AODA Alliance
Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance Update
United for a Barrier-Free Ontario for All People with Disabilities
www.aodaalliance.org aodafeedback@gmail.com Twitter: @aodaalliance YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/aodaalliance
New Video Series Retells the History of Ontario’s Grass Roots Campaign for Strong Disability Accessibility Legislation Since 1995
October 27, 2023
SUMMARY
Here is a great new way to learn all about the history of Ontario’s non-partisan grass roots campaign to win the enactment and effective enforcement of provincial disability accessibility legislation. This campaign began in 1994. It continues tenaciously almost three decades later. From 1994 to 2005, the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee led the non-partisan campaign to win the enactment of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2005. Since 2005, its successor, Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance, has led the effort to get the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act effectively implemented and enforced.
You can learn about this history through three categories of videos included in this series:
- A number of recorded lectures by David Lepofsky, the Chair of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance, and previously the Co-Chair and then Chair from 1994 to 2005 of its predecessor coalition, the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee.
- Videos of deputations to the Ontario Legislature by the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee between 1995 and 2005.
- Videos of news conferences and related events held by the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee.
These videos are all public. They can be used by the media, by school and post-secondary course instructors and teachers, and by anyone else interested in these issues. We hope that this video series will interest anyone concerned with disability rights, human rights, social justice and activism, community organizing, public law, constitutional law, anti-discrimination law and policy, history, or political science. We welcome your feedback on these videos. Send your feedback to aodafeedback@gmail.com
This update first gives a short listing of the videos in this series. After that, each video is described, with helpful links to additional information and background relative to each video.
Check out the many other videos that the AODA Alliance has posted by visiting the AODA Alliance website videos page. Flip through the equal education video series that the AODA Alliance earlier posted which addresses the grass roots campaign to make Ontario’s education system become barrier-free for students with disabilities. Sign up to follow the AODA Alliance YouTube channel.
We make this new video series public to honour and mark the 25th anniversary of the Ontario Legislature’s unanimous passage of a resolution calling for enactment of an Ontario accessibility law. You can read more about that anniversary and its significance by taking a look at the October 26, 2023 AODA Alliance Update.
Quick Guide
Lectures
- From 2005 to 2014, What Progress in Ontario Towards Full Accessibility for People with Disabilities?
Parliamentary Deputations
News Conferences
Detailed Guide
Lectures
Video 1) Title: History of the 1994-2005 Grassroots Campaign to Win the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act
Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VA1VSPgbzMg&list=PLDGgB77j2ZYrl_rtpe32nSjOXfrDAGvnn&index=3
Description: In this captioned January 14, 2014 lecture to York University’s Introduction to the Critical Disabilities Studies course (taught by Prof. Geoffrey Reaume), David Lepofsky describes a 10-year Ontario grassroots community advocacy campaign from 1994 to 2005 that led to the Ontarians with Disabilities Act and Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, to address accessibility for people with disabilities. He describes the non-partisan Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee’s goals, strategies, and many uphill challenges.
Related resources
- For an exhaustive resource on the advocacy efforts of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee from 1994 to 2005, that led to the enactment of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2001 and later the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2005, visit the ODA Committee’s website. Even though the ODA Committee has wound up, and been succeeded by the AODA Alliance, we have preserved the ODA Committee’s website online as a legacy, and as a public record of the long and arduous fight to win those new laws.
Video 2) Title: Practical Strategies for Community Organizing and Community Advocacy- Lessons from Ontario’s Grassroots Disability Accessibility Campaign
Link to video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zR6qKBC_j58&list=PLDGgB77j2ZYrl_rtpe32nSjOXfrDAGvnn&feature=share&index=8
Description: In this captioned January 31, 2014 lecture in Osgoode Hall Law Schools Law and Discrimination Intensive course taught by Prof. Bruce Ryder, David Lepofsky describes practical tips for effective community organizing and advocacy, drawn from the experience of Ontario’s grassroots campaign from 1994 to the present to make Ontario accessible for persons with disabilities.
