Invitation to Saskatchewan Launch!

People First of Saskatchewan will host a launch of The Freedom Tour documentary in

Saskatoon November 8, 2008 at the Broadway Theatre
Doors open at 6:00 pm - Show starts at 7:00 pm &
Regina November 9, 2008 at the Regina Public Library
Doors open at 1:00 pm - Show starts at 2:00 pm

People First of Canada began this tour in August of 2007 because they were upset that the Manitoba Government had made an announcement to put 40 million dollars into “improving” the Manitoba Developmental Centre, which houses people with intellectual disabilities.

With the help of People First of Canada, the three prairie People First groups and The National Film Board, the Freedom Tour was born. The goal of the People First movement is to bring people out of institutions and into the community of their choice. People First is about supporting the idea that labels are not a good way of defining a person; that just being different or slower doesn't mean that we should be treated any differently than anyone else.

People First of Canada started out in Manitoba and came to Regina and Saskatoon to ask bring other members along to join the Freedom Tour. Three members joined them, went to Valley View Centre in Moose Jaw and brought more people from Saskatchewan along. They held a candle light vigil at the graveside there. We were told up until that night that there was no graveside at Valley View Centre. But with the help of one of our members who lived at the institution. Next the group drove to Alberta and did some filming at Michener Centre in Red Deer. They were locked out and not allowed inside the institution. But they talked to people who had lived their life in the institution.

The point of the film is to show government and the public what is wrong with living in the institutions and how people are treated inside them. The idea that institutions have improved with time is a myth. People First can bust this myth by showing this film to as many people as possible! Our hope and dream is to Free Our People!

Why should you care to attend? So you can see the injustice that happens to people in institutions. The film is graphic and upsetting. But we are okay with that if it teaches even one person that this is wrong. Then more people would learn the truth about institutions.

Please join us for this world-changing event! Refreshments will be served

16 people, 4 vehicles, 3 provinces, 2 cameras, 1 goal… Free Our People!

For more information, please call
Tracey Ward (President-People First of Saskatchewan @ 306 545-6129
or the Provincial Advisor: Diane Otterbein @ 306 373-5614

Welcome to People First of Saskatchewan

Hello,

This is a blog dedicated to update our community about our activities in the Province of Saskatchewan!  We expect to have it linked up to our website shortly and will keep you posted about that.  

For now, we would like to tell people more about us and what we do!  We are a group of adults who have been labelled with intellectual disabilities at one time or another in our lives. We have about 80 members at this time and we are working hard to let people know we are here.

People First of Saskatchewan has been around since the early 1980's.  Over time we have seen lots of changes in the world of self advocacy.  Some positive and some negative.

We are new to this blogging thing so please feel free to tell us what you want to know.  We will try to answer questions and make sure we have good information about the world of self-advocacy. 

Keep in touch!

People First