To mark the forthcoming Children's Day in Mexico, on April 23, 2025, Disability Rights International and the Mexico City Institute for People with Disabilities organized the International Forum "Children and Adolescents with Disabilities: Perspectives, Rights and Challenges" set out to foster a space for dialogue and reflection of the diverse challenges faced by children and adolescents with disabilities and their support networks and families in different contexts. Children with disabilities, civil society representatives, researchers and public officials named the social exclusion, discrimination and violence that impacts these children with disabilities across Mexico and Latin America. We covered topics ranging from the lack of opportunities for community living to prevent institutionalization, to obstacles in the access to justice, to the dreams of recognition and inclusion of children with disabilities.

The participating organizations included UNICEF Mexico, the Network for the Rights of the Child in Mexico (REDIM), the vice chair of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), the Mexico Federation for the Deaf (FEMESOR), Argentina's National Public Defender's Office and the Civil Association for Equality and Justice (ACIJ). Also, we had the participation of experts and public officials, but the most important was to hear the participation and the voices of children and adolescents with disabilities.

Access the recording of the event in Spanish is available here: https://youtu.be/tY6Lzv1ZrSA