Video 3) Title: AODA 101 – Introduction to the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act
Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrPLb3N1DBQ
Description: Osgoode Hall Law Visiting Professor David Lepofsky’s introductory overview of what the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act is, why it was enacted, and how it works. Useful for those who know little or nothing about it and need to learn fast.
Related resources:
- The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act
- Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation
- AODA Alliance’s website
Video 4) Title: The Next Steps in Early 2014 in the Grassroots Campaign to Make Ontario Disability-Accessible – What Goals? What Strategies?
Link to video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6ckGAOu1Ho&list=PLDGgB77j2ZYrl_rtpe32nSjOXfrDAGvnn&feature=share&index=11
Description: In this captioned February 4, 2014 York University public forum on disability accessibility, David Lepofsky describes the immediate Ontario Government action needed to get Ontario back on schedule for full accessibility by 2025. He details strategies for grassroots action.
Related resources
- To read the AODA Alliance’s January 26, 2014 Action Kit for raising disability accessibility issues in the two Ontario February 13, 2014 by-elections, visit this link.
- To read the 9 priorities for immediate accessibility action that the AODA Alliance made public on December 3, 2013, visit this link.
Video 5) Title: How to Negotiate for a Community Not an Individual – tips from Experience in Ontario Disability Accessibility Advocacy
Link to video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01A0ZgvhI8M&list=PLDGgB77j2ZYrl_rtpe32nSjOXfrDAGvnn&feature=share&index=9
Description: In this captioned January 21, 2014 lecture to Osgoode Hall Law School’s Negotiations seminar taught by Prof. Martha Simmons, David Lepofsky reviews some of the unique challenges and strategies facing a grassroots community organization when it is negotiating with a government over new laws to protect the rights of persons with disabilities. How does it differ from efforts at negotiating on behalf of an individual?
Video 6) Title: Community Organizing and Social Justice Advocacy – An Integral part of Ethical Lawyering
Link to video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUqdaqgbu0s&feature=share&list=PLDGgB77j2ZYrl_rtpe32nSjOXfrDAGvnn&index=12
Description: David Lepofsky delivers this captioned opening lecture on August 29, 2013 to Osgoode Hall Law School’s first year students, its Class of 2016. On their very first day at law school, he highlights the important ways they can include community organizing and social justice advocacy in their careers, using the example of disability accessibility advocacy in Ontario.
Video 7) Title: Designing the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act from 2003 to 2005 – What Regulatory Powers Should a Strong Disability Accessibility Law Include?
Link to video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_83CX9ffWvw&feature=share&list=PLDGgB77j2ZYrl_rtpe32nSjOXfrDAGvnn&index=3
Description: In this January 15, 2014 lecture to Osgoode Hall Law School’s Advanced Regulatory Policy seminar (taught by Dean Lorne Sossin), David Lepofsky describes what Ontarians with disabilities wanted the Ontario Government to include in the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2005, policy analysis that led to this platform, what they won in 2005, and reforms they sought since 2005. This captioned video focuses on the challenge of deciding what specific ingredients to include in a new disability accessibility law to make it strong and effective.
Related resources:
- To read the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee’s June 28, 2004 Discussion Paper, referred to in this lecture, entitled “Putting Teeth Into The Ontarians With Disabilities Act: A Discussion Paper On Options For Creating An Effective Compliance / Enforcement Process For The ODA”, visit this link.
Video 8) Title: From 2005 to 2014, What Progress in Ontario Towards Full Accessibility for People with Disabilities?
Link to video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNCCCIfaXCA&list=PLDGgB77j2ZYrl_rtpe32nSjOXfrDAGvnn&feature=share&index=4
Description: In this captioned February 3, 2014 open lecture to students at the Osgoode Hall Law School, David Lepofsky critically examines Ontario’s progress towards becoming fully accessible to persons with disabilities, since the enactment of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2005. How much progress have we made? Has Ontario’s disability accessibility law lived up to its expectations? Where has it fallen short?
