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WeThe15: Global campaign aims to end disability discrimination

Multiple leading international organisations have united to launch WeThe15: a decade-long campaign to transform the lives of the world’s 1.2 billion disabled people. Launched ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, WeThe15 aims to end discrimination towards disabled people and act as a global movement publicly campaigning for disability visibility, accessibility, and inclusion.

WeThe15 global disability campaign image. Photo credit: International Paralympic Committee.

Spearheaded by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and International Disability Alliance (IDA), WeThe15 brings together the biggest coalition ever of international organisations from the worlds of sport, human rights, policy, business, arts, and entertainment. Together they will work with governments, businesses, and the public over the next decade to initiate change for disabled people, who make up 15% of the global population.

It is harnessing sport’s unique ability to engage massive global audiences and create positive change. The IPC, Special Olympics, Invictus Games Foundation and the International Committee of Sports for the Deaf (Deaflympics) have teamed up for the first time in history. The four organisations will use the profile of their international sport events and athlete communities to raise awareness and understanding of the issues facing disabled people around the globe.

Aligned with the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, WeThe15 aims to change attitudes and create more opportunities by:

  • Putting disabled people at the heart of the diversity and inclusion agenda
  • Implementing a range of activities targeting governments, businesses, and the public to drive social inclusion for disabled people
  • Breaking down societal and systemic barriers that are preventing disabled people from fulfilling their potential and being active members of society 
  • Ensuring greater awareness, visibility, and representation of disabled people
  • Promoting the role of assistive technology as a vehicle to driving social inclusion 

IPC President, Andrew Parsons said:

“WeThe15 aspires to be the biggest ever human rights movement for persons with disabilities and aims to put disability right at the heart of the inclusion agenda, alongside ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation.
“Sport, and events such as the upcoming Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, are hugely powerful vehicles to engage global audiences. By partnering with Special Olympics, Invictus Games, and Deaflympics, there will be at least one major international sport event for persons with disabilities to showcase WeThe15 each year between now and 2030. These sports events add great value to the campaign and underline the hugely positive impact sport can have on society. I strongly believe WeThe15 could be a real game-changer for persons with disabilities.”

As the leading voice for disabled people in sport and activity in England, Activity Alliance welcomes this global initiative to create meaningful change across the world.

Barry Horne, Activity Alliance’s Chief Executive said:

“We wholeheartedly support the ‘WeThe15’ campaign. Everything we do and all that we stand for is shaped by our determination to change attitudes and increase opportunities for disabled people in sport and activity.
“We need to raise awareness of the barriers and collaboratively drive change. The pandemic has widened the inequalities that already existed - only 3 in 10 (30%) disabled people say disabled people have the same opportunity to be active as non-disabled people - and we must tackle this head on.
“Celebrating disabled people’s talents every four years is not enough for the change required to bridge the huge gap between disabled and non-disabled people’s activity. To see commitment for a global sporting event every year until 2030 is absolutely fantastic and a huge positive step forward in our collective ambitions to close the fairness gap.”

Earlier this year, Activity Alliance unveiled our new three-year organisational strategy and plans to achieve fairness for disabled people. Sport and activity play an important role in our nation’s health so must be a level playing field for everybody. WeThe15 supports our ambition to close the fairness gap – this is the gap between disabled people’s levels of inactivity and that of non-disabled people. We aim to close the gap within a generation by focussing on two clear goals:

  1. Embedding inclusive practice into organisations, and
  2. Changing attitudes towards disabled people in sport and activity

Over the next three years and beyond, Activity Alliance will continue to push for inclusion to be at the heart of all plans in sport and activity. We will not settle until every disabled person can reap the same physical health, mental health, and social benefits as non-disabled people.

Activity Alliance is proud to support WeThe15 and play our part to remove societal barriers and unlock the value of sport and activity for disabled people.

Find out more about WeThe15 and how you can get involved at www.wethe15.org