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United for a Barrier-Free Ontario
May 22, 2015
Summary
On Thursday, May 21, 2015, internationally celebrated as Global Access Awareness Day, the interim Chief Commissioner of the Ontario Human Rights Commission, Ruth Goba, released an important public statement on disability accessibility. She explicitly endorsed the AODA Alliance’s call for a strategy to ensure that the 2015 Toronto Pan/ParaPan American Games leave behind a legacy of increased accessibility of stores, restaurants, and other tourism/hospitality services.
This is a major boost for us. We set that statement out below. It includes, among other things:
“In several statements, the AODA Alliance has called for the Games to have a disability accessibility legacy. We support this call, and believe the legacy should include improvements made before the Games begin, and steps to overcome barriers that we learn about during the event.”
We are delighted that we have received this support. The Ontario Human Rights Commission is the Ontario Government’s official watchdog on human rights issues, including on the human rights of people with disabilities. The Government has declared that a major role of the Ontario Human Rights Commission is to speak out on human rights issues, to set important directions for the public and private sector to follow.
We urge the Government to now listen to and quickly act on the advice of its own human rights watchdog. Were the Government to disregard this, it would set a poor example for other public and private sector organizations that the Commission addresses with its policy statements on diverse human rights issues.
The AODA Alliance has led a vigorous campaign since August 2013, to press the Ontario Government to ensure that the 2015 Games leave behind a strong disability accessibility legacy, including, for example, significant increases in accessibility of tourism and hospitality services like restaurants, hotels, taxis, and public transit, and increased accessibility of para-sporting programs across Ontario. So far, with the 2015 Games only 49 days away, the Ontario Government has still announced no plans for such a legacy.
Although the Games are fast approaching, it is not too late for last-ditch focused Government action on this issue. We now have good reason to believe that money could be available to help, if the Government will show the strong leadership on this issue that we need.
We understand that on May 21, 2015, former Ontario Premier David Peterson, chair of the 2015 Games, reportedly made a public statement on the 2015 Games. According to a public tweet on Twitter by widely-respected journalist Steve Paikin, Peterson announced that the Games are on schedule, and are 56 million dollars under budget. Steve Paikin’s tweet stated:
@Steve Paikin: “Everything is on time and $56m under budget,” says Peterson. “The event will inspire young ppl.” #cdnclubTO. http://t.co/RUp2JMBW5i
We then tweeted:
“@spaikin so why not spend some of that $56 million on unkept promise of #accessibility legacy in tourism/hospitality? #aoda”
It is certainly not enough that the Games’ sporting facilities and athletes’ village be fully accessible. For the many people with disabilities who want to venture beyond that bubble, there is a strong need for tourists and athletes with disabilities, as well as their friends and family members who accompany them, to have a wide array of accessible options of places to eat, to stay, to shop, and to get around.
We remain profoundly concerned that Toronto and the other communities hosting the Toronto 2015 Games are simply not ready to effectively accommodate the needs of tourists and athletes with disabilities who venture out of the small bubble of the sports stadiums and athletes’ village. If tourists and athletes with disabilities want to eat in our restaurants, shop in our stores, visit our tourism sites, take a taxi, ride public transit, or even find a place to go to the bathroom, they will run up against the many pervasive barriers which have impeded Ontarians with disabilities for years.
Back on August 28, 2013, the Wynne Government unveiled its plans for the legacy of the Toronto 2015 Games. Yet it then announced nothing about disability accessibility, especially in the context of increasing the accessibility of tourism and hospitality services in Ontario. To fill this gap, on October 1, 2013, the AODA Alliance released our own detailed and constructive proposal for a positive tourism/hospitality accessibility legacy for the Toronto 2015 Games. We have spent many months urging the Government to act on this, without success.
