Rights Now, UK Disability Campaign
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Rights Now, sometimes written with an exclamation mark, was a British umbrella group of disabled people's organisations and
charities A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definition of a cha ...
which campaigned for a change in the law to prevent
discrimination Discrimination is the process of making unfair or prejudicial distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong, such as race, gender, age, class, religion, or sex ...
against disabled people and for a full civil rights law, even though the result was the flawed
Disability Discrimination Act 1995 The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (c. 50) (informally, and hereafter, the DDA) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which has now been repealed and replaced by the Equality Act 2010, except in Northern Ireland where the A ...
. The biggest protest in numbers of people was in July 1994 at
Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster in Central London. It was established in the early-19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. Its name commemorates the Battle of Trafalgar, the Royal Navy, ...
and
Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London, England. The road forms the first part of the A roads in Zone 3 of the Great Britain numbering scheme, A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea, London, Chelsea. It ...
, London. It was a very broad-based campaign, including trade unions for example. Campaigning to improve the laws for full civil rights continued, but Rights Now as a group ended in 1995.


Prior to Rights Now


Silver Jubilee Access Committee (SJAC)

The
Silver Jubilee Silver Jubilee marks a 25th anniversary. The anniversary celebrations can be of a wedding anniversary, the 25th year of a monarch's reign or anything that has completed or is entering a 25-year mark. Royal Silver Jubilees since 1750 Note: This ...
Committee on Improving Access for Disabled People was established in 1977 by
Alf Morris Alfred Morris, Baron Morris of Manchester, (23 March 1928 – 12 August 2012) was a British Labour Co-operative politician and disability rights campaigner. Political career Morris served as Member of Parliament for Manchester Wythenshawe ...
MP, the Minister for Disabled People, to report on access arrangements regarding the Silver Jubilee celebrations. He appointed Peter Large (Spinal Injuries Association, SIA) as its chair. It produced a report in 1979, ''Can Disabled People Go Where You Go?''


Committee on Restrictions Against Disabled People (CORAD)

In 1979 Alf Morris established the Committee on Restrictions Against Disabled People, CORAD. He again asked Peter Large to be the chair. Colin Barnes identified the creation of CORAD as the start of the UK movement for disabled people's civil rights because CORAD, building on the work of the SJAC, analysed the restrictions against disabled people systematically, including education and employment. Its terms of reference, membership, and some meeting minutes are held in the
UK National Archives The National Archives (TNA; ) is a non-ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Its parent department is the Department for Culture, Media and Sport of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It is the ...
. Shortly after CORAD was established there was a general election and a Conservative government replaced the Labour government, so the committee reported to the new minister,
Hugh Rossi Sir Hugh Alexis Louis Rossi, KCSG, KHS, FKC (21 June 1927 – 14 April 2020) was a British Conservative Party politician. He was educated at Finchley Catholic Grammar School and King's College London (LLB). Background Rossi was born in London ...
MP, who reportedly ignored their findings. In written evidence submitted to Parliament in 2004, Peter Large recalled the following:


First of many non-government bills

In 1983 Jack Ashley MP used the ten-minute rule and put forward the Civil Rights (Disabled Persons) Bill which would have established a commission with legal powers of enforcement. The Bill did not have
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...
support and was lost. Various research writings claim or estimate the number of attempts to pass a civil rights bill for disabled people between 1980 and 1995, with numbers varying between nine and sixteen bills.


Voluntary Organisations for Anti-Discrimination Legislation (VOADL)

Around 1985 a group of the large, national charities for disabled people, including
RADAR Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...
(the Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation, as was), the
Spastics Society Scope (previously known as the National Spastics Society) is a disability charity in England and Wales that campaigns to change negative attitudes about disability, provides direct services, and educates the public. The organisation was found ...
(as was), came together to form a lobby group for anti-discrimination legislation, ADL, also known as civil rights for disabled people. The
British Council of Organisations of Disabled People The British Council of Organisations of Disabled People (BCODP) was a radical national voice of disabled people for legal, social and cultural change in Britain from 1981 to 2017, with a high profile in the 1980s and 1990s. Origins BCODP was foun ...
, BCODP (as was), around 1988 agreed to participate in VOADL as an observer organisation. VOADL established an advisory committee around 1989 which was chaired by Mike Oliver who supported Colin Barnes as the researcher formally linked to BCODP. Research interviews were held at the SIA offices led by Colin Barnes, Stephen Bradshaw, Jane Campbell, and Mike Oliver. In 1991 the results of this research was published as a definitive text on ADL in the UK. The closest successor organisation to VOADL would probably be the
Voluntary Organisations Disability Group The Voluntary Organisations Disability Group represents organisations within the voluntary sector who work alongside disabled people. It is a charity registered in London founded in 2008. Rhidian Hughes is the chief executive. It has repeatedly c ...
(VODG): "a membership body representing organisations within the voluntary sector who work alongside disabled people."