Video 9) Title: Dec 5 2001 ODA Committee Addresses Standing Committee re Bill 125 Ontarians with Disabilities Act
Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7KtygCsS7E
Description: On December 5, 2001, David Lepofsky, Chair of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee made a presentation to the Ontario Legislature Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs urging amendments to Bill 125, the Mike Harris Conservative Government’s proposed Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2001.
Related resources:
- The ODA Committee’s November 29, 2001 brief on Bill 125 to the Ontario Legislature’s Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act
Video 10) Title: Feb 1 2005 ODA Committee at Legislature: Bill 118 Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act
Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iA4pHAJK9U
Description: On February 1, 2005, Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee Chair David Lepofsky addressed the Ontario Legislature’s Standing Committee on Social Policy to propose amendments to Bill 118, the McGuinty Liberal Government’s proposed Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2005.
Related resources:
- The ODA Committee’s January 26, 2005 brief to the Ontario Legislature’s Standing Committee on Social Policy on Bill 118, the proposed Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333
Video 11) Title: May 16, 1996 Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee Queen’s Park News Conference
Link to video: https://youtu.be/cwmMCpAq4Zo
Description: In this captioned video, the ODA Committee held this May 16, 1996 news conference at the Ontario Legislature, Queen’s Park, moderated by its co-chair David Lepofsky, to press the Mike Harris Government to enact the promised Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
Related resources
- Text of the May 16, 1996 resolution passed by the Ontario Legislature on the Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333
Video 12) Title: May 15, 1997 Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee Queen’s Park News Conference
Link to video: https://youtu.be/hbnWMxYUm7s
Description: In this captioned video, the ODA Committee held this May 15, 1997 news conference at the Ontario Legislature, Queen’s Park, moderated by its co-chair David Lepofsky, to press the Mike Harris Government to enact the promised Ontarians with Disabilities Act. @aodaalliance
Related resources:
- The May 1, 1997 letter from the ODA Committee to Chris Stockwell, Speaker of the Ontario Legislature.
- The May 1, 1997 letter from the ODA Committee to the three Ontario party leaders.
- The May 15, 1997 ODA Committee news release.
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333
Video 13) Title: April 22, 1998 Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee Queen’s Park News Conference
Link to video: https://youtu.be/CigfwuexyGQ
Description: In this captioned video, the ODA Committee held this April 22, 1998 news conference at the Ontario Legislature, Queen’s Park, moderated by its co-chair David Lepofsky, to present to all Ontario political parties its comprehensive blueprint for the promised Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
Related resources:
- The ODA Committee’s Blueprint for a Strong and Effective Ontarians with Disabilities Act submitted on April 22, 1998 to the Ontario Legislature.
- The ODA Committee’s April 22, 1998 news release.
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333
Video 14) Title: August 4, 1998 Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee Queen’s Park News Conference
Link to video: https://youtu.be/qMDpVif66xk
Description: In this captioned video, the August 4, 1998 Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee news conference was held at Queen’s Park, the Ontario Legislature. It was moderated by co-chair David Lepofsky. The ODA Committee unveiled its plans for the Ontario Government’s public consultations on the promised Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
Related resources:
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333.
Video 15) Title: October 29, 1998 Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee Queen’s Park News
Link to video: https://youtu.be/_n0ALyNdp1g
Description: In this captioned video, the October 29, 1998 Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee news conference was held at Queen’s Park, the Ontario Legislature. It was moderated by co-chair David Lepofsky. The ODA Committee addressed the fact that it had just gotten the Legislature to unanimously pass a resolution calling for the promised Ontarians with Disabilities Act to incorporate eleven principles to make it strong and effective.
Related resources:
- Text of the October 29, 1998 resolution on the Ontarians with Disabilities Act that the Ontario Legislature unanimously passed at the request of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee.
