When Paul Caune arrives in his wheelchair, it’s obvious that he has a visible disability. “But my most serious disability is invisible – I don’t have a way to guarantee my civil rights,” he said when he accepted his Courage to Come Back Award in the medical category.
Caune is the executive director of Civil Rights Now!, and with so many politicians in the room, he didn’t waste the opportunity to strongly demand that governments formally recognize the rights of the disabled.
“When your civil rights are violated, you don’t need a good hug by someone in a pink T-shirt,” he said. “You need a good lawyer.”
Caune was born with muscular dystrophy and is now reliant on a wheelchair and ventilator. When authorities tried to transfer him to a long-term care hospital for people with severe disabilities, he fought back. It didn’t make him popular with authorities but he finally was able to secure an apartment in a Vancouver Resource Society building in Burnaby.
For those who have not yet experienced a disability, Caune warned against simply hoping that solutions can be found. “Hope is not a plan.”
If you are inspired by Caune's story, Coast Mental Health has started three Fundrazr campaigns to raise money for programs that provide housing and employment for people with mental illness. You can donate here.
