Speech by Minister Qualtrough at Realizing Rights 2017 Conference Human Rights and Constitutionalism

June 8, 2017 - Ottawa, Ontario

Check against delivery. This speech has been translated in accordance with the Government of Canada’s official languages policy and edited for posting and distribution in accordance with its communications policy.

Good afternoon, everyone,

Thank you, Professor Malhotra, for that kind introduction.

I am sincerely pleased to be with all of you today.  Thank you for giving me this great opportunity to join you at your conference.

Before I begin, I’d like to acknowledge that we are on the traditional territory of the Algonquin peoples.

This year’s conference theme of Human Rights and Constitutionalism is very fitting.

When we speak of human rights and constitutionalism, one of the most informed persons on this matter in Canada is Mr. Roger Tassé, the father of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

And as many of you probably may know, Mr. Tassé passed away just recently. I’d like to take a moment to pay tribute to this great man who changed Canada’s human rights landscape for the better.

Mr. Tassé had a long career in federal politics, which included representing the government in Meech Lake and Charlottetown accord talks.

In 1980, Mr. Tassé led a team of Justice Ministry lawyers tasked with helping political leaders reach an agreement on the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

And in 1982, the Charter declared physical or mental disability as a prohibited ground of discrimination. This was the first time that such a right was guaranteed in the Constitution of a country.

As we look back during Canada’s 150th on all that we have accomplished when it comes to Canadians with disabilities, we have many milestones to be proud of:

• The Canadian Human Rights Act was passed in 1977.
• The Employment Equity Act was introduced in 1986.
• Since 1988, the Canadian Transportation Agency has had a mandate to protect the right of people with disabilities to an accessible transportation network.
• In 1994, Gary Malkowski became Canada’s—in fact North America’s—first elected deaf parliamentarian, and the first deaf parliamentarian in the world to address a legislature in a signed language.
• In 2007, Canada was one of the first countries to sign the UN Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which Canada ratified in 2010. And of course, last year we began the process of accession to the Optional Protocol.

In 2015, I had the honour of becoming Canada’s first-ever federal Minister responsible for Persons with Disabilities. As a Canadian with a disability, I am very proud.

I could go on because there are more achievements I could mention.

But while it is true that important progress has been made, and is being made, to advance the rights of Canadians with disabilities, the history of how we have treated these citizens is not a proud one. Ours is a history of compulsory sterilization, lobotomies, forced institutionalization, abuse and neglect amongst other things. We have stripped people of their rights, and taken them away from their families. We have sent the clear message that we are people who need to be fixed, that our needs are expensive and burdensome, and that we just have to accept that it will cost too much to include us.

I have met many Canadians who still live with the memories of these traumas.

As you all know, disability in Canada has historically been seen through a medical model of seeing individuals as “objects” of charity, medical treatment and social protection.

My mandate from the Prime Minister to ensure greater accessibility for and inclusion of Canadians with disabilities means fundamentally shifting this paradigm as a matter of public policy. To one of full citizenship where Canadians with disabilities are recognized as full, contributing members of Canadian society with rights and obligations, fully capable of economic, social and civic participation.

Today, almost 14% of Canadians aged 15 or older report having a disability that limits daily activities. This number will only increase as our population ages.

Forty-nine percent of persons with disabilities aged 25 to 65 are employed vs. 79% of the general population. Additionally, persons with disabilities earn 44% less in total income than the general population. This needs to change.

Everyone in this room knows that we have very strong anti-discrimination laws in Canada—laws interpreted by tribunals and courts to afford Canadians with disabilities a broad scope of protections.

Historically, I would suggest that advances both big and small in disability issues and rights have been made primarily through our human rights mechanisms and the courts.

The gratitude we owe the people and the organizations that have tirelessly pursued these cases is significant.

I’m thinking about people like Donna Jodhan, who successfully pursued a case against the Government of Canada regarding the inaccessibility of its websites.

There is also Peter Hughes and the Canadian Human Rights Commission, who won their case against Elections Canada regarding the inaccessibility of a polling station.

As difficult and time-consuming as they were, cases like these established pivotal jurisprudence and paved the way for others.

There is no doubt that Canadians with disabilities and their families fought hard for their rights to be recognized. And thanks to their efforts and the efforts of those within our judicial system, Canada has made progress.

But what if we took a more proactive approach to accessibility and inclusion of Canadians with a disability?

While robust, our human rights mechanisms are for the most part reactive. We have to wait until someone is discriminated against. Someone has to be denied a job, denied housing, denied a service…you get the idea.   

How long did Donna Jodhan have to fight to be able to create change within the Government of Canada’s process?

Imagine an act of law that could proactively set expectations for employers, businesses, policy-makers and program deliverers—including the federal government. A law that established accessibility standards across all areas of federal jurisdiction. A law that could address systemic issues. A law that acknowledged our obligations under the UN CRPD. A law with robust enforcement and compliance mechanisms.

