In fact, the most significant common factor uniting persons with disabilities is not their individual disabilities, but rather, their common experience of prejudice, discrimination and poverty. Today, much has changed in public attitudes, and in the legal and constitutional arenas, for persons with disabilities. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees legal equality. Provincial human rights legislation exists to prevent landlords and employers from openly and intentionally discriminating against such persons. Without a doubt, disability is an issue of personal relevance to everyone, particularly because the probability of acquiring a disability increases with age.
Disability respects no boundaries.
It encompasses all people regardless of gender, race, social class, age and nationality. It concerns and impacts on all members of a community and on Canadian society in general. At the same time, the impact of disability weighs more heavily on some groups than others. It is a greater disadvantage to be a female with a disability than to be a male with a disability in Canada. Similarly, Aboriginal people with disabilities in Canada face a compounded disadvantage.