Let’s unpack ableism

How ableism affects us and pride strengthens us

You can read the full transcript of the event here.

You can watch the full recording here.

Event Summary

• This Open Dialogue was about how ableism affects us and pride strengthens us.
• The event was hosted by Skye Cusack and James Parr. Skye is a Dulgubarra-Yidinji writer, journalist, and comedian. James Parr is an award-winning model, speaker, and disability advocate. 
• In the weeks leading up to the event, there was a survey sent out to people who had registered for the event. Skye and James began the event by sharing some interesting things that came out of the survey. This included that 60% of people who took the survey feel ableism happens “all the time.”
• The survey also asked people to share what disability pride meant to them. Some people said disability pride is about being unashamed of needs, embracing authenticity, and upholding the mantra: “Nothing about us without us.”
• The first speaker was Disability Discrimination Commissioner Rosemary Kayess. Commission Kayess addressed recent government announcements regarding NDIS reform. She acknowledged the community’s fear and anxiety regarding potential loss of support and changes to funding eligibility.
• Commission Kayess also talked about how society can normalise impairment. Rosemary Kayess pointed to eyeglasses; while they address a physical impairment, they are seen as a fashion accessory because society has adapted to them, effectively “removing” the disability.
• The next speaker was Laura Naing. Laura talked about barriers faced by those with intellectual disability. One example she gave were doctors speaking to family members and carers instead of the patient. She also stressed the need for medical information in Easy Read formats.
• Laura Naing emphasized that people with disability are the experts of their own health. 
• Following a 10-minute break, Barnaby Lund from DANA was introduced to share stories of how he and his community challenge ableism. 
• Barnaby started Deaf Movies Club Brisbane with his local Deaf community. They hired cinemas and asked them to show movies captions on-screen. Independent cinemas learned that many people benefit from captions, including people who are learning English or young people who are learning to read.
• Then there was an audience Q&A with all the speakers.  
• The event closed with an invitation to register for the May 2026 Open Dialogue event which will be about Disability Arts. We greatly appreciate you taking the time to be part of our event.