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  • Choreographing Access: Disability-Led Dance in Canada and Beyond with Dr. Kelsie Acton

    Choreographing Access: Disability-Led Dance in Canada and Beyond with Dr. Kelsie Acton
    2026/06/08
    In this episode of the History in 60 Companion Podcast, host John Loeppky explores inclusive and disability-led dance with Dr. Kelsie Acton. For generations, dance has been defined by uniformity, precision, and bodies moving in specific, codified ways. That definition often left disabled dancers outside the frame. But over the past several decades, disabled artists and companies have redefined what dance can look like, expanding technique, reshaping rehearsal spaces, and embedding access directly into performance itself. Drawing on her experience as a dance artist, inclusive practice leader, and scholar, Dr. Kelsie Acton reflects on how inclusive dance spaces are built, why language around disability and dance continues to evolve, and how access functions for both performers and audiences. Together, they examine how disability history is carried forward not only in archives and books, but in bodies through repertoire, repetition, and creative practice. Watch the full episode on AMI+ Find the Video Podcast on YouTube GUEST BIO Dr. Kelsie Acton is a scholar, access practitioner, and former dance artist whose work explores the intersection of disability culture, performance, and inclusive practice. She previously co-led an integrated disability dance company in Edmonton, Alberta, and later served as Inclusive Practice Manager at Battersea Arts Centre in the United Kingdom, where she helped advance relaxed performance methodology and accessible arts practice. Dr. Acton’s research examines how movement, space, and access shape the experiences of both performers and audiences. She currently works in higher education and collaborates on research projects focused on disability arts and audience access. SHOW NOTES The History in 60 Podcast is the official companion to the television series History in 60 on AMI Television. While the series highlights key moments in Canada’s disability history, the podcast creates space to go deeper, exploring the research, context, and lived experience behind those stories. In this episode, we turn to dance. For many, dance is associated with symmetry, uniformity, and technical precision. For decades, those assumptions shaped who was welcomed into studios and onto stages. Disabled bodies were often excluded, not because they lacked artistry, but because definitions of technique were narrow and inaccessible. Inclusive and disability-led dance has fundamentally challenged that framework. Through experimentation, collaboration, and persistence, disabled artists have expanded movement vocabularies, developed new pedagogies, and asserted that access itself is an artistic practice. This work did not emerge by accident. It was built intentionally, often in spaces not originally designed for disabled performers. In the television episode, we examine how disabled dancers reshaped performance culture by forming disability-led companies, redefining technique on their own terms, and embedding access directly into choreography and staging. The show highlights how artists honor disability history, sustain creative lineages, and position disabled bodies as central to the artistic landscape. John and Dr. Kelsie Acton unpack what it truly takes to build an inclusive dance space, one grounded in clearly articulated values, intentional boundaries, and disability-led leadership rather than broad claims of universality. They explore the evolution of language in the field, from inclusive to mixed-ability to disability-led dance, reflecting shifting cultural conversations and a growing emphasis on agency and authorship. References in this Episode: CRIPSiEBattersea Arts CentreTourette’sHeroCritical Design LabRoyal Central School of Speech and DramaRemote Access ArchiveStopgap Dance CompanyFlatfoot Dance CompanyNational accessArts Centre To Learn More about Dr Acton’s Work: Staff Profile Critical Design Lab Credits: John Loepkky Host & CreatorDr Kelsie Acton, GuestBrent Kawchuk, Co ProducerCali James, Metamorphosis Media Group, Co Producer & NarratorPodcast Studio Camera: Daylen Hartz & Kody NgKade Stevens, KS Media, Editor If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the History in 60 Companion Podcast, leave a rating or review, and share it with someone who might appreciate the conversation. Your support helps more people discover these stories and the history behind them. About AMI AMI is a media company that entertains, informs and empowers Canadians with disabilities through three broadcast services: AMI-tv and AMI-audio in English, plus AMI-télé in French, along with the AMI+ streaming platform. Our vision is to position AMI as a leader in accessible content by amplifying the voices of Canadians with disabilities through authentic storytelling, meaningful representation, and positive portrayal. To learn more visit AMI.ca & AMItele.ca Watch full episodes of your favourite AMI-tv documentaries & series on AMI+ Connect with AMI Online: Instagram @AccessibleMediaINCFacebook @...
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    27 分
  • Who Gets Remembered? Disability, Journalism, and Public Memory in Canada with Clay Ma

