Gotell, Chair of Women’s and Gender Studies and Dr. Lane Mandlis, with Moyra Lang, and Professor Rob Wilson. ASL interpreting services will be offered at this event. Find us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/#!/events/270019033131796/?fref=ts

Articles and Audio clips on the closure of Michener

Headlines read: Michener Centre formerly the Provincial Training School (PTS) for Mental Defectives closes – celebration for some but not for everyone

A series of articles have been written about the closure of the Michener Centre.  Living Archives team members, Leilani Muir and Bruce Uditisky have commented to reporters about their reactions to the closure. Both applaud the decision but many others criticize the decision to close Michener. The loss of jobs and the disruption for current residents are concerns for supporters of the institution.  However, amidst mixed reaction the Michener stands as a reminder of our recent history of eugenics and the institutionalization of thousands of individuals. The shift towards a more inclusive society and away from isolation and initialization is a change towards recognizing and perhaps even appreciating human variation.

Here are links to several different articles:

“physically incapacitated” or “mentally defective” don’t make me choose!

Our eugenics history is not a thing of the past.

In our provinical election many  Albertans in wheelchairs can not get into their polling stations to cast their vote.

The Living Archives on Eugenics in Western Canada calls upon Elections Alberta, elected officals and Canadians to make changes to policy and the Elections Act to stop excluding and creating barriers for persons with disabilities.

Albertans with disabilities, particularly those in wheelchairs, are unable to cast their ballots at several polling stations in Alberta on Election Day. The Elections Alberta website provides voter information about where to vote, but when some Albertans sought information about their polling stations they discovered that they could not get access to voting stations. Voters in wheelchairs throughout our province are unable to participate at the polls due to the lack of accessible polling stations. Elections Alberta Operations Director, Drew Westwater explains that while advanced polling stations were wheelchair accessible, the polling stations selected for Election Day, April 23, are not.

Alberta voters can find out about their polling stations using the Elections Alberta website, as one Edmonton woman did: “I happened to check on Voter link to find out where I can vote. The website happily told me the poll station address, and furthermore informed me that it is not wheelchair accessible. That was it. No link. No instructions. No clue that I could still possibly cast a ballot in this election. After four phone calls and almost two weeks, I finally was able to find out about, and negotiate a way to vote, by mail-in ballot”

The Elections Act 88.1 (96) Voter Assistance section, informs voters that they can vote using a mail in ballot – A wheelchair athlete in Edmonton requested a mail in ballot and discovered “I received this ballot today, and in order to vote, I actually have to self-identify, by check mark, as “physically incapacitated”…. have we really come that far from “mentally defective” (the term used to differentiate, institutionalize and sterilize thousands of Albertans from 1929 – 1972 under the Alberta Sexual Sterilization Act)?”

Alberta’s eugenic history influences our attitudes towards individuals with disabilities and differences, as our electoral process demonstrates. People with disabilities and vulnerable Albertans are being treated in exclusionary ways. The wheelchair athlete who is trying to participate explains: “… in order for my vote to count. I need to plan 2 weeks ahead. Navigate an unclear and difficult to manoeuvre electoral system. And self-identify with words that lack any dignity… words and ideas that I have spent my adult life fighting against. And this extra electoral burden is put upon the time and bodies of folks who are already forced to spend more energy and time to navigate other inaccessible and disabling structures.”

The effects of our eugenics past are present in our contemporary attitudes towards individuals with disabilities and the language that is required. The extra electoral burden placed upon individuals who are already forced to spend more time and energy to navigate so many other inaccessible and disabling structures such as housing, public spaces, transportation issues and more, is unacceptable.

As Mr Westwater said, the advanced polling stations throughout Alberta are wheelchair accessible but he could not explain why ALL polling stations are not accessible. Who else is excluded from our electoral process? How can our provincial government continue to exclude Albertans in our electoral process? Why do elected officials insist upon using language that treats its citizens without respect and dignity?

Instead of placing the burden upon those who already face multiple barriers as persons with disabilities, we need to place the responsibility upon elected officials to ensure all public spaces are accessible for all members of the public and create inclusive policies that guarantee electoral participation for all Albertans.

To find out if your polling station is accessible go to: http://wtv.elections.ab.ca/wtWhereDoIVote.cfm?MID=WH1

Write or call the candidates in your riding and after the election call again!  The fight for inclusive communities can not be left to those who already face so many barriers – all of us must work towards change!

