A Statement From IRIS on the Attack in London
At IRIS – Institute for Research and Development on Inclusion and Society (IRIS) words cannot accurately express the level of shock, pain and sadness that we are feeling related to the terrorist attack on a Muslim family living in London, Ontario. How can it be that a family goes on a stroll on a beautiful … Continued
National AccessAbility Week 2021
IRIS joins the disability community in Canada in recognizing National AccessAbility Week in Canada, and call on governments across Canada and the Canadian public to acknowledge the immense contributions of people with disabilities to all facets of life in Canada – economic, political, social, intellectual and cultural. IRIS is committed to creating spaces where people … Continued
Statement on The Discovery of a Mass Gravesite in Kamloops
IRIS joins other Canadians and Indigenous communities in acknowledging the horrific and unimaginable loss that has come to light with the unmarked buried remains of 215 children found at the site of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia. While shocking and painful, it is not surprising. Canada’s history and ongoing legacy of … Continued
IRIS supports Wowen’s Shelters Canada in their campaign to end violence against women and gender-based violence in Canada
IRIS is a proud partner of Women’s Shelters Canada / Hébergement femmes Canada in their campaign to end violence against women and gender-based violence in Canada. Doris Rajan, IRIS’ Director of Social Development was invited to be actively engaged in the work that Women’s Shelters Canada is doing linked to advancing Canada’s National Action Plan … Continued
Justice Denied: People with Disabilities Face Multiple Barriers in Accessing Justice
IRIS recently completed a community-driven access to justice initiative (https://irisinstitute.ca/resource/access-to-justice-for-indigenous-and-racialized-victims-and-survivors-of-crime-with-intellectual-psychosocial-and-cognitive-disabilities/) and hosted an online forum “Access to Justice for Marginalized People with Disabilities” (https://irisinstitute.ca/2020/12/11/panel-presentation-videos-access-to-justice-for-indigenous-racialized-and-2slgbtq-people-with-disabilities/). The Justice Denied infosheet presents the findings of IRIS research on access to justice for people with disabilities and policy options for safer and more inclusive communities.
Panel Presentation Videos: Access to Justice for Indigenous, Racialized and 2SLGBTQ+ people with disabilities
On November 27, 2020, IRIS and Warriors Against Violence Society hosted an event for Victims & Survivors of Crime Week entitled: Access to Justice for Indigenous, Racialized and 2SLGBTQ+ people with disabilities. There were over 150 participants in attendance. You can watch each of the panel presentations below. Doris Rajan, Director of Social Development at IRIS introduced the session with a … Continued
Victims & Survivors of Crime Week: A Virtual Panel Discussion and Community Conversation
ACCESS TO JUSTICE FOR INDIGENOUS, RACIALIZED & 2SLGBTQ+ PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES: BARRIERS & PROMISING PRACTICE Friday November 27, 2020 1-2:30pm ET This online session will share information on the issues of access to justice for Indigenous, racialized and 2SLGBTQ+ peoples with disabilities – specifically those living with mental health and addictions, cognitive disabilities and intellectual … Continued
IRIS releases a new Policy Primer on the federal government’s plan to introduce the ‘Canadian Disability Benefit’
IRIS is excited to launch a new policy primer for disability communities and the general public about the federal government’s plan to introduce a national disability income benefit. In her blog post (below), author Sherri Torjman introduces the primer, and points to some of the reasons why we need to start conversations in our communities today about this major addition to federal income security programs. As Torjman says in the primer “Community voices must … Continued
New Survey: measuring progress on the transition from sheltered work to inclusive employment
IRIS is pleased to be working with People First of Canada and Chronicle Analytics to launch an important and timely survey. The survey’s aim is to gain insights about the transition from sheltered work to inclusive employment in communities across Canada. Background to this Survey: People with a developmental disability have among the lowest employment rates of any population group in Canada – only 30% of working-age adults … Continued
Where to now? Re-imagining community and inclusion for a post-pandemic world
How might the community living sector might build on the radical changes implemented to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic – for example, closing day programs, looking for individualized options, etc. – to advance the inclusion agenda? Might this be an opportunity to achieve the kinds of ‘transformation’ in supports and services so often imagined, but … Continued
