Status of Women committee  That is a complex question and it is difficult to answer it quickly—I see the Chair with her pen—but I will try to make a start. Ms. Chabot, it is important to understand that the first thing to do is to strengthen the options for action that are open to women with disabilities.

Status of Women committee  I appreciate the question, Niki, and I know you trust me enough to let me pivot a bit here, because I'm going to do that. I was trying to make the point earlier about the instruments of hope that everybody who is part of this committee and the entire Parliament have before them.

Status of Women committee  You are hitting a nerve, because one of the big problems is that it is a reality that society denies. Most cases of violence against women are to women and girls with disabilities. The term used is “systemic ableism”, and it is very widespread. Women with disabilities are neither believed nor listened to.

Status of Women committee  Thank you, Niki. Of course it's important to tie economic policies to social policies. That's the only way we're really going to be able to address these issues. Certainly, bringing up the issue of a national disability benefit and/or a national guaranteed income is something that's been on the table and has really become urgent during the pandemic.

Status of Women committee  You can go first if you would like. I'm happy to speak to it later, because I do want to answer the question as well.

Status of Women committee  What I would like to say about the accessibility piece in terms of shelters and transition houses is that, obviously from what we've heard from my colleague, we need to put a lot more resources into that, but we can't put the responsibility of finding the resources and making these plans on these organizations, which already have a full range of services to provide.

Status of Women committee  Thank you so much for the question, Anita, and for putting a focus on this because it is very important for the committee. It is part of the newer and emerging research, but it is something that DAWN Canada has been saying for decades. Women becoming disabled through violence is a fact.

Status of Women committee  Thank you very much for asking. I want to explain that more, because I think it's very important. As I said, I've noted that lot of the witnesses you're going to hear from, of course, are people who are doing direct service, including the shelter community. While it certainly is clear and true that there's a problem with accessibility of shelters, that's not the problem that we need to look at right now.

Status of Women committee  Thank you. It has an impact on funding, and I think that's the key point for the committee to hear from me now. If you don't understand the difference between intimate partner violence and interpersonal violence in a funding space, then the people who don't fit that don't get funded.

Status of Women committee  Thank you, Karen. I want to thank the committee. I'm joining you today from the unceded territory of the Kanienkehaka in Montreal. I'd like to move quickly, because we have limited time. I'll remind the panel and the committee today that the rate of disability for women, according to Statistics Canada, is 24%.

Justice committee  I think what's really clear is that there aren't enough social protections for vulnerable Canadians, including people with disabilities, and the reality is that this legislation is an aspirational piece of legislation. While I understand that some people believe this is towards enshrining the rights of individuals to make a choice, they have missed the reality check that I think we all have to have.

Justice committee  Thank you so much, Mr. Kelloway.

Justice committee  I will be very blunt. Mr. Fletcher is not an expert in this area. He is a white male who is involved in other work but is not an advocate for people with disabilities and has no history of looking at the research, the situation. I think many of the points raised by the panellists here would not be something I would consider Mr.

Justice committee  Thank you for assigning me a doctor's degree. That's wonderful. I appreciate that very much.

Justice committee  Thank you, Madam Chair and members of the committee. Greetings to other panel members. Thank you for inviting me to appear today. I am speaking from the unceded territory of the Kanyen'kehà:ka people. I remind us that truth and reconciliation is not about words; it is about how we conduct ourselves in the face of truth.