Lack of Support - Canadian Families and Disability PDF

LACK OF SUPPORT – CANADIAN FAMILIES AND DISABILITY Chapter 13 by Michelle Owen Lack of Support ◦ What is the impact of disability on families ◦ What are the ‘costs’ to all of society, the benefits ◦ What are the models of disability that Sociology studies of disability use and are they...

LACK OF SUPPORT – CANADIAN FAMILIES AND DISABILITY Chapter 13 by Michelle Owen Lack of Support ◦ What is the impact of disability on families ◦ What are the ‘costs’ to all of society, the benefits ◦ What are the models of disability that Sociology studies of disability use and are they helpful to broadening our understanding of families and disabilities ◦ What role does gender (class, racialization, sexual orientation) play in the lives of disabled people ◦ What are the links between poverty and disability ◦ What are the reasons for disability and the increased risk of violence and abuse ◦ Argument: disabled Canadians and their families are marginalized in society ◦ Are disabled people already marginalized before becoming disabled? ◦ What are the intersecting factors? Lack of Support ◦ How many? ◦ Canadian Survey on Disability (CSD) reports that 27% (8 million) of the population, 15 and older had one or more disabilities that limited their lives in 2022. This is up from 22% (6.2 million) in 2017. ◦ Why the increase? ◦ Main reasons for disability: mental health, chronic diseases and musculoskeletal disorders ◦ How accurate are these numbers? Can politicians and service providers rely on these numbers to fund services? Why or why not? ◦ The disability rate among seniors is much higher than among children—43.4% of seniors aged 65 and over compared to 3.7% of children aged 14 and under have a disability. Every person with a disability has a unique experience. ◦ Men and women experience disability differently – intersectionality lens to look at other interlocking stances of oppression ◦ Are you temporarily able-bodied? Lack of Support ◦ How come we don’t have an accurate definition of disability? ◦ Canadian gov’t does not have 1 definition but prohibits discrimination on the basis of physical and/or mental disabilities and neuro-divergence ◦ What is disability? A disability is any condition of the body or mind (impairment) that makes it more difficult for the person with the condition to do certain activities (activity limitation) and interact with the world around them (participation restrictions). Disability is a disadvantage or restriction caused by a society that excludes or ignores people with impairments ◦ The Social Model of Disability: ◦ Outdated bio-medical or individual model- disability firmly centered in bodies or personal tragedies. Disability as an abnormality ◦ Social model = the relation ship between a person with impairment and their environment including attitudes, beliefs, climate, architecture ◦ Focus is on social structures and external obstacles as the disabling factors, these barriers are systematic ◦ Materialist and radical types = short-term reforms + sticking plaster solution vs capitalism is the enemy ◦ Persons with disabilities or disabled persons to show that they have many identities plus a disability Lack of Support ◦ Children and Youth with Disabilities: ◦ Demographics – most common types of disabilities ◦ Why are girls diagnosed with a disability later than boys? ◦ What is the impact of children with disabilities on families? ◦ Family income, employment, and poverty – why does having a child with a disability force families to rethink the way they organize work and family life? ◦ What is the hidden, gender-based oppression? ◦ Does disability lead to poverty or does poverty lead to disability? ◦ Is $2,886 a year as a Child Disability Benefit helpful to families with a disabled child? Why or why not? ◦ Why can’t some parents with a disabled child afford to work? ◦ The lack of supports for disabled children ◦ What do families need help the most with-housework, family responsibilities or personal activities? ◦ What is the #1 reason preventing parents of disable school-aged children from getting the assistance they require? ◦ What are some of the other barriers families face in getting supports? Lack of Support ◦ Parental caregiving responsibilities – why are there more caregivers of persons with disabilities than there are disable persons? ◦ The intricate web of people linked to persons with disabilities living independently? – A Sister’s Story ◦ Home and respite care – why do caregivers need respite? ◦ Parents with Disabilities: ◦ Why are working-age adults with disabilities not doing as well at maintaining families as their counterparts without disabilities? ◦ What are the structural barriers, social stigma and moral regulations surrounding disabled parents that impede their ability to parent? ◦ Why are women especially targeted by medical and moral control? ◦ What are some of the mothering challenges faced by women? ◦ How does familialism play a role in disabled mothers’ abilities to parent Lack of Support ◦ Why do some people think a woman in a wheelchair cannot look after her children? ◦ Could what happened to Ms. Reid happen to any parent with a disability? ◦ Why do some parents who are disabled rely on informal caregiving for help? ◦ Would generational co-residence be a solution to helping disabled parents cope with their family responsibilities and duties? ◦ What needs to be done to get disabled persons into higher education and in the workplace? ◦ Is daycare for disabled children a solution, hiring out for domestic labor a good solution for parents with disabilities? ◦ Violence: ◦ Why are rates of violence against disabled people among the highest for any group in Canada? ◦ Vulnerability is a child welfare issue ◦ What role do negative social attitudes to disabled children play in the violence? ◦ Tracey Latimer’s story is an example of..? ◦ Women with disabilities is an intersectional issue, why? ◦ Why so many barriers to getting help? Lack of Support ◦ Conclusion: ◦ What are the take-aways from this chapter on families and disabilities? ◦ Lack of support from society ◦ Underfunding and inconsistency across jurisdictions in terms of compassion, understanding, services and costs ◦ The links between disabilities, poverty and family arrangements ◦ Social perceptions about families and disabilities – how can they be changed? ◦ What solutions are needed to support families coping with disabilities, both short and long term?