Rights Now, 1992–1995

The Rights Now group was formed in 1992. Although VOADL had been successful in pulling together a number of the largest disability charities ("organisations ''for''") they had found that disabled people's organisations ("organisations ''of''") were distrustful and reluctant to join and share their knowledge and strategies. This changed when the creation of a new, combined organisation was suggested by the executive committee of BCODP and the charities involved in VOADL agreed to the 'merger'. Rights Now had a reported 83 member organisations, including trade unions as well as disabled people's organisations (DPOs) and disability charities, and a reported 10,000 individual members. Only disabled people who were representing a DPO could be an office-holder of Rights Now. The first Chair of Rights Now was Stephen Bradshaw,
chief executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...
of the
Spinal Injuries Association Spine or spinal may refer to: Science Biology * Spinal column, also known as the backbone * Dendritic spine, a small membranous protrusion from a neuron's dendrite * Thorns, spines, and prickles, needle-like structures in plants * Spine (zoology), ...
, followed by Rachel Hurst. The campaign reportedly had strong links with Parliamentarians though the All-Party Disability Group and its researcher Victoria Scott, who worked for
RADAR Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...
, and the Rights Now Coordinator, Adam Thomas. In parallel, around the same time many disabled people and their organisations were becoming more vocally critical of charities and fundraising, and in particular, on the biennial
Telethon A telethon (a portmanteau of "television" and "marathon") is a televised fundraising event that lasts many hours or days, the purpose of which is to raise money for a charitable, political or other cause. Most telethons feature heavy solicitatio ...
s run by ITV. A protest demo of around 200 disabled people outside ''Telethon 90'' was organised by the ''Campaign to Stop Patronage'' with Victoria Waddington and Allan Sutherland doing the press liaison. The 1990 demo created the conditions for a larger-scale protest demo by more than one thousand disabled people outside (and some inside) ''Telethon 92''. The organisational work for these demos had a background in the emerging disability arts scene rather than in elected politics, committees and lobbying, and it led to the creation of the
Disabled People's Direct Action Network The Disabled People's Direct Action Network (DAN) is a disability rights activist organisation in England and Wales that campaigned for civil rights with high-profile street demonstrations involving civil disobedience, rallies and protests. Prio ...
, DAN, in early 1993. While DAN was more focused on inaccessible transport rather than civil rights laws in Parliament, nevertheless their highly visible protests on the streets across England and Wales caused a "media extravaganza" according to John Evans, saying also that it "no doubt highlighted the profile of the need for civil rights legislation".


1993

Although DAN was very focused on street campaigning against inaccessible public transport (mass transit), nevertheless its first major action was during the
by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...
in
Christchurch, Dorset Christchurch () is a town and civil parish on the south coast of Dorset, England. The parish had a population of 31,372 in 2021. It adjoins Bournemouth to the west, with the New Forest to the east. Part of the Historic counties of England, hist ...
, in 1993 where Rob Hayward, the Conservative candidate, had previously been an MP for another area and had '
talked out A filibuster is a political procedure in which one or more members of a legislative body prolong debate on proposed legislation so as to delay or entirely prevent a decision. It is sometimes referred to as "talking a bill to death" or "talking ...
' a bill for disabled people's civil rights. He failed to win this
safe seat A safe seat is an electoral district which is regarded as fully secure, for either a certain political party, or the incumbent representative personally or a combination of both. With such seats, there is very little chance of a seat changing h ...
. In July 1993, Rights Now published ''What Price Civil Rights?,'' a report that provided "substantial evidence that the government adgrossly overestimated the cost of implementing the Civil Rights Bill", the government figure being . The Rights Now report estimated the cost as no more than .


