Empowering those with disabilities

Volume 11 Number 8 August 10 - September 13 2015

The Melbourne Law School has launched a new subject aimed at disability discrimination. By Chris Weaver.

Disability discrimination is increasingly a major public concern.

A new clinical subject within the Melbourne Law School now aims to remove some of the prejudices affecting people with disabilities.

The Disability Human Rights Clinic is the first subject of its kind in Australia. Melbourne Juris Doctor students and researchers – many of whom have disabilities – are reporting on the rights violations of people with disabilities.

It is an important opportunity for future lawyers to get a solid foundation in social justice issues, with students working with several community organisations to analyse and report violations experienced by people with disabilities. This clinical work will develop lawyering skills in persuasive writing, organisational collaboration and advocacy.

Juris Doctor students Sarah Mercer and Henry Macphillamy are part of the initial Disability Human Rights Clinic intake. Personal experiences underpin their interest in the course.

“A member of my family lives with mental illness, so disability issues – particularly around those disabilities that aren’t visible – have been a key interest to me,” Ms Mercer says. “I want to get the skills that later on will allow me to work in disability law or other human rights law areas.”

Mr Macphillamy also finds the practical application and work with community groups particularly appealing.

“The Disability Human Rights Clinic has a unique place in my interests, as I have visual and hearing impairments,” he says. “I know that the skills I learn in this subject will apply to each and every day that I practise law.”

Dr Anna Arstein-Kerslake is the Clinic’s co-ordinator. She will combine this role with her position as Academic Convenor of the Hallmark Disability Research Initiative. She has a long history in disability work, having previously worked as a sociologist, support provider and human rights advocate in Europe, the United States and Australia.

There is a deeply personal reason behind Dr Arstein-Kerslake’s passionate advocacy of disability support services.

“My sister has a developmental disability and that personal experience was a motivating force for working on the rights of people with disabilities,” she says.

Dr Arstein-Kerslake views this as a critical time for disability advocacy, as community activism leads to increased awareness and rights protection of those living with mental, physical and developmental disabilities.

“Attitudes are changing towards people with disabilities, with a greater focus on human rights,” she says.

“Australia perhaps doesn’t have as solid a disability activist community as that in other nations (particularly the United Kingdom), but public perceptions have definitely changed thanks to the work of pioneer advocates like the late Stella Young.”

Recent revelations of abuse within Victoria’s largest non-governmental disability service, Yooralla, also brought disability care standards into the spotlight.

“People need connectedness and empowerment if they are to voice their concerns,” Dr Arstein-Kerslake says.

“Fostering those voices will hopefully lead to improved health and legal outcomes.”

Dr Arstein-Kerslake believes Australian academics and activists need to collaborate more to effect positive change. She sees gaps in the field of disability human rights, which the Melbourne Law School is well placed to fill.

“Lots of non-government organisations advocate for disability support services and rights, but often don’t have the means to do in-depth legal analysis,” she says.

“What we are striving to achieve is a position where we can provide detailed reporting that applies the law to disability rights violations.”

The Disability Human Rights Clinic forms part of the Public Interest Law Initiative, supported by the Melbourne Law School Foundation. The Initiative will be formally launched at the School on Thursday 13 August, coinciding with Public Interest Law Week.

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