- The October 29, 1998 ODA Committee event in front of the North Bay constituency office of Premier Mike Harris.
- Hansard transcript of the debate and vote in the Ontario Legislature on October 29, 1998 on a resolution regarding the promised Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333.
Video 16) Title: November 24, 1998 Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee Queen’s Park News Conference
Link to video: https://youtu.be/hyUN4qWt9Cw
Description: In this captioned video, the ODA Committee held this November 24, 1998 news conference at the Ontario Legislature, Queen’s Park, moderated by its co-chair David Lepofsky. It addressed the 3-page Ontarians with Disabilities Act which the Mike Harris Conservative Government had introduced into the Legislature the previous day. That widely condemned bill died on the order paper days later.
Related resources:
- The November 24, 1998 ODA Committee news release.
- The ODA Committee’s November 24, 1998 letter to Ontario Premier Mike Harris.
- The Hansard transcript of statements in the Ontario Legislature on November 24, 1998 about the proposed Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
- The November 25, 1998 ODA Committee Action Kit.
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333
Video 17) Title: April 14, 1999 Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee Queen’s Park News Conference
Link to video: https://youtu.be/V_0oo5fWXLU
Description: The ODA Committee held this April 14, 1999 news conference at the Ontario Legislature, Queen’s Park, moderated by its Chair David Lepofsky, to press the Mike Harris Government to enact the promised Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
Related resources:
- The ODA Committee’s April 6, 1999 letter to the Ontario Chief Electoral Officer.
- The ODA Committee’s April 13, 1998 news release.
- The ODA Committee’s April 14, 1999 news release.
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333
Video 18) Title: June 8, 1999: Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee Queen’s Park News Conference
Link to video: https://youtu.be/3VD_xsMCqRA
Description: Right after the 1999 Ontario election, the ODA Committee held this June 8, 1999, news conference at the Ontario Legislature, Queen’s Park, moderated by its Chair David Lepofsky, to press the Mike Harris Government to enact the promised Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
Related resources:
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333
Video 19) Title: March 27, 2000: Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee Queen’s Park News Conference
Link to video: https://youtu.be/idXi5s2vz94
Description: The ODA Committee held this March 27, 2000, news conference at the Ontario Legislature, Queen’s Park, moderated by its Chair David Lepofsky, to press the Mike Harris Government to enact the promised Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
Related resources:
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333
Video 20) Title: August 3, 2000: Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee Queen’s Park News Conference
Link to video: https://youtu.be/PDnKihwbGxQ
Description: The ODA Committee held this August 3, 2000, news conference at the Ontario Legislature, Queen’s Park, moderated by its Chair David Lepofsky, to press the Mike Harris Government to enact the promised Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
Related resources:
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333.
Video 21) Title: Nov. 15, 2000 Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee Queen’s Park News Conference
Link to video: https://youtu.be/4v-Im7H0sC4
Description: The ODA Committee held this November 15, 2000, news conference at the Ontario Legislature, Queen’s Park, moderated by its Chair David Lepofsky, five years after disability accessibility legislation was promised.
Related resources:
- The ODA Committee’s November 15, 2000 news release and chronology of the campaign for Ontario disability legislation.
- MPP Statements in the Ontario Legislature on November 15, 2000.
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333
Video 22) Title: November 23, 2000: Queen’s Park News Conference by Ontario Liberal Leader Dalton McGuinty
Link to video: https://youtu.be/68G6PSLAVAQ
Description: Ontario Opposition Leader and future Premier Dalton McGuinty held a news conference on November 23, 2000 at the Ontario Legislature’s Queen’s Park media studio. He announced the findings of the Ontario Liberal Party’s shadow consultations around Ontario on what the promised Ontario disability accessibility law should include.
Related resources:
- The Ontario Liberal Party’s November 23, 2000 news release.
- The ODA Committee’s November 23, 2000 Action Tip.