In her September 25, 2014 Mandate Letter to the Minister responsible for the Toronto 2015 Games, Michael Coteau, Premier Wynne commendably set as a priority for him: “Working with stakeholders to make Ontario a more accessible and barrier-free tourist destination.” That direction has not been turned into effective action.
In yesterday’s public statement, the Human Rights Commission warned:
“At the same time, Ontario runs a very real risk of not meeting its own human rights standards when accommodating people with disabilities.”
It is still not too late for the Ontario Government to step up to the plate. We urge the Government to launch a last-minute blitz to help get stores, restaurants and other hospitality/ tourism providers to rally at the last minute.
It does not take long for a restaurant to order a Braille menu, or make sure its menu is posted in an accessible format on its web site. Even ramps to bridge a few steps at the front door can be put in place relatively quickly. A serious blitz could be deployed to ensure that restaurants do not block people with disabilities with service animals, and hotels don’t try to charge them an illegal pet fee.
The Ontario Government can also help by taking steps to get municipalities not to impede local businesses, like stores and restaurants, who want to do the right thing by installing ramps at their front door. Sadly, the City of Toronto has still not withdrawn its efforts to force the Signs Restaurant to remove the accessibility ramp at its front door. Such destructive municipal conduct can scare stores and restaurants away from doing the right thing.
The Ontario Human Rights Commission’s May 21, 2015 statement commendably referred to the problem of municipal by-laws that impede the provision of accessibility. It correctly emphasizes that the Human Rights Code prevails in such situations. We have made this point over and over regarding the City of Toronto’s attempt to force the Signs Restaurant to remove its front door ramp. The Commission stated:
“In some cases, we have to ask whether accommodations that reflect the spirit of the Human Rights Code are okay, even if they may conflict in a small way with a municipal rule or practice. When accommodation and Code requirements conflict with other requirements, it’s time to look more closely at the rule or practice, to make sure the rule itself does not discriminate.”
The Mayo Moran AODA Independent Review Report recently highlighted the importance of the Government using the Toronto 2015 Games to increase the accessibility of Ontario as a tourism destination.
We are not aware of any public announcement by the Ontario Government on accessibility, to show new action on May 21, 2015 as Global Access Awareness Day. Yet the Government claims it is “Number One” in the world on taking action on accessibility. We urge the Government to try to live up to those words, by acting on the Ontario Human Rights Commission’s statement. Its cutbacks on the AODA’s enforcement are especially counterproductive. We need the Government acting now to ensure that tourism/hospitality providers are obeying the law.
We encourage you to:
* Call your MPP. Tell them to press the 2015 Games Minister Michael Coteau to do better.
* Spread the word to friends and family, by circulating this email, and sharing it on social media like Twitter and Facebook.
* Plan to tweet, blog, and video any tourism/hospitality barriers you encounter during the Toronto 2015 Games, and in the lead-up to the Games, to help us bring public attention to the need for more action.
Below we set out:
* The Ontario Human Rights Commission’s May 21, 2015 statement on accessibility at the Toronto 2015 Games, and
* Links to key background on this issue.
The Ontario Government only has 9 years, 8 months and 9 days left to lead Ontario to become fully accessible to 1.8 million Ontarians with disabilities by 2025, as the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act requires.
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MORE DETAILS
Message from Interim Chief Commissioner Ruth Goba – Global Accessibility Awareness Day
May 21, 2015
Originally posted at: http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/news_centre/message-interim-chief-commissioner-ruth-goba-%E2%80%93-global-accessibility-awareness-day
Toronto2015: Let’s build an accessibility legacy
The upcoming Pan Am and Parapan Am Games are an exciting opportunity to showcase the many ways Ontario is a world leader. One notable accomplishment should be our ability to welcome and include guests and residents of all backgrounds and abilities. The Games offer a good opportunity to raise awareness about what Ontario and its municipalities are doing to promote and enhance accessibility.
