CALGARY – A group of Calgarians with disabilities and their supporters are heading to Edmonton on Wednesday to protest $42 million in provincial funding cuts to community access programs.
The cuts to support programs for Persons with Developmental Disabilities (PDD) were announced in the provincial budget, and go into place on July 1st.
The move has alarmed many people, who argue the cuts will put vulnerable Albertans at risk.
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“We are very concerned about the impact these cuts will have on the lives of people with disabilities and we are asking for them to stop,” says Ryan Geake, Executive Director of the Calgary SCOPE Society.
The community access programs help individuals with employment preparation, transportation for medical appointments, teaching life skills as well as volunteering and recreation activities.
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The government has said the programs aren’t functioning the way they should, and instead they wish to move toward a ‘support need level’ delivery model.
Hundreds of Calgarians with disabilities, their families, and agency service providers are boarding buses to Edmonton on Wednesday, for a rally being held at the steps of the Alberta Legislature.
The rally is called ‘Now You See Me,’ and organizers say people will be carrying signs of themselves or loved ones to demonstrate being seen and not erased from communities.
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