- The Ontario Liberal Party’s November 2000 report on the need for Ontario disability accessibility legislation.
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333
Video 23) Title: May 10, 2005: Passing Bill 118 Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act & News Conference
Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlXQhgumpH4
Description: On May 10, 2005, the Ontario Legislature passed Bill 118, the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. This is the final Third Reading vote passing the bill, and then the Ontario Government’s news conference held at Queen’s Park Toronto, including Citizenship Minister Marie Bountrogianni for the Ontario Government, David Lepofsky for the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee and Doug DeRabbie for the Retail Council of Canada.
Related resources:
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333
- Designing the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act from 2003 to 2005 – What Regulatory Powers Should a Strong Disability Accessibility Law Include?
- The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act
- AODA 101 – Introduction to the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act
- To see the efforts by the AODA Alliance since 2005 to get the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act effectively implemented visit the AODA Alliance website
- Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation
Video 24) Title: June 21, 2005: Celebrating Enactment of Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act
Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sp3kEF0j7LU
Description: On June 21, 2005, the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee held a celebration of the passage of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, at CNIB Toronto. Speakers include ODA Committee Chair David Lepofsky, Ontario Citizenship Minister Marie Bountrogianni, Ontario Conservative Party leader John Tory and MC Patti Bregman.
Related resources:
- The Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee website.
- “The Long Arduous Road to a Barrier-free Ontario for People with Disabilities: The History of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act – The First Chapter”, National Journal of Constitutional Law Volume 15, Number 2, Carswell, Toronto, April 2004, 15 NJCL 125-333
Video 25) Title: September 2, 2011: AODA Alliance Queen’s Park News Conference on 2011 Election Commitments from Ontario Political Parties
Link to video: https://youtu.be/-PeZf9ER8fw
Description: On September 2, 2011, the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance held a news conference at the Ontario Legislature’s Queen’s Park Media Studio in Toronto. AODA Alliance Chair David Lepofsky revealed commitments that the AODA Alliance had received from the political parties on making Ontario accessible to people with disabilities. This event was held during the 2011 Ontario general election.
Related resources:
- The September 2, 2011 AODA Alliance Update which summarizes election commitments on accessibility for people with disabilities which the AODA Alliance received from the Ontario political parties.
- The August 19, 2011 letter to the AODA Alliance from the Ontario Liberal Party, setting out its 2011 election commitments on accessibility for people with disabilities.
- The August 31, 2011 letter to the AODA Alliance from the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party, setting out its 2011 election commitments on accessibility for people with disabilities.
- The September 1, 2011 letter to the AODA Alliance from the Green Party of Ontario, setting out its 2011 election commitments on accessibility for people with disabilities.
Video 26) Title: AODA Alliance Celebration at Queen’s Park of the 20th Anniversary of Ontario’s Grassroots Campaign for Strong Disability Accessibility Legislation November 28, 2014
Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZh67zerp0E
Description: On November 28, 2014, the AODA Alliance convened an exciting event at the Ontario Legislature at Queen’s Park, Toronto to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the launch of Ontario’s non-partisan grassroots campaign for strong Ontario disability accessibility legislation. That campaign started on November 29, 1994, at the very same building, the Ontario Legislature. At this event, AODA Alliance Chair David Lepofsky reviewed the two decades of this campaign. This included remarks from key public figures in politics and in the media who made a difference during this campaign. This captioned video gives a good overview of the first 20 years of this effort.
Related resources
- The November 28, 2014 AODA Alliance Update summing up the 20th anniversary of Ontario’s accessibility campaign, available at this link.
- The November 28, 2014 AODA Alliance news conference, held right after this event, included later in this video series, available at this link.
- The November 27, 2014 AODA Alliance news release, announcing the 20th anniversary of the Ontario accessibility movement, available at this link.
- The Toronto Star’s November 27, 2014 column, reflecting on the Ontario grassroots accessibility campaign, available at this link.
