UPDATE: THE TIME OF THE PROTEST HAS CHANGED TO 12 P.M. TO 1 P.M..
A protest is scheduled to take place outside the Cochrane Provincial Building on Tuesday, May 6 in response to the Alberta government’s decision not to pass along the new federal Canada Disability Benefit (CDB) to recipients of Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH).
Organizers say the demonstration, set for 12 to 1 p.m. at 217 1st St. W., by Centennial Plaza in the Historic Downtown, will include speeches, music and the distribution of informational materials.
Protesters argue the provincial government’s plan offsets the federal supplement rather than increasing the overall income for those who are unable to work. While AISH payments are not being directly reduced, critics say treating the CDB as a replacement rather than a top-up fails to support the goal of lifting people with disabilities out of poverty.
Elise Neven-Pugh, one of the organizers, says AISH recipients receive about $1,900 per month.
“A lot of people are outraged because AISH is still well below the poverty line,” she says. “They are playing with people’s lives. A lot of people depend on AISH and other assistance for housing and to buy food.
“The hope and the goal is that the provincial government will realize the discontent over their decision and rethink what they’re doing.”
She says many are fearful of speaking out, and she’s hopeful people will join them at the protest.
“We have to stand up, because a lot of people are living with their heads down and don’t want to rock the boat in fear of losing what they have. But at the same time, people need to understand.
“If able-bodied people come out, maybe we can break the divide, reconcile the history of ignorance, heal some of the wounds, and take an example from our First Peoples’ brothers and sisters.”
The Cochrane protest is being held in solidarity with a larger demonstration in Edmonton the same day, organized by the non-profit advocacy group Barrier-Free Alberta.