today-is-a-good-day
Advertisement
Advertisement

-

Clare Leader Forum to host Clare’s General Election candidates

Polling Day in General Election 2020 is on February 8th

The Clare Leader Forum will host Clare’s General Election 2020 candidates to discuss issues of importance to disabled people across the county. 

This public meeting will take place from 10.30am to 1pm on Thursday the 30th of January in the Temple Gate Hotel.

- Advertisement -

It is open to everyone who wants to hear how our political candidates will respond to the social, economic, and political rights and needs of disabled people and people with mental health issues. If you are a person with a disability, family member, friend, supporter, interested member of the public please come along. Presented by the Clare Leader Forum, which works to provide an independent voice on issues affecting the lives of disabled people and people with mental health issues in Clare and beyond, the event aims to put disabled people’s rights firmly back on the political agenda.

Clare Leader Forum PRO Ann Marie explains “Our Election Candidates need to understand we can speak for ourselves. We have repeatedly stated that we are simply looking for our rights to be protected as equal citizens in society – not charity. This can be achieved faster and sustainably by working directly with and listening to us combined with fidelity evidence that current resource allocation to the disability sector ensures people are supported to live independent lives with dignity, social inclusion, privacy, choice and control”. So much is wasted by allocating significant resources to large organisations claiming to represent us and more often than not we as disabled people see little or no effect on our real world lives. “We implore you all to unite on January 30th and explain to our election candidates that we are the real experts on what we need to live our own lives”.

‘Our Voice Our Vote’ will offer delegates a unique opportunity to listen to people with the lived experience pose a number of key questions to the candidates to end the active exclusion of disabled people in mainstream political decision making. Election candidates will be given an opportunity to clarify how they will work with disabled people to prioritise and ensure that we will be afforded the same equal rights as everyone else.

Ann Marie explains “It is vital that people attend in person and explain to the candidates themselves what it is really like to live in Clare in 2020 – experiencing discrimination and barriers to prevent them from a life of choice and dignity. Nobody can speak for us but ourselves. We know what we need and this is our opportunity as voters and citizens to say it”. Doors will open at 10.30am and the event is free to attend, with refreshments provided for all delegates. If you would like further information, then do please contact Dermot on 086 3157591.

- Advertisement -

Recent Posts

- Advertisement -
Advertisement
Advertisement