Ugh. I’ve been thinking lately about how many times I’ve been torn between pursuing other journalism opportunities and how often I end up just posting here instead. This blog is too accessible, too easy. Perhaps I should delete it, the culmination of five years’ solid work, publish it in book form, and charge extortionate amounts of money to people who want to read it. I give myself away, far too easily as a writer.

On the other hand – and I can’t believe I’m saying this – some things are more important than money. And there are some things money can’t buy. Freedom of choice, equal rights – those kind of things.

On Tuesday, 19 November 2019, an important motion is being brought to the Dáil. The motion proposes the legislation of a P.A. service. It’s safe to say that the majority of disabled people who currently use the service understand the rationale behind legislation. For too long, there has been a level of misperception that disabled people, in the words of Martin Naughton, are “to be cared for rather than cared about.” Since the onset of the recession, a culture has been created between those who care about the Independent Living Philosophy whereby it is often perceived to be “safer” to stay quiet and accept things, especially if people are afraid of losing the little provision they have.

Historically, independent living has never been approached as a “rights-based” issue in Ireland. The establishment of the Center for Independent Living in 1992 marked a monumental shift away from the charity model of disability to a rights-based approach. It celebrated the individuality of disabled people and their diverse lifestyle choices. However, as the demand for this revolutionary service grew, so too did the restrictions of it.

The HSE funds the Personal Assistant Service at present. However, significant investment is badly needed to enable people to live full, meaningful lives. Pauline Conroy, in her book entitled A Bit Different? Disability in Ireland notes that in 2017, forty-five percent of Leaders (service users) were only receiving a mere 45 minutes a day on average of Personal Assistance, largely for Personal Care. Many activists have been crying out for years for the need to create a fund exclusively for personal assistance. In our minds, “carers” tend to follow the “medical model”; disabled people are viewed either as “problematic” or as passive recipients of services, incapable of having their own voice or even of making the most basic decisions about their own lives. Whereas in the true definition of the Personal Assistant Service, the Leader is placed, as Martin Naughton once said, in the “driving seat” of their own lives.

The debate coming up next Tuesday is an important one. It won’t lead to all of us waking up on Wednesday morning in a world that has changed overnight, where we will all be able to access the level of assistance we need to live fully independently. At the very least, however, we will be creating a conversation about the need to approach Personal Assistance as a right, not as a lottery depending on your address. It’s about urging people to consider the importance of free will, of independence and choice.

If you would like to create awareness of independent living, or if you would like your local representative to debate this motion in the Dáil next Tuesday, please email me at sarahfitzgerald1984@gmail.com and I can send you an email template.

Finally, if I’ve kept your attention this far, you might be interested in this short story which details the reality of dependency and uncertainty for disabled people in Ireland.

(For more info on the #PASNow campaign, email me as above or visit Independent Living Movement Ireland’s website, ilmi.ie)