Remember to Vote on April 23, 2012 – if you can get into your polling station

Pop Culture’s 100-year Obsession With Eugenics

For the past century, pop culture has told plenty of stories about eugenics. Some of them have criticized the notion that you can make people “better” — but others have been wishful fantasies about making a better world through genetics. Here’s the weird history of eugenics in popular culture. From Pre-World War II to Genetic Engineering and Beyond, this article traces our fascination with eugenics.  This article includes a clip of a radio presentation, lists of novels and movies that highlight eugenics. Past Intern Jenney McNaughton brought this article to my attention, thanks Jenney!

Francis Fukuyama, a professor at Johns Hopkins wrote:

“The first victim of transhumanism might be equality… If we start transforming ourselves into something superior, what rights will these enhanced creatures claim, and what rights will they possess when compared to those left behind? If some move ahead, can anyone afford not to follow? These questions are troubling enough within rich, developed societies. Add in the implications for citizens of the world’s poorest countries — for whom biotechnology’s marvels likely will be out of reach — and the threat to the idea of equality becomes even more menacing.”

Ethicist gets hate mail

A Melbourne academic has triggered an ethical storm by suggesting it is acceptable to kill newborns in so-called after-birth abortions if parents do not want them.

Ethicist Francesca Minerva said yesterday that she had received hate mail since a provocative article she co-wrote with Dr Alberto Giubilini appeared online.

They argued after-birth abortion should be allowed in cases when abortion would be permitted, including if a child had a defect such as Down syndrome.

Even in cases where the baby was born perfectly healthy, parents should have the right to end the life of the child if their own wellbeing was at risk.

The researchers said a newborn baby and a foetus were “morally equivalent” and both were “potential people”.

“If criteria such as the social, psychological and economic costs for potential parents are good enough reasons for having an abortion even when the foetus is healthy…then the same reasons which justify abortion should also justify the killing of the potential person when it is as the stage of a newborn, they said.

Adopting out an unwanted baby was not necessarily a solution because the mother might suffer psychological distress from giving up her child for adoption.

Dr Minerva said the article was not intended for public debate but rather for discussion among bioethicists.

“This debate has been going on for 30 years,” she said.

The BMJ Group said the researchers had been subjected to personal abuse, including threats to their lives.

It said the concept of infanticide was not new and the researchers had made an argument that deserved to be heard without receiving hostile abuse.
Catholic Respect Life executive officer Bronia Karniewicz said the argument that killing a healthy baby rather than putting them up for adoption because it might better benefit the parents was disturbing.

the article can be found here: http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/wa/13056055/ethicist-gets-hate-mail/

Australian paper says Euthanizing Babies should be allowed

A paper published in the Journal of Medical Ethics argues that abortion should be extended to make the killing of newborn babies permissible, even if the baby is perfectly healthy, in a shocking example of how the medical establishment is still dominated by a vicious mindset.

The paper is authored by Alberto Giubilini of Monash University in Melbourne and Francesca Minerva at the Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics at the University of Melbourne.

The authors argue that “both fetuses and newborns do not have the same moral status as actual persons,” and that because abortion is allowed even when there is no problem with the fetus’ health, “killing a newborn should be permissible in all the cases where abortion is, including cases where the newborn is not disabled.”

The complete article can be found here:http://www.eutimes.net/2012/03/australian-paper-says-euthanizing-babies-should-be-allowed-as-abortion/

International Council on Archives: Section on University and Research Institution Archives Conference

The International Council on Archives: Section on University and Research Institution Archives Conference taking place at the University of Alberta, July 12-16.

Attending this conference may be of interest to many of you who are interested in a synergistic relationship between archives, libraries and the research community.

Registration and program information is available below.

World report on disability 2011

The first ever World report on disability. Produced by the World Health Organization and the World Bank. There were more than 370 editors, contributors, regional consultation participants, and peer reviewers, from 74 countries around the world.

Foreward by Stephen Hawking – 349 page pdf (not accessible)

http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2011/9789240685215_eng.pdf

Lawmaker advocates eugenics

In an article written by Shira Schoenberg on March 11, 2001,  a 91-year-old American state representative told a constituent that he believes in eugenics and that the world would be better off without “defective people.”

Facing Uncertainty: Who is Destined for Alzheimer’s Disease?

A talk by Margaret Lock, McGill University with Respondent: Alex Choby, University of Alberta. Thursday 24 March 2011 at 3.30pm at ETLC E1 003 (right behind Assiniboia Hall on the University of Alberta campus far North West end. Nearest parking is Windsor parkade) with a reception to follow. A SSHRC Gold Medal Winner Margaret Lock is a Professor Emeritus in Social Studies in Medicine, and is affliated with the Department of Social Studies of Medicine and the Department of Athropology at McGill University. The abstract of the talk: