Advocate of Individual and Group Rights to Speak at Lakehead U on Disability Issues

(Thunder Bay - March 22, 2005) David Shannon, an advocate committed to advancing individual and group rights, will be making a presentation on disability issues to Lakehead University students, staff, and faculty on Thursday, March 24.

What: Presentation on Disability Issues
When: Thursday, March 24, 2 p.m.
This presentation is not open to the public - it is for Lakehead U campus members only.

MEMBERS OF THE MEDIA: The Media are welcome to attend this presentation. Please call Marla Tomlinson at 343-8177 to confirm.

The Learning Assistance Centre
The services provided by the Learning Assistance Centre are academic support for all of Lakehead's students and services for students with disabilities. The Centre helps students to succeed in their academic studies at Lakehead by complementing the lectures, tutorials, laboratories, practical session, and personal help provided by Lakehead's professors. The Centre's services are provided free of charge.

Biography on David Shannon
David Shannon received his undergraduate degree from Lakehead U and his law degree from Dalhousie University, Halifax. He later attended LL.M. studies at the London School of Economics and Political Science, where his principal area of inquiry was advancing second generation human rights norms. Prior to entering private practice, he took his wheelchair 9,000km across Canada to promote empowerment for disenfranchised communities and greater social inclusion for all Canadians. He then opened David Shannon Law Offices in Thunder Bay. His primary area of practice was in the area of administrative law, although he also divided his time as a member of the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal, Chair of the Accessibility Advisory Council of Ontario and lectureships with the Aboriginal Law and Advocacy program at Negahnewin College, and Lakehead University. During this time, David's advocacy and academic interests centred on civil rights mechanisms that promote freedoms which are in contradistinction to medical/legal forms of incarceration in an environment where there is an absence of community-based supports. This brought him to the Aboriginal Affairs Portfolio, Department of Justice Canada, where he has advised on the Administration of Justice components of Self-Government negotiations, and many community-based justice contribution agreements and treaties. He has recently returned to private practice where he continues to blend legal and public advocacy through individual representation and scholarship. David has been a recipient of the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal.

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Contact: Marla Tomlinson, Office of Communications, 807-343-8177 or 807-472-9113