Future dialogue with Persons with Disabilities — addressed to Kamal Khera
NOTE TO STAFF: I would ask that you do not respond with a standard message directing me to re-send this email to Minister Khera's ministerial email address. Expecting members of the PWD community to hunt down a specific address(es) is very ableist behaviour as many of us use aids to interact electronically. Thank you.
Greetings Minister Khera,
I felt I should officially introduce myself to you, as I see that you've chosen to follow me on Twitter (@Gryphknight); while I am not a constituent of your Brampton, ON riding, I am a member of the Persons with Disabilities community (hereafter: PWD) that you now represent. While Twitter may be good for brief announcements, it is woefully inadequate for discussing more serious matters. Your recent appointment as Minister for Diversity, Inclusion, and Persons with Disabilities is a very serious matter, indeed.
Firstly, congratulations on your recent appointment! It is refreshing to see that PM Trudeau chose you—a younger, racialized woman—to take on these responsibilities in a newly created Cabinet position. I don't know if you can fathom the sense of acknowledgement members of the PWD community feel seeing "Persons with Disabilities" in a Cabinet level department that has every appearance of being focused on the needs of those that aren't white, often middle or upper class, non-queer, or otherwise outside the rather narrow constraints of what society tends to deem "normal". Our PWD community, specifically, have always felt like we were an afterthought, given that our needs have historically (when named) been tacked on, haphazardly, to the Sport or Employment folios. It is my hope that specifically naming the PWD community is the beginning of a brighter future for us all.
I am a 57 (soon to be 58) year old disabled man, currently living in New Brunswick; I have been disabled since 1993, and have lived in New Brunswick for 25 years. Prior to living here, I was raised in south-west Ontario, moved to Alberta and British Columbia as a young adult, and returned to Ontario in 1993, where I mostly lived in the GTA. I also attended the University of Toronto from 1995-98, before moving out here, where I attended the University of New Brunswick from 1998-2000. I share these details to impress on you the fact that I've lived in a variety of settings / regions in Canada and, therefore, have a deep understanding of disability issues vis a vis Federal v Provincial jurisdiction. I am fully aware that issues surrounding my community are complex; there are no "easy answers". In fact, prior to your new appointment it didn't appear that our Federal government knew exactly what to do with PWD Canadians; as a result, we have historically been offloaded to the poorly patched network of Provincial programs.
As I stated, I have been disabled since 1993; my application for CPP-Disability benefits was backdated to August of '93 when my application was approved in '94. I left Ontario in '98, prior to their adoption of the ODSP protocols. As you live in Ontario, I will assume that you are aware that if (and that's a huge "if") someone is approved for ODSP, their maximum benefit is ~$1300.00. Would you care to guess what a PWD in New Brunswick receives? The answer may shock you. New Brunswick has no benefit program specifically for PWD. You read that correctly. While PWD may be eligible for an additional $100 under our Social Services benefit program, this "top up" is approved on an ad-hoc, case-by-case basis. As it stands, maximum benefits for a PWD in New Brunswick is ~$850.00. Because there is no specific program, PWD do not benefit from any drug-cards, transit discounts, or other benefits that may be available in Ontario. In my 25 years living here, I have yet to hear a Provincial official specifically address the needs of PWD.
I invite you to sit with that for a minute. Can you imagine living—forget about thriving—in 2023 when you have $850 to pay for rent, food, transportation, any medical assistance aids, prescriptions, glasses, etc.? Keep in mind that in New Brunswick, the default is that if you live with roommates or family your household income is used to determine your eligibility. Could you do that?
To add insult to injury, I have never qualified for the paltry assistance that is offered in New Brunswick as my CPP-D income has always been above the maximum "earnings threshold". I experienced my income being decreased by 50% ($1200 — %600) when I moved here in 1998. My current CPP-D income of $975.00 is, of course, above the benefit that is offered to us. Some would consider that a "decent income" considering that I don't contribute to the workforce. I do not. When I reach the age of 65, in just over 7 years, I will suffer an additional decrease in my income as standard CPP is calculated at 25% of a person's last 5 years employment average—where CPP-D uses a 50% metric. I've calculated my senior income to be less than $400. It gets worse. Thankfully, my husband has a decent income; combined we are still below poverty for many indicators that are used. However, as he will still be working for my first two senior years on CPP, I will be ineligible for GIS or OAS, as they use much lower income scales. In eight years, my husband and I will be expected to live on an income that has decreased by a considerable amount, when the cost-of-living will no doubt have increased. My circumstances are not unique; rather, they are quite common for over one million Canadian PWD.