- The story of the events that took place on November 29, 1994, that led to the birth of Ontario’s accessibility campaign, available at this link.
Video 27) Title: November 28, 2014 AODA Alliance Queen’s Park News Conference to Mark the 20th Anniversary of Ontario’s Grassroots Campaign for Accessibility Legislation
Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sWEcywUkmY
Description: On November 28, 2014, the AODA Alliance held a 30 minute news conference at the Ontario Legislature’s Media Studio, Queen’s Park, Toronto. This was held right after the AODA Alliance concluded its event at Queen’s Park to celebrate this anniversary. This captioned video gives a good overview of the key achievements and goals of this campaign.
Related resources
- The video of the November 28, 2014 AODA Alliance celebration at Queen’s Park of the birth of Ontario’s grassroots campaign for accessibility legislation (link here), described earlier in this video series, and the following background documents.
- The November 28, 2014 AODA Alliance Update summing up the 20th anniversary of Ontario’s accessibility campaign, available at this link.
- The November 28, 2014 AODA Alliance news conference, held right after this event, included later in this video series, available at this link.
- The November 27, 2014 AODA Alliance news release, announcing the 20th anniversary of the Ontario accessibility movement, available at this link.
- The Toronto Star’s November 27, 2014 column, reflecting on the Ontario grassroots accessibility campaign, available at this link.
- The story of the events that took place on November 29, 1994, that led to the birth of Ontario’s accessibility campaign, available at this link.
Video 28) Title: AODA Alliance December 3, 2019 Queen’s Park News Conference to Mark the 25th Anniversary of the Birth of Ontario’s Non-Partisan Grassroots Movement Campaigning for Disability Accessibility Legislation
Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkBuFvBq7mw
Description: Ontario’s grassroots non-partisan movement that campaigns for accessibility legislation for people with disabilities was born on November 29, 1994, in a committee room at the Ontario Legislature Building, Queen’s Park Toronto. To mark the 25th birthday of this movement, the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance held a news conference close to that date, on December 3,2019, the International Day for Persons with Disabilities. This video is a recording of that news conference. At this news conference, AODA Alliance Chair David Lepofsky is interviewed by ally and disability rights advocate Laura Kirby-McIntosh, president of the Ontario Autism Coalition. This news conference was held just hours before a 25th birthday party was also held at Queen’s Park.
Related resources:
- The public record of the grassroots campaign from 1994 to 2005 that won the enactment in 2005 of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, check out the website of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee (predecessor to the AODA Alliance) available at www.odacommittee.net
- To see the efforts by the AODA Alliance since 2005 to get the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act effectively implemented visit the AODA Alliance website
- AODA Alliance’s brief to the first AODA Independent Review, conducted by Charles Beer (December 15, 2009)
- Report of the Charles Beer AODA Independent Review (May 31 2010)
- AODA Alliance’s brief to the second AODA Independent Review, conducted by Mayo Moran (June 30, 2014)
- Report of the Mayo Moran AODA Independent Review (February 13, 2015)
- AODA Alliance’s brief to the third AODA Independent Review, conducted by David Onley (January 15, 2019)
- Report of the David Onley AODA Independent Review (January 31, 2019)
- AODA Alliance December 3, 2019 news release
- Speeches at Dec 3 2019 Queen’s Park Birthday Party Marking 25 Years of Ontario’s Grassroots Movement, where the story of the first 20 years of this movement was recounted, with awards given to major public figures who helped in the journey
- The AODA Alliance November 28, 2014 news release announcing the 20th anniversary celebration.
- 20 Years of Tenaciously Campaigning to Tear down Barriers Impeding over 1.8 Million Ontarians with Disabilities
- Queen’s Park November 28, 2014 news conference for the campaign’s 20th anniversary
- Toronto Star column by Bob Hepburn around November 27, 2014 reflecting on this movement’s first 20 years