Disability Rights and Culture

30/09/2026

Nominate someone in our community who has made a real difference in advancing disability rights.

Link here: https://drc.org.au/disability-pride-and-culture/frank-hall-bentick-award/

Closing date: October 31st 2026

Please note: you can nominate yourself.

Frank was one of Australia's most prolific and celebrated disability advocates.

Image description:
Frank Hall-Bentick award
For services to the Victorian disability community
Do you know someone who champions disability rights?
Someone who makes a difference in the disability community?
Nominate them for this award.
A picture of Frank Hall-Bentick smiling and the official DRC logo.

25/09/2026

Disability Rights and Culture proudly supports Belong DRC

Belong is a community created by and for disabled people. It's free to join. And, we are trying to grow this wonderful community.

Come along to one of our events as a taster session.

Message us on here, or send us an email [email protected]

Based in Melbourne, Victoria.

Image description:
speech bubble testimonial from a belong member reads: Belong has brought me so much joy. I have been searching my whole life for a tribe like this. An illustrated picture of people standing together, two of them are wheelchair users, two others are using mobility aids. Belong is supported by drc. Our number is 0396713000

22/09/2026

Take action this election. Click this link to instantly contact your local candidate, and demand change for the disability community. There's an email template, that you can change or send exactly as it is.
All you have to do is enter your postcode.

Please share this post, spread the word, and click the link:
https://disabilityinvictoria.good.do/disabilityelectionasks/email-candidates

If you have any questions, please comment here, message us, or email on [email protected]

Image descriptions:
The official Disability Rights and Culture logo heads up two text-based images.
Take action this election. People with disability must not be ignored. We've made an email template, all you have to do is clink the link in our post.
What does our email ask?
We are asking local candidates to make a public commitment to the disability community.
Listen to us. Protect our rights.

22/09/2026

DRC has a new instagram account

Please follow our new page!

We will still post here for the next few weeks to make sure our followers have all the information.

We have some big things in store at DRC, please follow so you don't miss out.

Image description:
the official disability rights and culture logo headlines an image with a mobile phone displaying our new instagram account. The text reads: ANNOUNCEMENT
DRC has a new Instagram account:

09/09/2026

Re-share from Belong! We are holding a very special Art & Making workshop this October. Larissa and Ally are going to teach us how to make Shiny Shoes!

If you are not a Belong member, you can attend up to 3 taster sessions before deciding whether you would like to join.

What are Shiny Shoes?

Shiny Shoes are old or plain footwear that have been transformed into sparkling, metallic pieces of wearable art using foils or metal leaf.

What do you need to bring?

Bring yourself, AND a pair of shoes that you want to make shiny! This can be an old pair of shoes, or just plain shoes that you want to make more special. If you have any questions, comment on this post or message us.

We will provide all the art supplies you need, and the instructions.

Book your free ticket here: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/shiny-shoes-art-making-october-tickets-1999976460431?aff=oddtdtcreator

20/08/2026

19/08/2026

The NDIS Bill has passed.
240,000 people set to be removed from the Scheme by 2031. Another 110,000 blocked from ever getting in. $37.8 billion taken out of disability support.

More than 4,500 submissions went to the Senate inquiry. Six days of hearings. Disabled people said exactly what this would cost us, in detail, on the public record.
Parliament passed it anyway.

Two things we want you to hear today.
If you are an NDIS participant: your plan does not change today. Nothing disappears because of a vote in Canberra. The changes come in stages, and they mostly reach you when your plan is reassessed. Every decision made about you can be reviewed. If you get a letter, a call or an assessment request you do not understand, do not sign it and do not ignore it. Talk to an advocate.

If you are in government: we are keeping the receipts. Every support lost. Every home put at risk. Every person told they no longer count. We will be documenting what this does to disabled Victorians, and we will be bringing it back to you.

You have not lost your rights. You have not lost your community.
Nothing about us, without us. That did not stop being true today.

20/07/2026

Crip!

At DRC we are using the word crip for our upcoming disability pride event! Jax Brown-LGBTIQA+ Disability Activist & Educator, Babes with Mobility Aids and Jarrod Giustino Sandell-Hay break down the history of the word, the power it holds and why we are using it at DRC!

Disability Pride Celebration is on 31 July 2-5pm at Trades Hall Carlton (and online!)
Book your FREE ticket now via the link in our bio!
We'll have exciting performances, games and prizes, and a chance to connect and celebrate with the community.
Share this post!
Help us spread the word!
If you have any questions, please email us:
[email protected]
Event link in the comments!

18/07/2026

Our hilarious MC for Disability Pride is Sonia Di Iorio
Critically acclaimed stand-up comedian and TV Writer, we cannot wait for Sonia to host our performances on 31 July.

Book tickets: www.drc.org.au

Sonia has opened for Ronny Chieng and performed on the Roast of Tommy Little. She won Spleen Comic of the Year, and her TV writing credits include The Project, The Logies, Sam Pang Tonight. And, in 2025 she began performing stand-up in Italian.

Image Description: Two Images. First Image is Sonia Di Iorio's professional Headshot with the Words MC and Disability Pride, Friday 31 July 2-6pm at Trades Hall. Sonia is brightly smiling and looking at the camera. Second Image is Sonia's professional bio, as written above in this post.

17/06/2026

We’re not going back.
To the abuse, the neglect, the exploitation and the discrimination experienced by people with intellectual disability before the NDIS.

It hasn’t been perfect but the NDIS - and what it promised - is worth fighting for.

Be part of the conversation at VALID’s Advocacy in Action Conference on June 22 & 23, 2026

From 9.00am to 4.30pm at the Novotel Hotel Function Centre.

To register, go to Humanitix at: https://events.humanitix.com/advocacy-in-action-conference-2026

Please contact the VALID Office for more information.

Phone: (03) 9416 4003. Email: [email protected]

Image Description:
Text: “WE’RE NOT GOING BACK. Voices must be heard. The future must include us.”
Collage of photos featuring self advocates speaking up at last year’s Advocacy in Action conference.
Along the bottom an orange banner with the graphic of a person holding a megaphone. Text: “June 22 and 23. Advocacy in Action Conference 2026. Register Now.”