Kathleen Thompson, PhD

This week Prime Minister Carney, elected officials and Inclusion Canada were asked for their thoughts on Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD)  and the forthcoming report from the Special Joint Parliamentary Committee studying the issue. Inclusion Canada strongly opposes any expansion of MAiD to individuals for whose sole condition is a mental illness. We also are calling on the federal government to repeal the previous expansion (Track 2) because it discriminates against persons with disabilities. We encourage you to read this story by CTV ctvnews.ca/politics/artic… Put simply: Track 2 MAiD uniquely allows people with disabilities to access assisted death even when they are not at end of life. This current law singles out persons with disabilities. Persons with disabilities deserve the same response other Canadians receive when they are suffering: investment in economic and social supports, safe and accessible housing and mental health services, not a faster path to death. Contact your local Member of Parliament and regional Senator and ask them to invest in making lives better, not ending them. #cdnpoli #MAID #assistedsuicide #AidNotMAID

Every day, mothers do the impossible: balancing childcare, work and other responsibilities. 💐 As many families mark Sunday’s #MothersDay, join us in celebrating the strength, courage and resilience of mothers everywhere.

❌Feminicide ❌Sexual harassment ❌Rape ❌Child marriage ❌Female Genital Mutilation ❌Honor killing ❌Human Trafficking ❌Cyberbullying ❌Sexual violence How many more reasons do you need for why we must stand up for women’s rights❓ #ENDviolence against women & girls. NOW❗️

Don’t share hate! Each click carries the potential to ignite change, so let's share responsibly and harness the true power of our interconnectedness. #PledgeToPause ⏸️ #NoToHate

MAiD for mental illness should never have been on the table. Ontario MDRC cases confirm that poverty, isolation, and untreated mental illness in persons with disabilities have been treated as meeting MAiD eligibility criteria, alongside concerns about capacity and voluntariness, resulting in their deaths through MAiD. You can see my 5 min remarks 👇

“There is no fundamental difference between man and animals in their ability to feel pleasure and pain, happiness, and misery” Charles Darwin #KindnessToAllKinds #EndFactoryFarming @CIWF_Global

Ricky Gervais has received the Jane Goodall Award for Unwavering Advocacy for Animals. Read more on the PBN website.

Racism, intolerance & discrimination tear at the fabric of all societies. But we can all take action by spreading compassion, tolerance & acceptance to help #FightRacism. un.org/en/fight-racism

Young people across the world are facing an increase in cyberbullying, affecting their learning, health & right to education. Let’s collaborate to create a safer digital environment for them. #SafeOnline #EndCyberbullying

A story by @tessiesanci of @TheHillTimes. Inclusion Canada supports Bill S-228. It would clarify that forced and coerced sterilization is aggravated assault. We want to see it receive royal assent. Under Alberta and British Columbia’s eugenic sexual sterilization laws, which were repealed in the 1970s, at least 3000 people were sterilized. Some, now seniors, are following Bill S-228, including a member of our Board of Directors who was sterilized at an institution for people with an intellectual disability. As written, Bill S-228 would protect people with an intellectual disability of all sexes. This is vitally important, because people with an intellectual disability continue to be sterilized today. Ideally, we’d like to see the bill amended to explicitly mention disability, ableism, and male anatomy outright. These amendments wouldn’t change the substance of the bill, but they would make a big difference to people who have been sterilized because of their disability. Bill S-228 offers an opportunity at recognition and closure, and we want as many people as possible to benefit from this opportunity. It was wonderful to hear disability discussed at second reading, for this reason. Bill S-228 exists because of the strong advocacy of Indigenous women and we are grateful for their leadership. Indigenous women were disproportionately likely to be sterilized under sexual sterilization laws.

On this #WorldHealthDay, we celebrate the power of science to protect the health of people and our planet. The choices we make – what we research, fund, and prioritize – must be guided by the dignity and equality of all people.

We should protect babies, not kill them. 💔🐣

Requiring family involvement in MAID is framed as protective.   But it assumes family involvement is always supportive.   Not all patients want – or feel safe – having family involved.   And not all families want to be placed in that role.   No other area of medical care requires family presence as a condition of decision-making.   Family involvement should be available. But requiring it changes who controls the decision.

Online violence doesn't leave physical bruises, but it does cause mental scars. It’s a continuation of offline abuse; amplified by anonymity and reach. Millions of women, girls, and adolescents face harassment, stalking, and threats in digital spaces meant for connection. Let’s change that 🔒 Block and report abuse 🗣️ Speak up and support survivors 🫶 Post with empathy and respect Violence has no place: online or offline. Open the door to online safety.

Physical violence isn’t the only kind of abuse that leaves a mark on the body. Coercive control and emotional abuse can wound the body just as deeply, disrupting the nervous system, and leaving behind chronic tension, exhaustion, and illness. shadowsofcontrol.com/articles/physi…

"Racial discrimination is a violation of human rights and human dignity. It should have no place in our world, but it rears its head in schools, workplaces and countless everyday interactions." - @antonioguterres #NoToHate #ZeroDiscrimination

⚠️ Safety is the foundation of equality. When a woman’s well-being is under threat, they cannot participate in society on an equal playing field. See how @UNFPA is working to #ENDviolence: unf.pa/gbv

"We must speak out – clearly and consistently – against bigotry, xenophobia, and discrimination wherever they appear. Silence in the face of hatred only allows it to spread." - @antonioguterres

Every day, women and girls collectively spend 250 million hours fetching water for their families. Too often, those who carry the water are the last to be consulted about how to improve access to it. That must change. At today’s World Water Day Celebrations on the theme Women and Gender Equality, I called for greater participation and representation of women - in technical roles and at the decision-making table - in shaping how water resources are managed.