Advocacy is important for ensuring the civil and human rights of all persons with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities, regardless of age or class. Human refuge aims to advocate for children and their families living in poverty. Our goal is to remove the present stigma existing in many communities regardless of class and promote the establishment of safe spaces where children with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities can experience positive behavioural changes while learning essential skills for a happy and productive life.
Without strong advocacy at all levels, people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities may not have access to needed supports as well as opportunities to exercise inherent civil and human rights.
Additionally, strong advocacy may be required to prevent and/or address abuse, neglect, and exploitation that people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities may experience. Persons with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities may need the support of advocates to become effective self-advocates.
Advocacy is vital in improving and sustaining the quality of life for persons with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities. To be effective, advocacy must take place at both the individual and system levels. Advocacy can be aimed at public officials, support systems and the general public.
Advocates, including self-advocates, should be trained and knowledgeable about the rights and dignity of children and adults as set forth in the position statements of the arc.
Advocates must communicate effectively with individuals they assist, encouraging them to express and act on their thoughts, choices, and feelings about issues and proposed solutions to problems. The advocate and the individual must be able to understand each other. The advocate should exercise great care to ensure that the person with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities fully understands the benefits and risks of any decision. When making decisions, individuals should be encouraged to consult with the important people in their lives. Advocates have an ethical obligation to represent the desires and needs of the person they represent, regardless of their own personal opinions on matters under consideration.
Self-Advocates should:
In certain circumstances, parents, other legal representatives or other supporters may need to be involved in making decisions with and on behalf of the individual. At such times, advocates must represent the interests of the individual. Advocates must be careful to recognize and set aside their own personal desires or points of view that may conflict with those of the individual for whom they are advocating. If there is a conflict of interest, the advocate should withdraw from the decision-making.
Systems change advocacy can provide tremendous benefit for people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities. The goal of systems advocacy is to enhance public awareness of the rights, strengths, needs, and interests of people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities and influence law and policy to improve public and private systems of support and services. Family members and self-advocates should play a meaningful role in systems change.
Agencies providing supports to individuals should also advocate for system change that will improve the quality of life for all individuals, whether supported by the agency or not.
Individuals should have access to protection and advocacy systems and other entities mandated by state and federal laws that:
Rev’d 2015
Joint Statement with the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD).
1 “People with intellectual disability and/or developmental disabilities” refers to those defined by the AAIDD classification and DSM IV. In everyday language, they are frequently referred to as people with cognitive, intellectual and/or developmental disabilities although the professional and legal definitions of those terms both include others and exclude some defined by DSM IV.
Human Refuge acts to ensure that children with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families have meaningful opportunities and are recognized as vital to their communities.
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