Jul 062021
Disabled People Against Cuts sends solidarity to Heidi Crowter who is taking a legal challenge against the fact that disabled foetuses can be aborted right up until the time of birth while there is a legal cut off for non-disabled foetuses. Heidi’s lawyers will argue that this is discriminatory.DPAC was outside the high court today to show support for the first day of the hearing along with members from Inclusion London, the Reclaiming Our Futures Alliance and the Alliance for Inclusive Education. Alongside disabled campaigners including Heidi’s husband James were parents of disabled people including the actor Sally Phillips.It is right that self-advocates such as Heidi and others supporting her whoul get their voices heatrd in highlighting the inequalities and discrimination they suffer on a daily basis. Ideas and attitudes that see disabled people, and particularly those with learning difficulties as inferior, are still sadly common in society today – they aren’t confined to right wing bigots but sit at the core of many of the services that disabled people rely on for essential support. We’re taught that the exclusion and lesser life chances of disabled people are somehow inevitable and that disabled people are a burden on others.But this isn’t true.There are realistic alternatives.Access and inclusion, fairness and equality are all possible there is a will to achieve them. By embracing difference and valuing diversity society is far stronger.DPAC therefore supports the idea that the difference in time limits provided for by the Abortion Act is discriminatory. We nevetheless firmly view the Abortion Act as a piece of progressive legislation and are opposed to any curtailment of a woman’s right to choose.We are concerned that this legal challenge will be used to pit disabled people’s rights against women’s rights and would argue that this does not need to be the case and that both can be defended. It is important that all of us – women, disabled people and those of us who are both and everyone else who cares about social justice – are united in ending all forms of oppression.United we can but divided we fall.#DownwithDiscrimination #HoldHands4Equality
