People with disabilities and their families often experience, or are at least vulnerable to, discrimination, neglect, exploitation or abuse. Their rights, whether human rights or legal rights, are commonly denied. Access to ways of enforcing those rights, while readily available to many others in society, may be restricted or denied to people with disabilities. Resources necessary to ensure the honouring and equitable recognition of those rights are often not provided. Where there are no recognised rights available to assist in a struggle for justice, something more is needed. Even where rights exist something more than the mere existence of rights is needed if those rights are to be respected, honoured, and protected. That "something more" is advocacy.

What is Advocacy?

There are many definitions of advocacy and much debate exists regarding which one is the most appropriate to use. Having a definition of advocacy is necessary so that we have something to refer to, to check against and to encourage discussion about what we are doing. Action for Advocacy Development uses the following definition, which is based on the work of Dr Wolf Wolfensberger. Advocacy groups in Australia discussed this definition during a National Advocacy Workshop in Sydney in June 1994. Most of these elements were agreed to.

Advocacy is speaking, acting and writing with minimal conflict of interest on behalf of the sincerely perceived interests of a disadvantaged person or group to promote, protect and defend their welfare and justice by:

• being on their side and no-one else's,
• being primarily concerned with their fundamental needs,
• remaining loyal and accountable to them in a way which is emphatic and vigorous and which is, or is likely to be, costly to the advocate or advocacy group.

Key elements of Advocacy

There are a number of key elements mentioned directly or implied by the definition of advocacy.

1. Functioning by speaking out, acting or writing.

Advocacy is active. It involves doing something. It may be writing letters to politicians, raising issues of concern to organisations or services, being with a person when they are confronted with situations they find difficult, being with a person where they could be taken advantage of or fighting for a person's right to live a more fulfilling life.

2. Minimal conflict of interest.

This issue lies at the core of advocacy and is one of the hardest, most important issues to come to grips with. In any situation there will be more than one person's or group's interests that will be in conflict or competition with the interest of a person with a disability. When you are in an advocacy role, you need to be clear as to how your interests and needs may be in conflict with the person for whom you are advocating. As an advocate you must identify and attempt to minimalise these conflicts of interest or, at least, be prepared to acknowledge your limitations as an advocate.

3. Sincerely perceived interests.

This issue is one of the most complex and difficult issues for advocates to address. The advocate does not just speak up for what a person may want or what a person may be interested in. Advocates will be faced with making decisions about a person with a disability's life and well being and may be the only one in that person's life who has a positive vision for that person's future in the long term. When what a person says they want is different from what seems to be in their best interests, advocates are faced with a difficult dilemma.

4. Promotion of person's welfare, well being and justice.

As an advocate you do this precisely because the well being of, and justice for, disadvantaged devalued people is often at risk. Things we take for granted are often not available for people with disabilities. Devalued people are apt to be treated as sub-human with all the degrading, inhumane treatment that accompanies such notions of devalued people and people with disability in particular.

5. Vigour of action

Advocacy requires:

• fervour and depth of feeling in advancing the cause or interest of another,
• taking a lead, initiating,
• sense of urgency,
• doing more than what is done routinely,
• challenging the community,

6. Costs

Advocacy can involve costs to the advocate and to the person needing advocacy and these costs must be considered. To say that advocacy costs, is not to say that people with disability are costly to be with. The cost element of advocacy reflects the demands of all strong advocacy, whether for people with disability or advocacy for another purpose, for example, environmental causes. Recognising that advocacy costs, helps advocates to prepare and understand what may happen to them when they do advocacy. People with disability need advocates who are prepared and able to be there for the long haul.

Types of Advocacy

A number of different types of advocacy exist. Sometimes only two types of advocacy are talked about - individual and systems.

1. Individual Advocacy

Here the advocate concentrates their advocacy efforts on one or two people only. There are two common forms of individual advocacy.

1. Informal advocacy. Parents, brothers and sisters, relatives, friends who take on advocacy roles are all examples of informal, individual advocacy.
2. Voluntary community based organisations that pay staff to advocate for individuals, is another form of individual advocacy. In Queensland, organisations such as Speaking Up For You and Independent Advocacy in the Tropics operate in this way.

2. Systems Advocacy

This form of advocacy is primarily concerned with influencing and changing the system in ways that will benefit people with a disability as a group within society. Systems advocates will encourage changes to the law, government and service policies and community attitudes. Usually systems advocacy do not do individual advocacy. To do so can cause conflict around the use of resources, focus and purpose. Queensland Advocacy Incorporated and Queensland Parents for People with a Disability are examples of organisations in Queensland that take a systems view.