One Voice - action for disability
Welcome to the June newsletter.
In this month’s newsletter comment and opinion on MP expenses, voting, prison, hate crimes, Television Programmes.
Also information on a new obesity project for disabled people, plus an update on the advocacy project.
And don’t forget to put our AGM in your diary!
The views in this newsletter are those of the article writers, they are not always what One Voice thinks.
The One Voice AGM is on
Saturday 20th June, at the Maltings Day Centre, Herbert Street.
The meeting begins at 10.30, but doors open at 10.15, to give you time to have a drink, say hi to people, and have a look at the information display.
Come and join us!
The Agenda is:
Chairobics
Disability Snakes and Ladders
Reports
Elections
Have your say
Free lunch & draw
It may be our last meeting at the Maltings, as the centre is closing, so come and say goodbye, and tell us where you want us to hold meetings in future.
We look forward to seeing you—tell us if you need transport etc
Of course one of the main things deserving comment right now is the MP expense scandal.
A One Voice blogger (www.1voice.org.uk/blog) made the following comments:
So the Government is trying to cut the disability benefits bill to save money.
Some of the MPs voting for this have also felt it reasonable to claim:
£100 for someone to change 25 light bulbs (no reallly!)
- This claim is from the Tory shadow skills minister - with skills like that how did he get a job?
Then there is Labour Minister Hazel Blears, who kept changing buying and selling homes and avoiding capital gains tax on the profits made at our expense - we paid for these homes to be done up.
Does anyone else resent that these people are taking millions of our money while implying that we are workshy?
S/he has a good point about how many MPs seem to think spending on us needs to be reigned in, while spending on themselves can be allowed to flourish.
The Works and Pensions Minister (who has recently resigned—Ed), who is responsible for overseeing the end of Incapacity Benefit, and attempts to push many disabled off the benefit, even though there are no jobs to go to, has also been guilty of this double standard.
James Purnell has claimed £247 for 3,000 "flexible fridge magnets", £42 for books from internet seller Amazon, and £223 for a camera.
According to The Telegraph, which, he also told parliamentary authorities that his main home was in Manchester and claimed the “second home allowance” for his flat in London. In October 2004, he sold his London flat and told HM Revenue and Customs it was his main home not his "second home", thereby avoiding any capital gains tax.
Purnell has also been keen to show in the press just how tough he is on people on benefits, talking about his plans to get a million people off Incapacity Benefit, he said "There should be no free-riding on the welfare state. It is an insult to people who contribute and it is an insult to the people who need help.” - as is his conduct.
Polls Apart—I’ve recently moved to a different part of Wolverhampton and this was my first time using the polling station at Bradmore Community Centre on Birches Barn Road for the Elections on 4th June, but too my horror when I got there, I found 3 really big steps at the entrance—I was totally unable to get in, - the whole community centre looks inaccessible actually, but I was shocked that I couldn’t get into vote and that no information about the lack of disabled access was sent to me beforehand.
The staff were equally surprised at the lack of access, and were very helpful –in the end brought out a clipboard for me to vote from the car. But this really isn't acceptable—if i had been alone, I would not have been able to let them know I was outside and unable to get in because the staff station was so far from the door. We want to know what is going to be done about this, so there is full access before the next election. If we are not even given the opportunity to vote like everyone else, it makes us feel like less of a citizen—are we equal or not?
Mrs M.
Hate Crimes – In the last year, 14 people in Wolverhampton have reported disability related hate crimes—that’s more than Birmingham in the same period.
One Voice has joined with other organisations in Wolverhampton to put in a bid to the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s funding programme, to do work in Wolverhampton on supporting victims of hate crime, and education work with schools. We will let you know whether we make it through to the second round.
The House of Lords has been debating Hate Crimes this month.
Lord Ashley said:
...nearly one-half of disabled people are subject to violence(...) We must be far more active in preventing that violence by working with them. (..) many organisations representing disabled people in Britain have great skills, knowledge and information but their work is not being harnessed properly. Will my noble friend consider inviting all these organisations—or at least the leading ones—to discuss the matter so that the Government can co-operate with them as strongly as they can?
Lord West of Spithead (parliamentary under secretary, Home office) added:
... 71 per cent of those with mental health needs had been subjected to a hate crime at least once in the preceding two years. Such figures are quite awful and quite horrible.
Hate Crimes legislation include hate crimes against disabled people, but there is a suggestion that either police or the Crown Prosecution Service is reluctant to prosecute. In these pages we have read recently about people convicted of kicking a disabled man to death having their sentences reduced.
This is an issue that must be tackled—there is no place for Hate in Wolverhampton or anywhere else.
Eastenders to feature disabled actor—East Enders is finally joining with many other soaps to feature a character who has an obvious impairment—thereby reflecting the real world (possibly for the first time!)
They will be introducing a wheelchair user later this year. Desperados and Diary of a Call Girl actor David Proud, who has spina bifida, will play Adam Best, a student who arrives in Walford to visit his mother, and falls for Libby Fox.
ted with dignity and respect.”
Flourish2BU: The Floursh2BU project is about enabling disabled people to get fitter, lighter and more active so that they can have a significantly better quality and length of life.
Outside Centre’s Paul Darke will lead the project and be one of the participants.
Paul says: “It is an exciting project that will be a turning point in many people’s lives, especially my own.I am fat and unfit so I must change that in order to do more and, above all, feel better about myself.”
Part of the project - launched at the 2nd Wolverhampton Disability Film Festival on Thursday 23 April - is to also make a film of the progress of those participants who wish to be filmed as they go through the next year improving their diet, fitness, wellbeing and self-confidence.The film will be shown at the 3rd Wolverhampton Disability Film festival in 2010.
They are still looking for participants and you can find out more about the project by contact Paul Darke on 01902 716747 or via the project’s website at www.flourish2BU.infoThe project is supported by Wolverhampton Primary Care Trust and Wolverhampton City Council in association with Outside Centre
Like many people if audience figures are accurate, I have a secret love of TV talent shows. The best bits are always when someone is awful, or really good. And recently it has been a pleasure to hear the “really good” Susan Boyle. And it’s great to hear that she is one of us—she has a learning disability.
What hasn’t been so good, is that we never heard that she is disabled until things went wrong for her, then the papers seemed to stay that she was only experiencing extreme stress because she was disabled. Like disability can only be mentioned when its a negative.
Recently, there has been talk in the press about stopping people with learning disabilities from appearing on Britain’s Got Talent. This shows us how little things have changed. If there is a problem blame the disability or the disabled person, rather than blaming the environment that causes the problem.
Susan Boyle’s run of success should be celebrated as an example of how far disabled people can get on talent and commitment, despite living in a disabling world.
Sue
A lot of the top flight clubs take their commitment very seriously, with Liverpool winning plaudits, and the Plymouth Argyle disabled footballers team recently winning the Northampton Disability Festival. Is it time for Wolves to step up and coach a disabled team?
You can find out more about facilities for disabled footballers in the Disabled Footballers’ Directory at: www.disabilityfootball.co.uk
by Vil
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[Cassandra is an anonomous One Voice columnist who likes to stir things up - this is the second 'Cassandra' in One Voice's history]