    Who Gets Remembered? Disability, Journalism, and Public Memory in Canada with Clay Ma
    2026/06/01
    In this episode of the History in 60 Companion Podcast, host John Loeppky speaks with Clay Ma, bilingual subject editor at The Canadian Encyclopedia, about how disability history gets recorded and how it sometimes disappears. From journalism and editorial decision-making to plain language summaries, alt text, and remote work, this conversation explores the practical and political realities of documenting disability in Canada. What does it mean to have a duty of representation? How do editors decide which stories get told? And how can media institutions create more space for disabled storytellers? Together, John and Clay examine how public memory is shaped not only by major events, but by who is paying attention and who is missing from the newsroom. Watch the full episode on AMI+ Find the Video Podcast on YouTube GUEST BIO Clay Ma is a bilingual subject editor at The Canadian Encyclopedia, published by Historica Canada. Working remotely from Montréal, Clay oversees content across communities, diversity topics, Franco-Canadian history, and Quebec affairs. Her work focuses on equitable representation in national storytelling, editorial accessibility, and expanding coverage of historically underrepresented communities. Clay has contributed to and edited articles on disability culture, immigration history, and diverse cultural communities, helping shape how Canadian history is presented to students, educators, and the broader public. SHOW NOTES The History in 60 Podcast is the official companion to the television series History in 60 on AMI. While the series highlights key moments in Canada’s disability history, this podcast creates space to go deeper and explore the conversations shaping disability culture and public life today. Hosted by John Loeppky, each episode connects the history we see on screen with the people thinking, writing, and working in these areas right now. In this episode, we explore how the media shapes disability history. Disability history is not only defined by legislation or protest movements. It is shaped by journalism, editorial choices, archives, and education. It is shaped by which stories are documented and which are left out. Clay Ma joins us to discuss why editorial decisions matter in shaping public memory, the duty of representation in national publications, how disability history intersects with race, immigration, and other identities, accessibility in publishing including plain language summaries and alt text, the role of remote work in expanding equity of opportunity, and why writing to publications, both to challenge and to celebrate, matters. Clay shares how The Canadian Encyclopedia approaches disability coverage and how initiatives like plain language summaries support students and second-language learners. She explains how translation tools expand access beyond English and French and reflects on the importance of intersectionality in disability history and why national storytelling must move beyond narrow or tokenizing narratives. We also explore what it takes to create space for more disabled people in media and historical work. From flexible leadership and remote employment to broader cultural shifts in how disability expertise is valued, this conversation highlights the systemic changes required to create meaningful equity of opportunity. Referenced in This Episode The Canadian EncyclopediaHistorica CanadaCanadian National Institute for the Blind Socials: The Canadian Encyclopedia Facebook Historica Canada on X Credits Clay Ma – Guest John Loeppky – Host & Creator Brent Kawchuk – Co-Producer Cali James, Metamorphosis Media Group – Co-Producer & Narrator Podcast Studio Camera: Daylen Hartz & Kody Ng Kade Stevens, KS Media – Editor If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the History in 60 Companion Podcast, leave a rating or review, and share it with someone who might appreciate the conversation. Your support helps more people discover these stories and the history behind them. About AMI AMI is a media company that entertains, informs and empowers Canadians with disabilities through three broadcast services: AMI-tv and AMI-audio in English, plus AMI-télé in French, along with the AMI+ streaming platform. Our vision is to position AMI as a leader in accessible content by amplifying the voices of Canadians with disabilities through authentic storytelling, meaningful representation, and positive portrayal. To learn more visit AMI.ca & AMItele.ca Watch full episodes of your favourite AMI-tv documentaries & series on AMI+ Connect with AMI Online: Instagram @AccessibleMediaINCFacebook @AccessibleMediaIncTikTok @AccessibleMediaX / Twitter @AccessibleMedia Email feedback@ami.ca Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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    22 分
  • Soft Landings: Disability History, Peer Support, and the Power of Interdependence with Heather McCain