We know that more than half of the complaints to the Canadian Human Rights Commission are on the ground of disability. Would this change?

Well, we’re going to find out….

Since I was appointed Minister, my primary focus has been to work on new federal accessibility legislation that will help address discrimination before it even happens.

I believe that we have an amazing opportunity to change the course of Canadian history with this legislation.

In the summer of 2016, we launched what would become the largest and most accessible Government of Canada consultation on disability issues ever. We held public sessions in 16 cities across the country, as well as 10 expert roundtables on areas specific to federal jurisdiction.

We engaged with over 6000 Canadians and community partners either in person or online to hear about what an accessible Canada means to them—and we did it in the most accessible way possible to ensure that everyone was able to participate and have their say in what this legislation could look like.  

Last week was National AccessAbility Week. We released a report which is available online on what we learned, which will inform the development of the legislation.

Participants showed a lot of hope and excitement for new accessibility legislation that would improve the quality of life for Canadians with disabilities.

Regardless of age, gender or where they lived, Canadians were clear on one thing: It is not acceptable for Canadians with disabilities to be excluded from any aspect of life. I heard loud and clear that Canadians with disabilities do not accept being considered an afterthought: They want to be included from the start. To them, being accommodated means that they were forgotten in the beginning.

Participants shared their personal stories of the barriers they faced.

• I heard about physical and technological barriers impeding people’s ability to move freely, use transportation and access basic information.
• I heard about instances where government projects and services excluded persons with disabilities.
• And I heard about the attitudes and misconceptions that Canadians continue to have about what people with disabilities can and cannot do.

Canadians want to see legislation that is ambitious and bold—legislation that reflects current best practices from across Canada and around the world. They want a broad statement of principles that frames the law and acknowledges our obligations under the UN CRPD.

Canadians want legislation that leads to a more consistent experience of accessibility across Canada.

They want legislation that applies to all areas of federal jurisdiction; and for the Government of Canada itself to be a leader in accessibility.

Canadians with disabilities want to continue to be included in the development and implementation of this legislation.

They want legislation with robust enforcement and compliance mechanisms.

And while there was no consensus on one particular area of accessibility being more important than another, issues of common concern emerged around employment, access to buildings and public spaces, information and communication technology, procurement, transportation by air and rail, and program and service delivery.

At the same time, the business community expressed uncertainty about new rules and regulations and the need for technical assistance and supports. But, I also heard loudly that carrots or incentives alone do not work—even when there is a strong business case for including people with disabilities.

I have learned from other jurisdictions in Canada and around the world that accessibility is bigger than one particular law. Culture change is as important as legal change.

We will need to support the new legislation with complementary initiatives that drive culture change and better support persons with disabilities and their communities.

We also need to support businesses. I have been doing quite a bit of foundational work with employers and businesses. Underlying this effort is the desire to set everyone up to succeed.

I will be looking at options for programming that support the full participation of persons with disabilities. I am thinking specifically here of a national employment strategy.

Investments will need to be made to allow for a larger and more diverse workforce and the inclusion of a historically marginalized community of Canadians.

But I want to stress that the costs of inaction are much higher, both financially and to our core values of being a diverse and inclusive Canada.

Next week, I will be leading Canada’s delegation to the United Nations Conference of States Parties to the UN CRPD. This Conference will provide a great opportunity to engage in a discussion with my international counterparts on inclusion and full participation of people with disabilities, and give us a chance to learn from one another.

There, I will speak about our planned accessibility legislation and how Canada intends to move on demonstrating our commitment to the Convention.

I will speak to policy and programmatic preparatory work being done across our government to break down barriers in anticipation of our new law. I am particularly proud of the work we are doing to include accessibility as a core policy objective for our infrastructure investments and our national housing strategy.

I will highlight some of the other highpoints of the past year and a half, such as the ratification of the Marakesh Treaty, and our commitment to the UN CRPD Optional Protocol.

Before concluding, I want to extend my thanks to those of you who participated in our accessibility consultations. I also want to thank the CHRC for working with the Office for Disability Issues as we have turned to the task of drafting this legislation. I believe that the CHRC will be a critical partner in this endeavor, as we collaborate on the interplay between our accessibility law, the Employment Equity Act, and the CHRA. I anticipate having to lean quite heavily on your expertise and experience.

In conclusion, I’d like to reiterate that the Government of Canada is committed to upholding and safeguarding the rights of people with disabilities, and enabling them to reach their full potential.

This year, we are celebrating Canada’s 150th anniversary. It’s the perfect time to think of our past achievements while looking to the future and putting into practice lessons learned.

Building an accessible Canada will be historic, but this process will take time. We must keep up our momentum for future generations.

We have the unique chance to change the course of Canadian history and my colleagues and I are up to the challenge.

Apart from breaking down barriers, be they physical or social, this legislation will also send a strong message—Canada is saying no to discrimination and saying yes to inclusion.

Once again, thank you all for giving me this opportunity today.

Have a great Conference everyone!

Thank you.

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