The Audacity of Inclusion

Book excerpt: One beautiful, surprisingly warm spring morning on the isolated islands of Haida Gwaii, an insight smacked Dulcie McCallum in the face with the force of an unexpected tsunami: at the heart of it all, the law was the culprit. Rather than promoting rights, the law was itself the taproot of injustice. For people with an intellectual disability, the law is what defines their disadvantage, not their disability. For every child diagnosed with the label of intellectual disability, there remains a certain lousy predictability to the way they will be treated by society and the prejudice that will haunt them. Officially labelled with the r-word, they have also been tagged with “imbecile” or “moron.” Often treated as objects of pity or charity, segregated in “special” schools, sheltered workshops, and institutions, they are consigned to the sidelines of society. Their erasure as full persons reached unimaginable heights during eugenics, which led to systemic sterilization and en-masse extermination. But fear is warranted, as pervasive victimization remains a threat. Their intentional exclusion has done—and continues to do—inestimable damage. The Audacity of Inclusion will crack open the vault of injustices perpetrated against people who have an intellectual disability, helping shatter preconceptions and opening new ways of seeing people who are forced to live with a legally sanctioned label. In telling their stories, Dulcie had the support and wisdom of self-advocates Canadians Barb Goode, Harold Barnes, and “Sir” David Weremy, and New Zealander the late Sir Robert Martin, each of whom made invaluable contributions.