    Soft Landings: Disability History, Peer Support, and the Power of Interdependence with Heather McCain
    2026/05/25
    In this episode of the History in 60 Companion Podcast, host John Loeppky is joined by Heather McCain, founder and executive director of Live, Educate, Transform Society (LETS) and a proud Crip Doula, for a wide-ranging conversation about disability justice, community care, and how disabled people keep each other alive through mutual aid. Building on the History in 60 TV episode Charter and Change, Heather unpacks what “Crip” means, why disability justice is often misused as a catch-all term, and how disability history gets erased when we flatten people’s identities or ignore the movements that shaped today’s rights. Together, John and Heather explore the strengths and limits of grassroots organizing, the role of cultural knowledge in welcoming newly disabled people into the community, and what it takes to practice sustainable advocacy without sacrificing your health. Watch the full episode on AMI+ Find the Video Podcast on YouTube GUEST BIO Heather McCain is the founder and Executive Director of Live, Educate, Transform Society (LETS) and a Crip Doula, a disability justice term for a disabled person who supports other disabled people navigating complex systems, building resources, and finding community. Based in British Columbia, Heather has worked in disability advocacy for two decades, including consulting with TransLink on accessibility and responding to systemic barriers in public transit. Heather’s work sits at the intersection of disability justice, collective care, and lived experience. Through LETS, they offer peer support groups, workshops, disability history and awareness training, and accessibility learning designed and delivered by disabled and/or neurodivergent facilitators, grounded in intersectionality and community-identified needs. SHOW NOTES The History in 60 Companion Podcast is the official companion to the television series History in 60 on AMI Television. While the series highlights key moments in Canada’s disability history, this podcast creates space to go deeper, connecting what we see on screen with the people shaping disability culture, community, and change today. In this episode, we explore how disabled Canadians fought to be included in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and how that struggle continues to shape disability justice today. Our guest is Heather McCain, founder and executive director of Live, Educate, Transform Society (LETS) and a proud Crip Doula. Heather describes Crip Doula work as disabled to disabled mentorship, skill sharing, and community support, helping people navigate access needs, systems, grief, and identity while building a life they can be proud of. Heather shares how their advocacy began with lived experience, years of being dismissed by medical professionals, the isolation of early disability, and the moment they realized power moved differently when they signed a letter as Executive Director. From writing to transit authorities, to building peer support groups like Chronically Queer, to developing workshops including disability history, Heather’s work is rooted in the needs of community and a commitment to intersectional access. Together, John and Heather explore what Crip can mean and why reclaiming language matters, and why disability justice must remain accountable to its roots, especially centering Black, Indigenous, racialized, and 2SLGBTQIA+ disabled communities who were historically excluded even within disability movements. They unpack how grassroots organizing and legal or top down advocacy feed each other, and why both approaches are necessary to create lasting structural change. The conversation also highlights the importance of disability history, including the stories that are too often erased or dismissed as distant past, and reflects on the divide and shared learning between people born disabled and those with acquired disabilities. Finally, they address sustainability in advocacy, why rest is not something disabled people must earn, and how community care and interdependence are essential in preventing isolation and burnout while building long term movements. Referenced in this Episode: Live, Educate, Transform Society (LETS)Chronically QueerTransLinkColour the TrailsWoodlands (historical institution context)Arsenal Pulp PressRest Is Resistance (Book) CONTACT DETAILS (As Shared in the Interview) Website:https://connectwithlets.orgEmail: hello@connectwithlets.orgInstagram: @connectwithletsFacebook: @connectwithletsNewsletter: sign up via the form at the bottom of any page on the LETS website CREDITS John Loeppky, HostHeather McCain, GuestBrent Kawchuk, Co-ProducerCali James, Metamorphosis Media Group, Co-Producer & NarratorPodcast Studio Camera: Daylen Hartz & Kody NgKade Stevens, KS Media, Editor If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the History in 60 Companion Podcast, leave a rating or review, and share it with someone who might appreciate the conversation. Your support helps more people ...
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    31 分
  • Laughed At to Laughed With: Disability Comedy and Reclaiming the Joke with Yousef Kadoura

