SENATORS’ STATEMENTS — Deafblind Awareness Month
June 18, 2025
Honourable senators, I rise today to commemorate the tenth anniversary of Deafblind Awareness Month in Canada.
Earlier today, I had the privilege of attending a reception where we heard from incredible advocates and organizations, including the Canadian Helen Keller Centre, the National Deafblind Awareness Month Committee and the Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons.
I want to thank Senator Martin who organizes the annual reception and whose leadership brought Deafblind Awareness Month to national recognition with the unanimous adoption of the Senate motion in 2015. I also want to honour those who helped lay the groundwork: the Honourable Vim Kochhar, a lifelong champion of persons with disabilities, and former senators Jim Munson, Joan Fraser and Asha Seth.
Helen Keller is probably the most well-known person with deaf-blindness, a condition which is estimated to affect around 160 million people around the world.
Awareness months serve an important purpose. They push us to move from acknowledgment to action. They can remind us that the most significant barriers that people face are not their disabilities but the inaccessible systems and structures that surround them and have yet to adapt. As a physician, I’ve worked with patients and families as they navigate their complex and often invisible challenges: gaps in care, policy and understanding.
Disability is too often compounded by inaccessibility when communication is blocked, when services are not designed inclusively and when health inequities go unaddressed. For those who are deaf-blind, those barriers can be multiplied. A critical lifeline for many is the support of intervenors — highly trained professionals who facilitate communication and environmental access.
Canada is a global leader in this model. We are the only country in the world with post-secondary programs to train intervenors, yet we still do not have enough of them.
The deaf-blind community is not monolithic, and there is a wide range of experiences, abilities and communication preferences. Some people communicate using tactile signing, while others use the two-hand manual alphabet, print on palm or assistive technologies. This is why inclusive and diverse support programs are essential and why it is crucial that we listen to and advocate alongside those with lived experience.
Honourable colleagues, as we celebrate June as Deafblind Awareness Month, let us also advocate for improved accessibility, including intervenor services; support organizations doing front-line work; and ensure our policies, programs and public spaces reflect the needs and voices of deaf-blind individuals in all their diversity.
Thank you, meegwetch.
Honourable senators, today I rise to celebrate June as Deafblind Awareness Month, a time to reflect upon the experiences, achievements and ongoing challenges faced by individuals living with deaf-blindness in Canada. This community, despite navigating profound communication and accessibility barriers, continues to inspire us with its strength, adaptability and determination.
I would also like to honour our former colleague, the Honourable Vim Kochhar, a trailblazer in disability advocacy whose strong leadership helped pave the way for greater awareness and inclusion for people living with deaf-blindness. Before his retirement, he asked me to adopt this community, and through his inspiration, the Senate unanimously adopted a motion in 2016 recognizing June as Deafblind Awareness Month.
This recognition holds special meaning as June is also the birth month of Helen Keller, one of history’s most influential and inspiring voices for the deaf-blind community. Although deaf and blind from infancy, Helen Keller’s legacy as a writer, speaker and activist reminds us all of what is possible when barriers are removed and people are empowered with the right tools and support.
We co-hosted the event today, and it was wonderful to see the community of advocates, interpreters, intervenors, caregivers and family members who support the individuals who live with deaf-blindness come together. Such gatherings are a testament to how far we have come and a reminder of the work still ahead.
Across the country, countless organizations, like the Canadian Helen Keller Centre, continue to lead the charge for inclusion, accessibility and support. Their dedication ensures that deaf-blind individuals are not only heard but fully seen and respected in every aspect of society. Thanks to their advocacy and the World Federation of the Deafblind, on June 16, just two days ago, the United Nations officially recognized June 27 as the International Day of Deafblindness.
To the families and all those involved — as I mentioned — you remind us that inclusion is a fundamental right and the foundation of a just society. Honourable senators, Deafblind Awareness Month is not only about raising awareness, it is about inspiring real change. Let us continue to build a country where every person, regardless of ability, can live with dignity, independence and opportunities. As Helen Keller’s words continue to reverberate and encourage us, “ . . . Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”
