SASKATOON -- An online “Disability Filibuster” protesting Bill C-7 continued Wednesday, after it was twice Zoom-bombed with pornographic sounds and Nazi imagery days before. The bill would expand who has access to medical assistance in dying (MAID).
The virtual filibuster event features disabled people and allies broadcasting from around the world to argue that the bill’s impact goes far beyond those who are dying in the reasonably foreseeable future. In the words of organizers, the MAID expansion makes death a troubling, easily-accessible “treatment option” for a large segment of disabled people in Canada.
“We lack the supports that make it possible for us to live in dignity, so the option of a red carpet path to death is reasonably read as an enticement,” said filibuster organizer Gabrielle Peters, of the advocacy group Dignity Denied.
The Zoom-bombing, which featured graphic imagery and homophobic slurs playing over people speaking, occurred on Monday night. In response, organizers tweeted that “hate won’t stop us” and vowed to keep going.
One of the organizers, Quin Lawrence, told CTVNews.ca they’ve since increased security and noted “we were fortunate to have [advocacy group] Inclusion Canada reach out to host us with their [corporate] account, and have supported us with tech since then.”
Their filibuster, which resumed late Tuesday night, is scheduled to go as late as Friday at midnight, if support continues.
Once Bill C-7 is passed by the House, it will have to go back to the Senate for a second consideration. Should it pass the Senate unchanged, the bill would then become the law of the land.
Supporters of the MAID expansion say it’s meant to prevent “irremediable” suffering caused by medical conditions. Bill C-7 was introduced in October 2020 in response to a 2019 Superior Court of Quebec ruling that sections of the federal and Quebec laws on medically-assisted dying were invalid, finding that they were unconstitutional because they were too restrictive.
But Lawrence and others say it’s ableist and discriminatory.
Lawrence, who uses they/them pronouns, said this new access to MAID could lead to a “whole new path of manipulation and abuse against disabled people.” They explained how disabled people are more likely to be low-income -- with a third living below the poverty line.
“[Many] don't have access to home care, dental care isn't covered, many aids and medications are also not covered, we don't have universal mental health care -- these things need to be funded and made accessible before a second track to MAiD is made broadly available,” they said.
Last month, the UN Human Rights Council's special rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities gave a Senate committee a similar critique. The council was concerned the bill was “undermining [disabled people’s] autonomy and their capacity to make the right decisions” via “subtle pressure being brought to bear by, for example, lack of services or lack of community living options."
Lawrence also added, “many of us have already had experiences of going to the hospital and rather than getting treatment, we're offered a [do-not-resuscitate order].”
On Tuesday night, writer Monica Gartner, who uses a wheelchair and has a condition where her bones break or fracture easily, echoed this in her online testimonial. She described how, during a hospital trip for a broken arm, a nurse whispered in her ear that she could "fly away" if she wanted to.
“Filibuster is activism for our era. We are isolated and separated but we are also united and together,” filibuster creator Catherine Frazee said in a news release.
Sarah Jama, the lead organizer with Disability Justice Network of Ontario (DJNO) and one of the speakers, said the digital filibuster was a necessary measure during the pandemic.
“Busloads of disabled people arriving in Ottawa to block the passage of this bill are not an option,” she said in a press release. “But sitting on the sidelines while the federal government votes on a bill that so directly and dangerously impacts the lives of disabled people is also not an option.”
Lawrence acknowledges that the passage of Bill C-7 is highly likely, but that they and others fully intend on moving forward with court cases and legal action.
“We want to make sure disabled people know we're together in this, and we will keep fighting it even if it is passed.”
