Shut Out

Speech to launch the new report on the experience of people with disabilities and their families
Wednesday, August 8, 2009

"If I lived in a society where being in a wheelchair was no more remarkable than wearing glasses, …

.. and if the community was completely accepting and accessible, my disability would be an inconvenience and not much more than that.

It is society which handicaps me, far more seriously and completely than the fact that I have Spina Bifida."

It is society which handicaps me.

Those words are not mine.

They belong to one of the thousands of Australians with a disability who made a contribution to this report - Shut Out.

2,500 attended public forums across the nation.

More than 760 made written submissions.

What they have given us - for the first time - is a comprehensive, contemporary picture of what it means to be an Australian with a disability.

And that picture is shocking.

It is shocking because it doesn't just challenge the prevailing view of disability - it demolishes it.

Up until now, many Australians have had a rose-coloured, backwards looking view of disability …

.. that it is all about Dickensian institutions …

.. that those institutions were closed in the 1980s…

.. and that things are better now - or getting better.

Read this report and you will understand that we have been kidding ourselves.

Listen to the voices of Australia's forgotten citizens and you will hear that things are not better …

.. nor are they getting better …

.. they are getting worse.

Take a long hard look at the picture this report paints of what it means to be a citizen with a disability in Australia in 2009 …

.. and you will see that what we have on our hands is nothing short of a national disgrace.

What do I mean by national disgrace?

I mean that we live in one of the wealthiest and most liveable countries in the world - yet people with a disability are literally shut out:

• Shut out housing and employment.
• Shut out of education, health care, recreation and sport.
• Shut out of kindergartens, schools, shopping centres and community groups.
• Shut out of the Australian way of life.

The Australian notion of the 'fair go' does not seem to apply to Australians with a disability.

Australians with a disability are often isolated and alone.

Their lives are a constant struggle for resources and support.

But - as this report shows - people with a disability and their families are resourceful and innovative …

.. and they are determined and strong.

They have not given up.

They have fought long hard to achieve their goals.

They do not take no for an answer.

And when they succeed they succeed despite the system.

These are the messages of Shut Out. This is the hard truth.

All of which raises a question: What now?

Now that we know that the stories of these forgotten Australians, what should we do?

How should we go about reversing a discrimination based on ignorance and neglect that has been decades in the making?

How can we make the great Australian way of life accessible to all?

The answer is not simple. Nor is it easy.

The truth is we are at the beginning of a long journey to ensure people with a disability are finally truly a part of the Australian community.

The community consultation that informed this report was one of the first steps in that journey.

The development of the National Disability Strategy as a roadmap for reform is the next step in that journey.

Implementing the Strategy will hopefully take us many steps closer to a fairer Australia.

Shut Out is, perhaps, the most confronting step, though, …

.. because - before we draw up the National Disability Strategy to make things better - we first have to find out how bad they have become.

With that in mind, I want to take this opportunity to thank the Rudd Government in general - and Jenny Macklin and Bill Shorten in particular - for committing to this reform process.

A reform process that aims to address the significant barriers faced by Australians with a disability and promote social inclusion.

I would like to personally thank each and every person who took the time to write a submission or who attended consultations across the country.

Their willingness to reveal personal details was both remarkable and encouraging.

I want those Australians to know their voices were heard.

In conclusion, let me say this:

I had the privilege of attending every consultation held in capital cities across Australia.

I came away from those consultations both intensely moved and profoundly shocked.

Most of all, though, I came away determined.

Australians with a disability have been waiting for many years for change.

They cannot and will not wait any longer.

Download the Report