Institutions and Disability
Megan Linton, Creator and Host, Invisible Institutions and Ph.D. Student, Carleton University Department of Sociology and Anthropology
Keenan Wellar, Co-Leader and Director of Communications at LiveWorkPlay.ca / VivreTravaillerJouer.ca
Date: Wednesday, January 18, 2023
Time: 14:30-16:30 EST
All are welcome to register for this live online event at: https://events.carleton.ca/institutions-and-disability/
Inside the Invisible Industry
The decline of large-scale, state-operated institutions for disabled people in Ontario coincided with the growth of private, for-profit residential institutions such as nursing homes and privatized group homes. Through this presentation, I evaluate the political choices that lead to the institutionalization of 5,300 people under the age of 65 in long-term care institutions. This research employs Marta Russell’s money model of disablement and Liat Ben-Moshe’s decarceration industrial complex to observe the means of commodifying and incarcerating disability. The findings of this research point to the violences of current systems of institutionalization, and the need for abolitionist approaches to disability and long-term care.
Megan Linton is a PhD student in the Department of Sociology and Political Economy at Carleton University and host and creator of the Invisible Institutions Podcast. Her research and advocacy focuses on the political economies of institutionalization and the possibilities of abolition. Megan’s writing and research has appeared in CBC, Briarpatch magazine, and
Canadian Dimension.
The Inclusion of Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities: A Principled Approach to a Non-Programmatic Life.
In 2006, as part of a 30-year process of de-institutionalization, the Ontario Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services (MCCSS) launched Opportunities and Action, laying out a systemic change process for ensuring that people with intellectual disabilities are supported to live in regular housing and participate fully in their communities. More than 15 years later, objective analysis of the sector revealed very little progress, with small pockets of success scattered among various agencies and communities, and some 80% of resources still segregated housing and programs. In 2021, MCCSS announced Journey to Belonging, laying out a similar vision for inclusion as its 2006 predecessor. This process also repeats a fundamental flawed – there are no clearly defined outcomes for measuring change and reporting on progress. We need a principled approach that helps us understand not only “what is inclusion” but also “what is not inclusion.” And we need accountability for making it happen.
Keenan Wellar has served as Co-Leader and Director of Communications for charitable organization LiveWorkPlay since 1997. LiveWorkPlay has earned numerous accolades, including being named Ottawa’s Best Non-Profit at the annual awards of the Ottawa Board of Trade in 2019. Keenan has a Master’s in Applied Linguistics from Carleton University and is a founding member of the Carleton Alumni Mentorship Program, having mentored more than a dozen 3rd and 4th year undergraduate students since 2014. He also holds degrees in History and Education with Ontario Teacher Certification from the University of Ottawa, and a Professional Certificate in Non-Profit Marketing from the Sprott School of Business. He enjoys kayaking and nature photography as well as the local music scene and sports. Keenan has also done some work on the other side of the pen and lens, as a regular contributor and feature article writer for Non-Profit Quarterly (2018-2019).
This seminar is part of the ongoing series Accessibility, Inclusion, and Disability: Connecting Scholars and Practitioners, hosted by Carleton University’s Disability Research Group.