The annual observance of the International Day of  Disabled Persons was proclaimed in 1992 by United Nations. It aims to promote the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities in all spheres of society and development, and to increase awareness of the situation of persons with disabilities in every aspect of political, social, economic and cultural life.

According to the UN, did you know:

• Of the 1 billion (1,000,000,000) population of persons with disabilities, 80% live in developing countries.
• An estimated 46% of older people aged 60 years and over are people with disabilities.
• One in every five (5) women is likely to experience disability in her life while one (1) in every ten (10) children is a child with a disability.
• Persons with disabilities in the world are among the hardest hit by COVID-19.

UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) will mark the International Day of Persons with Disabilities with this year's theme: "Building back better: towards an inclusive, accessible and sustainable post COVID-19 world by, for and with persons with disabilities".

People with disabilities are disproportionately affected by the health, social and economic consequences of the global COVID-19 pandemic. In this context, this year's theme emphasizes the importance of strengthening our collective efforts for universal access to essential services, including immediate health and social protection, education, digital infrastructure, accessible information, employment and other socio-cultural opportunities in order to ensure that persons with disabilities are not left behind in times of crisis and beyond. For more information, go here: https://en.unesco.org/commemorations/personswithdisabilitiesday.

Things we can do RIGHT NOW:

1. Read over the landmark civil rights law, Americans with Disability Act (ADA): https://adata.org/learn-about-ada
2. Check out this 2018 10 Facts about Disabilities: https://www.who.int/news-room/facts-in-pictures/detail/disabilities
3. Explore The ARC of Washington website and learn more: https://arcwa.org
4. Today commit OR recommit yourself to upholding the rights, dignity, and inclusion of persons with disabilities at home and around the world.

We want to bring attention to
National Observances & Commemorative Months
as well as UN International Days.
Check out our article about this!