Autistic man shackled, naked during ‘distressing’ nine months at Victorian hospital
A young man with autism was shackled for up to 24 hours a day during a nine-month ordeal at a Victorian hospital.
News and blogs
Quiet signs of success
A cafe in Melbourne run by deaf staff is helping to break down communication barriers and ready students for the hearing world.
Ideas for the next generation of disability activists
Meritocracy is a belief that seems to me to still be alive and well in the senior management of disability support. It also seems to drive many aspects of public policy, particularly when appeals are made to “equal opportunity”.
The story behind the “not all disabilities are visible” sign
Tonya Glennester, was visiting the supermarket with her five-year-old daughter, Evalynn. Evalynn has ADHD and autism and can become distressed in noisy or crowded places. Glennester, who also sufferers from health issues took Evalynn into the disabled toilets to give her some space and privacy.
Competition as a means to an end: supply chains and human services
Other things being equal, what’s there not to like about introducing more choice and competition in areas in which governments fund and/or deliver human services? That’s the starting point of the PC’s recently commenced inquiry into competition and choice in human services.
Human rights complaints after mentally ill kids expelled
Desperate parents are turning to the human rights watchdog to seek justice for children removed from schools for mental health conditions. Nearly 20 complaints of children being expelled, suspended or removed from classes for a psychiatric or psychological disability have been made to the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission in the past three … Continued
Research Looks at People With Disability Being Entrepreneurs
A new research project will look at how people with disability are taking control and creating their own jobs by becoming entrepreneurs, despite facing considerable economic and social exclusion in Australia. The study, involving researchers from UTS Business School and a number of partners in the disability services sector, has secured a $235,000 Linkage Grant … Continued
Census Fail Makes Disabled Australians Grin A Bit
Closing date: August 10, 2016
Like other disabled Australians, the #censusfail furore is making me grin. Over the past month, the nation has been immersed in the type of outrage only afforded to the privileged. Billboards encourage passersby to tell the government that they are atheist if they no longer subscribe to a religious belief. Impassioned expressions of outrage about … Continued
Govt to review NDIS IT system
Minister for Social Services and Disability Services Christian Porter has announced a review of the National Disability Insurance Scheme’s IT system after claims the system has been a “debacle”.
Calling Out Ableism in the Media: Stop Being So Offensive To Disabled People
This weekend’s Good Weekend featured the story “Parenting an intellectually disabled child: life forever on duty” about Alex Browne a 22-year-old man with an intellectual disability. It showed that not much has changed when it comes to improving media representation of people with disabilities in this country. But listen up journos, it’s not okay to … Continued
Change Agents: Rhonda Galbally and Bruce Bonyhady on the birth of the NDIS
The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is the biggest social reform in Australia this century. By 2022 it will help half a million people access comprehensive disability support at a cost of around A$25 billion. On this program, two of the NDIS’ founders explain how they developed something so radical and comprehensive and then won … Continued
Former carer says she was directed to tie up disabled woman
A disability advocacy group believes the use of restraints against disabled people is still a “daily occurrence” as a former support worker in Canberra came forward to share her horror at being told to tie up a severely intellectually disabled woman with ropes for 30 minutes at a time.
When the NDIS becomes a lifeline
I support the right to assisted dying, but I also worry that people will look at me with my crooked and paralysed body and make that decision for me. The support provided by the NDIS ensures people like me also have the right to live, writes George Taleporos.
20 years jail for bashing ‘defenseless’ intellectually disabled, homeless man to death
A callous killer who laughed after mugging and beating an intellectually disabled, homeless man to death in an unprovoked attack has been jailed for 20 years.
Deaf Community to lodge a formal complaint against the AFL over interpreter for grand final national anthem
A formal complaint against the AFL will be lodged by representatives of the Deaf community to the Human Rights Commission today.