The 10th Episode of “Disability Rights and Wrongs — The David Lepodcast” Came Out Today, Addressing One of the Most Consequential Disability Advocacy Wins in Decades

Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance Update

United for a Barrier-Free Ontario for All People with Disabilities

Website: www.aodaalliance.org

Email: aodafeedback@gmail.com

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The 10^th Episode of “Disability Rights and Wrongs — The David Lepodcast” Came Out Today, Addressing  One of the Most Consequential Disability Advocacy Wins in Decades

 

March 13, 2026

 

SUMMARY

 

Today, the 10^th episode of the AODA Alliance podcast “Disability Rights and Wrongs — The David Lepodcast” has been released, and is available wherever you get your podcasts. It is entitled: “The Milestone Fight for Including Disability Rights in Canada’s Charter of Rights – With Yvonne Peters – Pt 1.”

 

In this episode, host AODA Alliance Chair David Lepofsky interviews lawyer and lifelong human rights advocate Yvonne Peters on the successful campaign back in 1980 and 1981 to get equality for people with disabilities added to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Both Yvonne Peters and David Lepofsky actively campaigned for the disability amendment when they were much younger and knew very little about how to do this advocacy.

 

Yvonne Peters and David Lepofsky did not know each other as these events unfolded. They compare notes on what each of them tried, and discuss what lessons we all can learn today from their experience. This episode includes the first part of their discussion. Episode 11, which comes out in three weeks, will give you a chance to hear the second part of their exchange.

 

Far too few people know about the events discussed in these episodes. Yet they underpin most if not all disability advocacy that has gone on in Canada since then.

 

You can subscribe to the podcast for free, using links below, or just click this link to play the episode.

 

 

How to Learn More About This Topic

 

David Lepofsky has written a memoir about these events, entitled “Swimming Up Niagara Falls! The Battle to Get Disability Rights Added to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.” It is available online for free download from the AODA Alliance Website’s publications page, in pdf, MS Word, e-pub formats and as a free audio book. It is also available for purchase as a hard copy book from Amazon or as a Kindle e-book from Kindle.

 

Check out the AODA Alliances online video series about the birth of Canada’s national accessibility legislation, the Accessible Canada Act. That series includes videos about the 1980-81 battle for the disability amendment to the Charter of Rights.

 

 

 

More about Our Podcast

 

Our growing series of podcasts transport you to the front lines of disability rights advocacy, boldly going where we want more people to go! If you are just starting, we invite you to listen to them all, in whatever order you wish.

 

We explore advocacy incidents and battles of all sorts. Some were waged by individuals. Others are advanced by groups and organizations. We find action tips on how to be an effective advocate, whether you are advocating on a disability issue or any social justice issue.

 

Enjoy these stories whether or not you ever thought you’d have to advocate on a disability issue. At some point in everyone’s life, they will have to do this. Everyone is bound to eventually get a disability as they age, if not sooner.

 

Episodes are designed to be informative for listeners anywhere in the world, and not just in Canada where the podcast is based. We have listeners in countries all around the world.

 

New episodes drop every three Fridays. Earlier episodes include:

• “The 12 Year Fight for Automated Stop Announcements on the TTC” about Lepofsky’s long struggle to make transit in Toronto accessible for blind riders” with host David Lepofsky.
• “Beyond Building Codes: Designing Spaces for Everyone”” with guest built environment accessible design expert Thea Kurdi
• “Smart Strategies, Real Change: Lessons from a Landmark Autism Campaign Part 1” covering how targeted advocacy resulted in policy change for autism therapies.” With guest autism advocate Bruce McIntosh.
• “Turning Barriers into Headlines: Practical Tips from a Veteran News Reporter” with former journalist Michelle McQuigge.
• “How to get a Politician’s Attention” Part 1 and Part 2 with the Honourable Kathleen Wynne, former Ontario Premier.
• Airline Accessibility: How Maayan Ziv Turned a Mangled Wheelchair Into Real Change
• “Smart Strategies, Real Change: Lessons from a Landmark Autism Campaign Part 2” covering how targeted advocacy resulted in policy change for autism therapies with guest autism advocate Bruce McIntosh.
• “Why Must a Doctor with Disabilities Combat Accessibility Barriers in the Health Care System?” with physician Dr. Lisa Freeman.

 

 

Find our podcast on major podcast platforms:

 

Apple music: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/disability-rights-and-wrongs-the-david-lepodcast/id1838700161

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5WFLiSy99OJPMZ1ZSrkWCg

 

 

Ask your smart phone, Alexa, or Google Nest: “Play podcast ‘Disability Rights and Wrongs!’”

 

You can also listen to episodes on your computer. Just use the links we provided, or simply Google “Disability Rights and Wrongs — The David Lepodcast” and take it from there.

 

To read a transcript of each podcast, Apple Music can generate transcripts. Spotify might do that as well. For iPhone users, you might prefer to use the live captioning feature that comes with your phone.

 

How You Can Help

• Help us get more listeners! Tell friends to give it a listen!
• Urge K-12 students to listen to this podcast. There are tons of school projects they could invent using issues that the podcast covers.