    Laughed At to Laughed With: Disability Comedy and Reclaiming the Joke with Yousef Kadoura
    2026/05/18
    In this episode of the History in 60 Companion Podcast, host John Loeppky sits down with actor and writer Yousef Kadoura to explore disability-led comedy, where it comes from, what it pushes back against, and why it matters for disability culture in Canada. From the complicated history of freak shows and “being the joke,” to the power of disabled creators building their own creative spaces and careers, Yousef shares how humour can hold up a mirror to ableism, relieve tension, and make political truth cut through the noise. The duo cover styles of comedy, blunt humour, representation beyond tokenism, and why comedy, done by disabled people, can help preserve disability history in ways audiences actually remember. This conversation continues the themes from AMI’s History in 60 television episode on disability-led comedy, asking what changes when disabled people aren’t just in on the joke, they’re writing it, directing it, and owning it. Watch the full episode on AMI+ Find the Video Podcast on YouTube GUEST BIO Yousef Kadoura is a Canadian actor and writer trained at the National Theatre School of Canada in Montreal. His work spans stage and screen, with a focus on disability arts and performance. He has been part of disability culture spaces including Toronto’s Tangled Art + Disability, and appears in AMI’s disability-led sketch comedy series The Squeaky Wheel, where disabled artists are involved at every level of production. Yousef is also a member of Toronto-based theatre company The Other Hearts Collective, and he’s passionate about disability history, comedy as community connection, and storytelling that punches up, without turning disabled people into the punchline. SHOW NOTES The History in 60 Podcast is the official companion to the television series History in 60 on AMI Television. While the TV series highlights key moments in Canada’s disability history, this podcast creates space to go deeper, blending curated moments from the show with behind-the-scenes context and extended conversations with guests shaping disability culture today. In this episode, we turn to comedy. Disability and humour have a complicated past. For generations, disabled people were laughed at, through freak shows, villain tropes, and punchlines that reinforced stigma and exclusion. But disability-led comedy has increasingly flipped that script: using humour as advocacy, social commentary, and a tool for reclaiming narrative control. John’s extended conversation with Yousef Kadoura dives into what changes when disabled people aren’t just performing comedy, but building the container it happens in. They talk about why “lowbrow” humour can be powerful when it’s disability-led, how Bouffon can be misunderstood (and misused) in training spaces, and how comedy can help draw a line between laughing with disabled people versus laughing at them. They also discuss the importance of disrupting the presumed whiteness of Canadian disability history by expanding access to resources, building truly accessible arts spaces, and making room for the communities most impacted. Referenced in this Episode Tangled Art + DisabilityToronto Metropolitan University (TMU)National Theatre School of Canada To learn more about Yousef’s work: Website The Other Hearts CollectiveInstagram (Other Hearts) CREDITS John Loeppky, Host & CreatorYousef Kadoura, GuestBrent Kawchuk, Co-ProducerCali James, Metamorphosis Media Group, Co-Producer & NarratorPodcast Studio Camera: Daylen Hartz & Kody NgKade Stevens, KS Media, Editor If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the History in 60 Companion Podcast, leave a rating or review, and share it with someone who might appreciate the conversation. Your support helps more people discover these stories and the history behind them. About AMI AMI is a media company that entertains, informs and empowers Canadians with disabilities through three broadcast services: AMI-tv and AMI-audio in English, plus AMI-télé in French, along with the AMI+ streaming platform. Our vision is to position AMI as a leader in accessible content by amplifying the voices of Canadians with disabilities through authentic storytelling, meaningful representation, and positive portrayal. To learn more visit AMI.ca & AMItele.ca Watch full episodes of your favourite AMI-tv documentaries & series on AMI+ Connect with AMI Online: Instagram @AccessibleMediaINCFacebook @AccessibleMediaIncTikTok @AccessibleMediaX / Twitter @AccessibleMedia Email feedback@ami.ca Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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    29 分
  • From Winnipeg to Worldwide: Wheelchair Rugby and Canada’s Disability History with Jessica Kruger

