Kenneth Orville Davis (born 16/5/1934 - died 21/12/2008)
Ken Davis will be remembered as one of the most important and influential unsung heroes in the on going struggle for equal citizenship and social justice for disabled and non-disabled people the world over. A passionate and committed socialist, he was a true pioneer and key figure in Britain's disabled people's movement. His politics and activism have had an unprecedented impact on disability policy and practice both nationally and internationally.
A former miner in Morton Pit, Derbyshire, Ken became quadriplegic from a diving accident while doing national service with the RAF in Aden in 1961. In 1972 he, along with other disabled people, formed the Union of the Physically Impaired Against Segregation (UPIAS) in 1972. This was a small group of disability activists that rejected the then orthodox personal tragedy view of disablement in favour of a more socio/political account, the social model of disability, now the driving force behind policy development in Britain and across the world.
Also in 1972, operating from a tiny cloakroom in Cressy Fields residential Home, Derbyshire, Ken established Britain's first telephone Disablement Information and Advice Line (DIAL). This triggered the development of a nationwide network of similar local services that formed DIAL UK. At the same time he and his disabled activist wife Maggie, were deeply involved in the creation of the UK's first integrated housing complex. The Grove Road housing scheme opened in 1976 comprising six flats, three of which were fully accessible for wheelchair users. This breakthrough project enabled Ken and Maggie to leave the Home and live alongside non-disabled people within the community in a mutually supportive environment. The Grove Road project provided an important example for similar projects throughout Britain and Europe.
In 1981, the International Year of Disabled People, Ken was the principal architect of Britain's first grass roots organisation of disabled people: the Derbyshire Coalition of Disabled People (DCODP), and later, the Derbyshire Centre for Integrated Living (DCIL). DCIL is an organisation controlled and run by disabled people. Since 1985 it has provided a county wide range of services for disabled people clustered around what is generally referred to as 'the seven needs for independent living': information, peer support, housing, technical aids and equipment, personal assistance, transport and access. The first of its kind in the UK DCIL pioneered the idea of disabled people running their own services. All of which is now enshrined in government policy statements in Britain, the European Commission and around the world.
A life long committed campaigner against all forms of social injustice Ken was a long term supporter of CND and Amnesty International. He was a voracious reader with a love of literature and poetry and his many writings have inspired disability activists and scholars across the UK. A proud father, grandfather and great grandfather his passing will leave a gaping hole in many people's lives. His warm hearted, quiet dignity and wisdom was and will remain a constant inspiration to all who had the good fortune to know him.
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