Communication Access Now (CAN) has received a letter of support from Dave Martin, Senior Advisor on Disability Issues to Minister Irvin-Ross, Minister responsible for Persons with Disabilities, Manitoba. In the letter, Mr. Martin stated:

“I would like to commend CAN on the valuable work you are doing…your organization’s website is particularly useful, as it offers tips for service providers when interacting with someone who has a communication disability. I can assure you the Government of Manitoba supports your objectives by striving to provide accessible and respectful service to all people with disabilities, including those with communication disabilities”.

Mr. Martin requested that CAN provide input to the Manitoba Policy on Access to Government so that the specific needs of people with communication disabilities may be addressed.

A letter of support was also received from Cyde Jackman, MHA, Minister Responsible for the Status of Persons with Disabilities, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Minister oversees the implementation of the Government’s Strategy for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities.

Mr. Jackman thanked CAN for its valuable information, which he stated will be used to inform policy directions. He has shared the information with the Disability Policy Office that coordinates the strategy across government.

Rounding out the trio of letters, CDAC was thrilled to receive one from International Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (ISAAC) for Communication Access Now (CAN) and our communication access symbol.

Jeff Riley, ISAAC International President, 2012-15, wrote:

“On behalf of the ISAAC Executive Board, I am pleased to advise that ISAAC, as an organization, absolutely supports the concept of communication access symbols that allow people with complex communication needs to more readily communicate and interact with the world around them. In particular, we wish to congratulate you and CDAC for your ongoing efforts in this area, and extend official support for CDAC’s Communication Access symbol.”

Read the full letter from ISAAC.

The support for communication access continued with the Ontario Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists kindly naming the Toronto Star’s article “Ontarians with communication disabilities struggle to be heard” as #6 in their top 20 articles from 2014! Their support is appreciated.

These gestures are encouraging as they indicate that Canadians with speech and language disabilities are being noticed and acknowledged. Finally.

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