1994

In the 1993/1994 parliamentary session
Roger Berry Roger Leslie Berry (born 4 July 1948) is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Kingswood from the 1992 general election until his defeat at the 2010 general election. Early life Roger Berry was born ...
MP won a place in the ballot for a
private members bill A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in whi ...
, and for at least the ninth time since Jack Ashley MP, a Civil Rights (Disabled Persons) Bill was put forward to become a law. The wording had evolved over the years, this version having been updated by the disabled lawyers Caroline Gooding and David Ruebain. A national political scandal emerged when it was revealed on 6 May 1994 that the Minister for Disabled People,
Nicholas Scott Sir Nicholas Paul Scott (5 August 1933 – 6 January 2005), also known as Nick Scott, was a Conservative Party (UK), British Conservative Party politician. He was a liberal, pro-European Conservative who became President of the Tory Reform G ...
MP (and father of Victoria Scott, who was a strong supporter of Rights Now, causing much press comment), had arranged for over 80 wrecking
amendment An amendment is a formal or official change made to a law, contract, constitution, or other legal document. It is based on the verb to amend, which means to change for better. Amendments can add, remove, or update parts of these agreements. They ...
s to be put by five
backbench In Westminster and other parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a member of parliament (MP) or a legislator who occupies no governmental office and is not a frontbench spokesperson in the Opposition, being instead simply a member of t ...
MPs who were hostile to the bill, while he maintained he was "neutral" on the matter; a miss-statement which caused him to have to be replaced soon afterwards by
William Hague William Jefferson Hague, Baron Hague of Richmond (born 26 March 1961) is a British politician and life peer who was Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from 1997 to 2001 and Deputy Leader from 2005 to 2010. He was th ...
MP as the Minister for Disabled People. On 23 May 1994 "a group of disabled activists abandoned their wheelchairs and crawled into the House of Commons in an attempt to lobby their MPs. They were turned away at the normal public entrance - which is inaccessible to wheelchair users - and it took five hours before they were allowed into the parliamentary lobby." Perhaps the largest attended protest Rights Now organised was on 9 July 1994 in
Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster in Central London. It was established in the early-19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. Its name commemorates the Battle of Trafalgar, the Royal Navy, ...
and
Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London, England. The road forms the first part of the A roads in Zone 3 of the Great Britain numbering scheme, A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea, London, Chelsea. It ...
,
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, with an estimated 2,800 people protesting. DAN took part in the protest with their own action, delivering a giant 'letter' to
10 Downing Street 10 Downing Street in London is the official residence and office of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prime minister of the United Kingdom. Colloquially known as Number 10, the building is located in Downing Street, off Whitehall in th ...
for then-Prime Minister
John Major Sir John Major (born 29 March 1943) is a British retired politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997. Following his defeat to Ton ...
MP.


1995

Following the failure of the Roger Berry bill, the next iteration for civil rights was the
Harry Barnes Harry Barnes may refer to: * Sir Harry Barnes (artist) (1915–1982), Scottish artist * Harry Barnes (baseball) (1915–1993), American Negro league baseball player * Harry Barnes (basketball) (born 1945), American basketball player * Harry Barn ...
bill. A report by the
House of Commons Library The House of Commons Library is the library and information resource of the lower house of the British Parliament. It was established in 1818, although its original 1828 construction was destroyed during the burning of Parliament in 1834. Th ...
on this bill, written by staff with no political axe to grind, stated, "The Bill has the overwhelming support of disability groups, who have been campaigning for 10-15 years to establish some form of anti-discrimination legislation." In an unusual move in Parliament, the government introduced its own bill - to become the DDA - to be debated in parallel with the Barnes bill. A report by the
House of Commons Library The House of Commons Library is the library and information resource of the lower house of the British Parliament. It was established in 1818, although its original 1828 construction was destroyed during the burning of Parliament in 1834. Th ...
on the DDA, while it was still a bill, stated, Rights Now is explicitly referenced in this report as one of the 'disability groups' holding these views. The
Disability Discrimination Act 1995 The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (c. 50) (informally, and hereafter, the DDA) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which has now been repealed and replaced by the Equality Act 2010, except in Northern Ireland where the A ...
became law; the Barnes Bill failed.


Criticisms and legacy

In the November 1994 edition of the ''Coalition'' magazine produced by the Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People concentrated on the campaign for civil rights in the wake of the Berry bill. An editorial article by Ian Stanton included the following concerns:Probably one legacy - other than the new law - was in the changes that took place in some of the major national charities ''for'' disabled people (disability organisations) where they started to address the concerns expressed by organisations ''of'' disabled people (disabled people's organisations). Examples of these changes included: employing more disabled people on their staff, involving disabled people more in their publicity plans, and by having more disabled people on their governing bodies controlling the charities. Nevertheless, some significant gaps were said to remain, not least in unequal access to funding. Others took a different view, for example Bob Williams Findlay in 2015 wrote,


References

{{Reflist Health and disability rights organisations in the United Kingdom Disability organisations based in the United Kingdom Organizations established in 1992 Organizations disestablished in 1995