June 1st is Red Shirt Day (of Action for AccessAbility & Inclusion)

Celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, Easter Seals Canada is also set to celebrate its fourth annual Red Shirt Day, a national day of action for “AccessAbility” and inclusion of Canadians with disabilities. Manitoba Possible, the provincial arm of Easter Seals Canada, is excited to invite Manitobans to participate.

Across the country on Red Shirt Day, Canadians everywhere join together and wear red in schools, workplaces, and community spaces. This visible show of support is a way for Canadians to acknowledge the achievements of people with disabilities and to pledge their commitment to helping create a fully accessible and inclusive society that honours and values the contributions of people of all abilities in all aspects of life. Red Shirt Day has quickly gained momentum, with more and more individuals and organizations sharing photos of themselves wearing red on their social media accounts each year.

Established by Easter Seals in 2019 as a national initiative to increase awareness of the contributions that people with disabilities can and do make to Canadian society, Held each year on the Wednesday during National AccessAbility Week (NAAW) and Manitoba Access Awareness Week (MAAW), Red Shirt Day 2022 will take place on Wednesday, June 1st. National AccessAbility Week runs from Sunday, May 29th to Saturday, June 4th this year,
while Manitoba Access Awareness Week runs May 30th through June 5th

Easter Seals Manitoba / Manitoba Possible CEO, Dana Erickson (he/him), notes, “This Red Shirt Day, we recognize the more than 175,000 Manitobans with disabilities for their resilience, particularly in light of the pandemic. This year we also acknowledge that we still have much work to do in advocating for greater accessibility, inclusion, and equity in our communities for Manitobans with disabilities.”

“We encourage all Manitobans to join in Red Shirt Day, demonstrating support for and celebrating achievements of peoples with disabilities,” says Erickson, noting that there are several ways to get involved:

On Wednesday, June 1st, 2022, post a selfie or a group photo with friends, classmates or colleagues – all wearing red – on social media, using the hashtags: #RedShirtDay, #RedForAccessAbility, #RedShirtESMB,
#MakeItPossible

• Take and share your personal Red Shirt Day Pledge on social media.

• Join the Red Shirt Day mailing list to receive updates on Red Shirt Day and free resources to help youmark National AccessAbility Week and Red Shirt Day.

For more information and ideas, visit manitobapossible.ca/redshirtday or redshirtday.ca
.