At the same time, Ontario runs a very real risk of not meeting its own human rights standards when accommodating people with disabilities. The Ontario Human Rights Commission believes these Games offer an opportunity to identify what is working, and what persistent barriers continue to hurt the quality of life of many Ontarians with disabilities. We urge all levels of government to note the successes and take action to remove barriers to accessibility.
The Games organizing team says:
In hosting the largest multi-sport Games ever held in Canada, TO2015 has an opportunity to not only deliver accessible venues and services for the TORONTO 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games, but to influence the built environment as well as attitudes and behaviours of its partners, sponsors and the communities where the Games are being held. – www.toronto2015.org/about-us/diversity-inclusion-and-accessibility
Accessibility – it’s the law
Both the Ontario Human Rights Code and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) place a legal duty on employers, service providers (like restaurants or movie theatres or taxis) and housing providers to make their facilities accessible. And even after being designed with inclusion in mind, there is still a legal duty to accommodate people with disabilities to the point of undue hardship.
When looking at accessibility, we have to ask questions like whether there is a ramp for people who use wheelchairs, or whether people who are deaf have captioning at a movie, or transit stops are announced so visitors who may be blind know where they are when riding our buses, subways and streetcars.
In some cases, we have to ask whether accommodations that reflect the spirit of the Human Rights Code are okay, even if they may conflict in a small way with a municipal rule or practice. When accommodation and Code requirements conflict with other requirements, it’s time to look more closely at the rule or practice, to make sure the rule itself does not discriminate.
We have seen several recent media reports of people with service animals facing barriers in restaurants, hotels and other amenities. In many cases, people ranging from hotel managers to police officers are simply not aware of their duty to either follow or enforce the law.
Laws such as Ontario’s Code and the Blind Persons’ Rights Act make clear the duty to accommodate people who use service animals, which are being relied on increasingly by people with different disabilities. Some key things to consider are:
- A service animal is not a pet. Hotels, restaurants, taxis and other service providers must accommodate people with disabilities who use service dogs.
- Denying a person with a disability access to services because they are accompanied by a service animal is discrimination under the Human Rights Code and may also contravene the Blind Persons’ Rights Act.
- It is also against the law to require a person with a disability to pay an extra hotel fee for a service animal.
- Service providers and their staff have a legal obligation to be aware of their duty to accommodate.
Creating a legacy of accessibility
In several statements, the AODA Alliance has called for the Games to have a disability accessibility legacy. We support this call, and believe the legacy should include improvements made before the Games begin, and steps to overcome barriers that we learn about during the event.
It is important that municipalities collect feedback on how accessible the games were for both athletes and spectators. Think about the accessibility of the venues and the experience as a whole (ranging from where they stayed to how they got to the venue). To do this, we recommend that both the Pan Am/Parapan Am Games’ Organizing Committee and the municipalities who host events collect and track complaints/compliments about accessibility, and use that feedback to guide broader efforts to improve accessibility.
Collecting this feedback can be as easy as setting up social media accounts, or applying existing accessible feedback mechanisms that are required under the AODA. Either approach must be widely publicized to be effective. As the Games are a public event, the results of any review must also be made public.
Designing inclusively, understanding accommodation requirements, asking what’s working and what barriers still exist, and reporting publicly on results are all important steps that can help the Pan Am and Parapan Am Games leave a true accessibility legacy that will benefit everyone in Ontario for many years to come.
Ruth Goba, Hon. BA, LLB
Interim Chief Commissioner
Ontario Human Rights Commission
www.ohrc.on.ca
www.facebook.com/the.ohrc
twitter.com/OntHumanRights
Key AODA Alliance Links
Read the AODA Alliance’s August 28, 2014 letter to 2015 Toronto Games Minister Coteau
Our October 1, 2013 Proposal for a Strong and Lasting Disability Accessibility Legacy can be viewed at http://www.www.aodaalliance.org/strong-effective-aoda/10012013.asp
Read the Toronto Star’s September 3, 2014 article, raising these issues again several months ago.