Carol Brown (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Disability and Carers) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On 3 December each year, we come together as a community to mark International Day of People with Disability. It is a day that has been celebrated and commemorated throughout Australia ever since the day was first established by the United Nations in 1992. The theme for this year's celebration is: empowering persons with disabilities and ensuring inclusiveness and equality. Events commemorating today have been held throughout Australia. In fact, over 143 different community events were scheduled for today alone. Events are literally being held everywhere, from Tiwi in the Top End down to my home state of Tasmania, where events were planned in Hobart, Devonport and Burnie, to name but a few. Every corner of every state had an occasion planned to commemorate and celebrate Australians with disability, not just today but in the preceding few days as well. However, as a community, we need to put additional effort and resources into inclusion each and every day, because IDPWD was intended to be about:

… the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities in all spheres of society and development, and to increase awareness of the situation of persons with disabilities in every aspect of political, social, economic and cultural life.

The contributions people with disability can and do make to Australia is worthy of so much more than a series of annual awards. An inclusive community is one that actively seeks respect for all of its citizens, values diversity, ensures equitable access to resources and opportunity and engages its citizens in decision-making processes that impact on their lives.

An inclusive community also encourages people with disability to find their voice. Michael Sullivan, from the Down Syndrome Advisory Network, says the best way to start to find your voice is with your peers:

Be part of a group of people who are also finding their voice. This is where you can learn what you are passionate about and how to use your voice.

Michael suggests that we use the term 'use your voice' because 'no-one can give people with intellectual disability a voice.' Michael goes on to say:

You have a voice. Deep down we all have something to say. It is about our voices and making sure people listen when we use our voice.

Claire, who also has Down syndrome, says in her view what is important in life is pretty simple: 'Life is about a loving family and friends, keeping healthy, having a social life and having a job.'

As colleagues are probably aware, the national awards process was changed this year. This year the National Awards for Disability Leadership were held for the first time. The new awards were broadcast worldwide through a dedicated YouTube channel earlier today, although the broadcast was not without some technical challenges.

I was fortunate enough to attend the host event in Melbourne. The new format and awards were jointly organised by the Disability Leadership Institute, Disabled People's Organisations Australia and the Australian Federation of Disability Organisations. People with disability from throughout Australia were recognised today by their peers for their leadership and achievements. They also came together to celebrate the expertise and talent possessed by people with disability throughout our nation.

This year's awards covered seven categories: the arts, change making, rights activism, innovation, social impact, inclusion and, perhaps most importantly, the Lesley Hall Award for Lifetime Achievement. The continuation of the recognition of Lesley Hall through the lifetime achievement award is important. Lesley was a tireless advocate for disability rights and inclusion. Lesley's work was limited to advocacy for people with disability but also extended to issues affecting low income and Indigenous Australians. Of course, she also worked tirelessly for the establishment of the NDIS.

Heartfelt congratulations go to Jessica Walton, Sexual Lives and Respectful Relationships LGBTIQ project, Anthony Mulholland, Client Voice Project, Sarah Houbolt and Rosemary Kayess, the inaugural winners of the National Awards for Disability Leadership, and to Janice Slattery, this year's recipient of the Lesley Hall award. I also want to place on record my congratulations to those hardworking advocates and activists who sponsored, supported and organised today's awards presentation.

Later on this week, on 6 December, it will be four years since the remarkable Stella Young passed way. In addition to all the wonderful courageous, witty and powerful works Stella shared with all of us, she was also a regular emcee at the ACT inclusion awards, which I believe really do stand out as one of the best ways IDPWD is celebrated in Australia. ABC Life, with the blessing and permission of Stella's family, will be republishing a selection of her works. I encourage you all to go online and have a look. If you haven't read it already, Stella's letter to her younger self will be an eye-opening experience. Her piece on what she termed 'inspirational porn' has a powerful impact on everyone who reads it.

Eliza Hull in her tribute to Stella on ABC Life says, thanks to Stella, she is now proud to call herself a disabled woman. Stella continues to have a huge influence on the way Eliza and many other people with disabilities see themselves. To quote Stella, 'Disability isn't a bad thing, and it doesn't make you exceptional.' Eliza deserves recognition in her own right. Her own series, We've Got This: Parenting with a Disability, is refreshing, confronting and tells a series of stories that need to be told.

The University of Sydney Disabilities Collective has put together a reading list for this IDPWD. All recommended works are written by people with disability, with a focus on encouraging involvement in the fight for equality and justice for people with disability and the history of disability and disability policy.

In conclusion, today we mark the International Day of People with Disability. Although the IDPWD will always be important, what is even more important is the diversity within our community. Diversity makes our nation stronger and better, and disability is a vital part of that diversity.