When city forces pushed homeless encampments off the rail trail recently, leaving the people living there with no place to go, some of those evicted set up tents at city hall. It’s not an encampment, it’s a protest against the indignity and violence of the city’s clearing of encampments. On Tuesday, bylaw and police officers, parks workers and a contract company showed up at the site, cleared out tents and belongings and issued trespass notices. You can see video here: https://www.instagram.com/p/DKvGngESdEb/
Eight members of our congregation joined about 100 others on Sunday to protest against the city’s ongoing crackdown. There were a few basic messages, which we encourage all of us to email or phone to our mayor and our councillors.
Zeinab Khawaya speaks to the rally last Sunday, urging councillors to meet with people experiencing homelessness. Come and talk with the protestors and listen as they explain what they experience and what they need.
- Stop harassing people in encampments. Forcing them to “move on” achieves nothing. There is no place to go.
- Focus on providing housing and, for some, supports. That’s the only solution.
- In the meantime, provide some place where people can set up tents, with toilets, water and other basics, until homes are available.
- At minimum, if you can’t provide housing, leave people alone to find their own solutions.
The city says it has offered alternatives to encampments—the 80 tiny cabins at Barton-Tiffany (all of which are occupied) and 192 additional homeless shelter spaces. Speakers on Sunday stressed that shelters are not a solution. They are temporary, usually full, available mainly on a first-come, first-served basis, and often aren’t even safe.
Gessie Stearns, who spoke at our church two weeks ago about the encampments, said she understands the protest will continue in some form.
Please take a moment to send an email to the mayor and your city councillor objecting to what the city is doing. A model letter can be found here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1L0hZzrD08u49-S8uiRMvp4uEtctUz6xk/view Urge them to meet with and listen to those at the protest site just outside city hall. Remind them that Canadian law, the National Housing Strategy Act Section 4, the federal government recognizes “that the right to adequate housing is a fundamental human right affirmed in international law, which is consistent with guidance from the United Nations https://www.ohchr.org/en/special-procedures/sr-housing/homelessness-and-human-rights#standards Mention that everyone has a right to be treated with dignity, which is being denied.
Brad Evoy, executive director, Disability Justice Network of Ontario, summarized at Sunday’s protest a series of bills, passed or introduced at Queen’s Park, that will increase fines for trespassing (Bill 6, passed); require landlords to enforce drugs laws (Bill 10, passed), potentially putting social housing providers at risk; end the right of municipalities to have their own requirements related to construction or demolition (Bill 17, passed); Bill 25, not yet passed, will allow the Minister of Community and Social Services to issue directives to organizations it funds on what they can, or can’t, do. The government, Evoy said, even plans to allow special constables to be armed. All of these steps could make life harder for people experiencing homelessness.