This is why the new Canada Disability Benefit is such a crucial step for us. This is why the online PWD community has been so vocal and active since 2020. This is why we constantly urge our political representatives to hear us rather than rely on the input of various NGOs, Provincial counterparts, and others that have been deemed worthy of a "seat at the table". I'd like to discuss this last point with you.
I have to wonder if your predecessor, C. Qualtrough, has made you aware of how deeply disappointed and angry the online PWD community is with her actions. Are you aware that she / her staff has blocked hundreds (if not more) Canadian PWD from viewing her Twitter page because we've responded to her near-absent discussion of our issues? While I cannot guarantee that all these interactions were "civil", I can guarantee that less than 5% of them engaged in what would be considered abusive behaviour. Your predecessor / her staff made the choice to disregard the input of many PWD Canadians because we didn't agree with her actions. For three years now, we have had to rely on those that haven't been blocked by her to provide us with updates, hope for secondary mention from her Parliamentary Secretary, or find relevant information through other means. Our PWD community was not made aware of any request for public input during the HUMA committee meetings for Bill C-22; we found out about the Senate SOCI meetings through the secondary sources I referenced above. Further, at no time during the SOCI hearings did your predecessor even bother to address how things were proceeding. I hope you can understand the level of frustration and anger that Canadian PWD are feeling.
We feel demoralized. We feel like we've been gut-punched. We feel ignored, unheard, and cast aside. As a result, we are slow to trust.
Sit with that please. Absorb that, process that, and imagine what that feels like. I suspect as a racialized woman in Canada you can readily empathize.
This is the recent history of the PWD community that you now speak for as our Minister. We look to you to represent us. As such, it is imperative that you communicate openly with us. There are those in the community that fear we will be offered "more of the same", given your sparse activity on Twitter specifically directed at PWD. I must admit that I share that fear. But, as I stated on a recent Twitter post, I will not burden you with the emotional baggage ascribed to your predecessor. My purpose is not to trauma-dump; I am simply making you aware of the landscape you have entered.
With that in mind, I invite you to consider the following suggestions in your future communications with the PWD community:
ALWAYS include #PWD, #Disability or related tags in your social media posts. Many in our community use digital aids for online access; these tags allow them to filter content that they are (dis)interested in. Further, please use the format #UpperCase when using more than one word in a tag; again, this makes online life easier for members in our community.
You missed an opportunity to establish a connection with the Canadian PWD community (and introduce yourself) by not acknowledging the ending of Disability Awareness Month on July 31st. It is not too late to address our community in some short posts—perhaps highlighting how you'd enjoy learning from us as you did Seniors when you headed that file.
We would ask that you provide our community with at least weekly updates on progress specific to us; knowing that the CDB is at least 18 months away gives us all reasons to worry about its progress. Even a short series of posts highlighting any changes, those stakeholders you've met with, or acknowledging that we are in your care would be greatly appreciated.
Please do not block us on social media. You have, of course, the absolute Right to deny access to your public posts to anyone that is being repeatedly abusive—as protected in the CCRF. However, those of us in the PWD community are now fearful of disagreeing with those in Power given past outcomes.
Engage with us, to the degree that your time allows. Ask us questions, respond to our questions, show us that we matter. The PWD community has more combined wisdom, insight, and lived experience than all the NGOs and other stakeholders combined. Use the gifts that we can offer you.
Lastly, I offer you a suggestion that would go extremely far in establishing a new level of trust with the PWD community. I ask that you consider hiring a member(s) of the online PWD community to act as ambassadors for your department; we could easily be hired as contract employees. Who better to handle your communication with the online community than someone from within that community? I am certain that there are many PWD that would welcome such an opportunity. Doing so would provide visible proof that you are concerned about our issues, provide the community with someone that they already know / trust, and also show the public at large that given the correct tools, opportunities, and guidelines we are just as capable as any abled Canadian. We have spent decades being made to feel useless, burdensome, and cast aside. Canada must be shown that PWD are worthy of more than "Ramps and Braille" recognition of our contributions.
You have an opportunity to dramatically change how Canadian PWD are able to thrive in the future. I ask that you give that responsibility the weight, respect, and room to breathe that it requires.
In closing, I offer you a quote from an author that has never failed to gift me with wisdom:
"The mystery of life isn't a problem to solve, but a reality to experience" — Frank Herbert
Sincerely,
