River Heights
Green Party of Manitoba (GPM) - Candidate: Nathan Zahn
The candidate did not respond by our September 20, 2023 deadline
Manitoba Liberal Party (MLP) - Candidate: Jon Gerard
Q: How have disabilities played a role in your life and the lives of your loved ones?
Several of my close family have had disabilities. One of my brothers had a hearing impairment. One of our sons has a learning disability – dyslexia. When I was young, my father, a pediatrician often talked of his work to help children with disabilities.
As a medical student, I studied for a time with an eminent scientist and physician who had dyslexia. From him, I learned about the extra effort he had to make every day in order to do well.
My wife, Naomi, has worked for many years with a woman who has an inherited condition which has meant she is on a respirator and in a wheelchair. She has succeeded in graduating with a degree from the University of Winnipeg and since graduating has worked in various jobs. She currently is married and has a full time job. She is an amazing example of someone who can do incredible things given her circumstances.
For many years, as a pediatrician and in my political life I have been an advocate for those with disabilities. I have attended many, many events focused on helping those with disabilities. I have worked for those with disabilities, including during the COVID pandemic, and at many other times.
Q: Which one of DMVote’s 5 priority issues is of the greatest interest to you and why?
I see all five priorities as being incredibly important. We need to have a comprehensive approach to helping those with disabilities succeed to the optimum extent possible.
Q: Disability discrimination has made up the largest share by far of all the formal complaints lodged with the Manitoba Human Rights Commission over the last 20 years. What do you think accounts for this and what do you think needs to be done to address it?
It is a sad reality that people with disabilities face much stigma and much discrimination. There are many different types of disabilities and each one needs separate attention. For example, among the most misunderstood are those with silent disabilities that are not visible – including those with learning disabilities. I am currently working with a number of people with learning disabilities as well as with other forms of neurodiversity including ADHD and Autism to put together a report which can be a call to action to better understand and better assist those with silent disabilities.
New Democratic Party of Manitoba (NDP) - Candidate: Mike Moroz
Q: How have disabilities played a role in your life and the lives of your loved ones?
As a classroom teacher, disabilities issues have been an ever present part of my working life. The school based teams I’ve worked with have always been deliberate in their efforts to ensure that all students were able to fully participate in all aspects of school life, and we were fortunate to have equally determined admin teams who provided us with the resources we needed to be successful. As the head of the theatre program, with responsibility for the school production, adaptations to scripts were routinely made to ensure we eliminated the obstacles to all students participating. The production was always richer for having made them.
Q: Which one of DMVote’s 5 priority issues is of the greatest interest to you and why?
The Disability Vote Matters priority issue that most interests me is, ‘meet basic needs.’ For me, nothing is more important than ensuring that all people have the means necessary to make the critical decisions that enable them to lead safe, stable meaningful lives in the communities they call home. In a country generates the wealth that ours does, there’s no excuse for that even being a point of discussion. It must be a given.
Q: Disability discrimination has made up the largest share by far of all the formal complaints lodged with the Manitoba Human Rights Commission over the last 20 years. What do you think accounts for this and what do you think needs to be done to address it?
My belief is that where the disability community is incredibly diverse, with a diverse set of needs, the broader community views it as uniform, and sees the limited set adaptations it might undertake as suitable for all. Which simply isn’t the case. I think there is a need for both an ongoing awareness campaign that highlights the diversity of the disability community, and governmental supports to ensure necessary adaptations can be made.
The Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba (PC) - Candidate: Timothy Burt
The candidate did not respond by our September 20, 2023 deadline