    From Winnipeg to Worldwide: Wheelchair Rugby and Canada’s Disability History with Jessica Kruger
    2026/05/11
    In this episode of the History in 60 Companion Podcast, host John Loeppky explores the Canadian origins and global rise of wheelchair rugby, one of the most intense and strategic sports on four wheels. John sits down with elite athlete Jessica Kruger to talk about how the sport builds community, accelerates independence after injury, and reshapes what people assume is possible for athletes on and off the court. They also dig into the sport’s evolving gender landscape, why a national women’s program matters, and what it means to help build the next era of wheelchair rugby in Canada. Watch the full episode on AMI+ Find the Video Podcast on YouTube GUEST BIO Jessica Kruger is an elite Canadian wheelchair rugby athlete based in British Columbia. After a spinal cord injury at age 15, she found wheelchair rugby through rehabilitation and has spent the past 18 years competing and building sport community, most notably with Team BC and through national women’s development opportunities, including international competition. Beyond sport, Jessica is also an entrepreneur and disability advocate. She founded a custom dessert business called The Stubborn Baker and shares practical, real-world reflections on disability, travel, and accessibility through her social platforms, helping others see what’s possible, even when the world says “you can’t.” SHOW NOTES The History in 60 Podcast is the official companion to the television series History in 60 on AMI Television. While the series highlights key moments in Canada’s disability history, this podcast creates space to go deeper and explore the conversations shaping disability culture and public life today. Hosted by John Loeppky, each episode connects the history we see on screen with the people thinking, writing, and working in these areas right now. In this episode, we turn to rugby and resilience and the Canadian origins and global rise of wheelchair rugby. When you first see eight athletes in wheelchairs smashing into each other on a gym floor, it can be hard to imagine this sport began as a grassroots game built by quadriplegic athletes who wanted something of their own. Wheelchair rugby was born in Manitoba in the 1970s, and what started as “murderball” grew into one of the most exciting sports in the Paralympic Games, now played in dozens of countries around the world. John sits down with Jessica Kruger, an elite athlete with Team BC and a key voice in the evolving national women’s pathway, for an extended conversation about what wheelchair rugby gives athletes beyond the scoreboard. Jessica reflects on how sport can fast-track independence after injury (travel, transfers, driving, self-belief), how the culture of the game pushes athletes to problem-solve, and why visibility matters when you’re trying to imagine your own future as a disabled person. They explore how wheelchair rugby is evolving around gender: from being one of only a handful of women in the sport nationally, to a moment where Canada can realistically develop a women’s team, while still maintaining a co-ed high-performance pathway. Jessica shares what it meant to travel internationally with Canada’s women’s development team, why those opportunities matter at the grassroots level, and what she hopes the next five years will bring for both the women’s game and the broader national program. Referenced in this Episode:G.F. Strong Rehabilitation Centre (Vancouver Coastal Health)Wheelchair Rugby Canada To learn more about Jessica’s work:The Stubborn Baker (Instagram)This Stubborn Life (TikTok) Credits: Jessica Kruger, Guest John Loeppky, Host Brent Kawchuk, Co-Producer Cali James, Metamorphosis Media Group, Co-Producer & Narrator Podcast Studio Camera: Daylen Hartz & Kody Ng Kade Stevens, KS Media, Editor If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the History in 60 Companion Podcast, leave a rating or review, and share it with someone who might appreciate the conversation. Your support helps more people discover these stories and the history behind them. About AMI AMI is a media company that entertains, informs and empowers Canadians with disabilities through three broadcast services: AMI-tv and AMI-audio in English, plus AMI-télé in French, along with the AMI+ streaming platform. Our vision is to position AMI as a leader in accessible content by amplifying the voices of Canadians with disabilities through authentic storytelling, meaningful representation, and positive portrayal. To learn more visit AMI.ca & AMItele.ca Watch full episodes of your favourite AMI-tv documentaries & series on AMI+ Connect with AMI Online: Instagram @AccessibleMediaINCFacebook @AccessibleMediaIncTikTok @AccessibleMediaX / Twitter @AccessibleMedia Email feedback@ami.ca Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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    21 分
  • History in 60: The Podcast - Coming Soon!

    History in 60: The Podcast - Coming Soon!
    2026/03/27

    The new TV & Podcast series "History in 60" Is Finally Here....And It Starts with Murderball

    A brand new series has arrived… and we’re starting with a sport that hits HARD. In this first episode of History in 60, we dive into the origins of Murderball — the intense, full-contact sport now known as wheelchair rugby. Built on speed, strategy, and impact, it changed the game forever. This is history… faster, louder, and more exciting than ever.

    Catch new episodes every Monday starting March 30th, with the TV series airing on AMI-tv and streaming on AMI+, and the Podcast available wherever you get your podcasts!

    About "History in 60"

    John Loeppky tells the stories of Canada’s evolving disability history in 60 seconds.

    Watch full episodes on AMI+

    About AMI

    AMI is a media company that entertains, informs and empowers Canadians with disabilities through three broadcast services: AMI-tv and AMI-audio in English, plus AMI-télé in French, along with the AMI+ streaming platform. Our vision is to position AMI as a leader in accessible content by amplifying the voices of Canadians with disabilities through authentic storytelling, meaningful representation, and positive portrayal.


    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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    1 分