Join the mailing list

In this third edition of the Together for Rights newsletter, we shine a light on the right to independent living for persons with disabilities.

We all have the right to decide how and where we want to live. However, more than 3 million persons with disabilities in Europe still live in institutions and sometimes away from their community.

To raise awareness on this issue, we are working with one of our champions, Dimitris Karypidis.

Dimitris a well-known paralympic athlete from Greece. He is a professional swimmer and recently became the Vice President of the Association of Greek Paralympic Athletes. He is also an active member of a Greek foundation that helps persons with disabilities live independently.

Dimitris has made his own choices and preferences a reality. He believes the EU Strategy for the rights of persons with disabilities can make things easier for others to do the same.

One of the goals of this strategy is to ensure access to inclusive community services for persons with disabilities to get the support they need to live independently.  

READ MORE HERE

In this section, we share our ‘best of’ social media content.

Our campaign toolkit offers ideas, images and suggested social media posts in your language. In each issue, we will share new content. Click on the link below to access the toolkit on the website. Feel free to use these materials to help spread the word in your country!

VIEW THE TOOLKIT

• 27 June 2023: "A Union of Equality: Disability Rights and Strategies" seminar, co-hosted by the European Commission and the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Read more here
• 4 July 2023: Launch of the AccessibleEU initiative by the European Commission. Read more here
• 18 August 2023: 5th World Chess Championships for People with Disabilities takes place in Dublin. Read more here

European Interest:  Advancing disability rights in Europe

The 5^th European Parliament of Persons with Disabilities took place in Brussels on 23 May. More than 600 disability advocates discussed and agreed on how the European Union should enhance the rights of persons with disabilities. Read more here

Euronews: Photographer with 'ataxia' toured London's underground stations

Ben Spencer is a 49-year-old photographer toured all 272 stations of the London underground taking pictures from his journey to raise awareness on 'ataxia' a rare neurological disorder affecting his balance, coordination and speech. Read more here

BBC:  European Space Agency’s para-astronaut experiences weightlessness for the first time

Europe’s first ever astronaut with disability, John McFall, has undergone his first parabolic flight to test how a person with a physical disability can live and work in space. Read more here

We are excited to introduce the third group of champions who endorse the Together for Rights campaign! You can read more about them and their inspiring stories on the website. Make sure to follow them on their social media accounts.

Dimitrios Karypidis – Greece

Dimitrios is a Greek paralympic swimming athlete with functional paraplegia. Currently studying to be a primary school teacher, he shares his life story to encourage all people to go after their dreams. Read more here

Sarah Murray – Ireland

Sarah is a content creator from Ireland. Their content primarily focuses on existing in the world as an autistic individual who also struggles with mental health. However, they also talk about being part of the LGBTQ+ community and the intersections of disability and queerness.  Read more here

Enya van Egmond – Netherlands

Wojtek Sawicki – Poland

Wojtek has been suffering from Duchenne muscular dystrophy since early childhood. Wojtek and his fiancée Agata are running a very popular profile channel Life on Wheelz, where they fight discrimination against people with disabilities. Read more here

• We will highlight the right to participation in democracy for persons with disabilities
• New pictures and social media posts for you
• Do you have suggestions for articles to include in the ‘We Read’ section? Send them to us at newsletter@togetherforrights.eu