A number of studies have been conducted in Canada on disability issues. Some highlights of the major federal/ provincial/territorial studies are presented below. Provinces and territories also have undertaken major studies and initiatives over the last 20 years which have made a positive and valuable contribution to our understanding of disability-related issues and to the implementation of disability programs. 

Obstacles Report

The International Year of Disabled Persons – 1981 – is often cited as the landmark date for tracing the history of disability studies in Canada. In respect of the International Year, the Government of Canada appointed an all-party Special Committee on the Disabled and the Handicapped to undertake a comprehensive review of federal legislation pertaining to persons with disabilities. 

The Committee produced the Obstacles Report which put forward 130 recommendations on all aspects of public policy including human rights, income security, assistive devices, transportation and communications. The major accomplishment of the Committee was to ensure the inclusion of persons with physical and mental disabilities in the equality rights section of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The work of the Committee also sparked attitudinal change which set a new climate and framework for ensuring that persons with disabilities are treated as full citizens rather than passive recipients of services.

International Decade of Disabled Persons

Canada continued its work in this area in respect of the United Nations Declaration of the International Decade of Disabled Persons (1982-1993). In 1982, a major federal-provincial effort was initiated to propose options for disability income reform. In response to recommendations in the Obstacles Report, Social Services Ministers established a Federal-Provincial Working Group. It conducted an exhaustive study which developed several costed options for the reform of current earnings replacement and income support programs. These proposals were published in a Joint Federal-Provincial Study issued in 1985.

Another major initiative was the appointment of a Royal Commission on Equality in Employment. The 1984 Report of the Royal Commission on Equality in Employment explored the duty to accommodate persons with disabilities and the elimination of overt and systemic barriers to equality. The report pointed out that equality does not mean treating everyone the same way. In fact, in order to achieve equality, it actually may be necessary to treat people quite differently. In 1985, the Parliamentary Committee on Equality Rights issued Equality for All, which established an equality framework for meeting the needs of persons with disabilities. That same year saw the establishment of the Status of Disabled Persons Secretariat whose mandate was to raise awareness and support the full participation of persons with disabilities.

Mainstream Review

In 1992, the Conference of Federal/ Provincial/Territorial Ministers of Social Services announced a Mainstream Review to develop a collective strategic framework for the full integration of Canadians with disabilities. Ministers also directed that the Review explore whether governments and individuals with disabilities could agree upon a vision and statement of principles. The report of the Mainstream Review proposed a conceptual framework to support the shift from segregation to mainstreaming, or from 'warehouse' to 'open house'.

The open house concept emphasized the importance of persons with disabilities enjoying the same rights and benefits as other Canadians and participating fully in all aspects of life including school, work and recreation. This participation is made possible by the removal of social, economic and physical barriers and the provision of supports which accommodate and respect differences. The report also explored the need to make generic programs, such as child care, training and education, more open and inclusive.

Standing Committee on Human Rights and the Status of Disabled Persons

In the following year, the Committee produced As True As Taxes: Disability and the Income Tax System. The report explored various improvements to the tax system. That same year, the Committee produced the report Completing the Circle, which highlighted the needs of Aboriginal Canadians with disabilities. In 1995, The Grand Design: Achieving the Open House Vision further developed the open house vision put forward in the Mainstream Review.

Task Force on Disability Issues

The most recent national initiative, the Federal Task Force on Disability Issues (also known as 'the Scott Task Force') was established in June 1996 by the Ministers of Human Resources Development, Finance, Revenue and Justice. Its mandate was to define and make recommendations on the role of the Government of Canada as it relates to persons with disabilities. The Task Force organized public consultations throughout the country and commissioned research papers focussed upon five key issues: national civil infrastructure/ citizenship, legislative review, labour market integration, income support and the tax system. In October 1996, the Task Force issued its report entitled Equal Citizenship for Canadians with Disabilities: The Will to Act.