Rabia Khedr is the first visually impaired, Muslim woman to be appointed to the Human Rights Commission.
Rabia Khedr was appointed part time to the Human Rights Commission among five other individuals.She said ”I feel honored, excited, energized because I’m getting to put my passion into action into a different level” She is an advocate and volunteers for accessibility, Women and the Muslim community.Khedr is also a founder of Canadian Association of Muslim with Disabilities (CAM-D). She is also a member of the Mississauga Accessibility Advisory Committee, which Khedr chaired for eight years.
As a child growing up in Canada Khedr was not able to participate in recreational activates or religious learning due to her visual impairment and as a result had to advocate for herself. One of the many barriers that she faced was being excluded from courses in school due to her vision loss and the fact that she had a hard time receiving accommodation in school. Khedr starting volunteering in the community level after she became a mother. She hopes to take what she learned from barriers that Khedr and her family had to face and help enforces change. She stated, “ I believe in a exclusive society.I really believe genially and whole heartily in human right” As a mother I got into volunteering in the community level to create opportunities for my kids especially my girls, the things I couldn’t access growing up” said Kheder. “Being blind I’m not distracted by unnecessary information, so I spend more time doing” By being appointment to the human right commission Khder hopes to bring perceptive of racialized women, racialized women individuals with disabilities, Muslim women. She also hopes to add to conversation about human rights,
Khedr is now the executive director of CAM-D, the CEO of Deen Support services and now also run The Muslim Council of Peel. The Muslim Council of Peel ‘coordinates efforts with mosques around public relations and awareness rising “. The Mississauga Accessibility Advisory Committee helps to implanted, access for disabilities, through facilities in the city. “It’s been about ensuring the accessibility standers that are legislated under the AODA and under the old ODA are infect implemented effectively”. Deen Support Service is an organization that she created. Deen Support Services is a program for adults and teens with disabilities. One of the programs that Deen Support Services offers is The Day Program. This program offers recreational programs on weekends for individuals with disabilities.
It also offers skills building. Aliyah yusuf the program stated “ What happened over the years that these individuals who did not know each other, who just came to the program, they started building friendships and that very important because some of them did not have friends”
Fatima Baig 