Disability Day of Mourning Candlelight Vigil

For Immediate Release
FEBRUARY 24 2017 Local Contact: LAST (London Autistic Standing Together)
Phone: 519-473-9235
Email: LondonAutistics@gmail.com
Local Disability Community Commemorates Lives of
Disabled Filicide Victims
LONDON – As part of a nation-wide Day of Mourning, disability rights advocates
in the LONDON area will be holding a vigil on MARCH 1 2017 to honor the lives of disabled people murdered by their families and caretakers
The Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN), which tracks these cases, has compiled
a list of over 700 reported murders of people with disabilities by relatives or caregivers
over the last 35 years. The total number of killings is likely higher than the amount
which are reported in news media. This problem is made worse by irresponsible news
coverage which presents these murders as the sympathetic acts of loving and desperate
parents, by a justice system which often gives a lighter sentence to a parent who kills a
disabled child, and by the dangerous cultural prejudice that says a disabled life is not
worth living.
ASAN held the first Day of Mourning in 2012 as a response to the murder of George
Hodgins, a 22-year-old autistic man from California, by his mother. ASAN has continued
to organize the event each year, partnering with other disability rights groups including
Not Dead Yet, the National Council on Independent Living, the Disability
Rights Education & Defense Fund, ADAPT, and the American Association of People
with Disabilities. Day of Mourning is a national event, with 20-30 participating cities
each year.
Little public attention is paid to the disabled victims of these violent acts. Media coverage
and public discourse about such killings frequently justifies them as “understandable”
and sometimes “merciful,” rather than appropriately condemning these
crimes and those who commit them. The national Day of Mourning is a time for the
disability community to commemorate the many lives cut short. By honoring disabled
victims of murder and celebrating the lives that they lived, these vigils send a message
that disability is not a justification for violence.
The LONDON vigil will be held at VICTORIA PARK North West Corner and begins at 6PM
The Autistic Self Advocacy Network is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization run by and
for autistic people. The Autistic Self Advocacy Network seeks to advance the principles
of the disability rights movement with regard to autism. ASAN believes that the goal of autism advocacy should be a world in which autistic people enjoy the same access, rights, and opportunities as all other citizens. We work to empower autistic people across the world to take control of our own lives and the future of our common community, and seek to organize the autistic community to ensure our voices are heard in the national conversation about us. Nothing About Us, Without Us!