Potential laws on the provincial degree would give municipalities within the province the facility to clear homeless encampments, as Ontario Large Metropolis Mayors (OBCM) look to seek out options to the at the least 1,400 homeless encampments now current in Ontario communities.
Advocates like David Alton, the facilitator of lived experience for the Social Growth Centre Waterloo Area, are working to ensure those that could also be left on the surface after an encampment clearing have a voice.
In contemplating this laws, Premier Doug Ford has not dominated out the potential use of the However Clause, overruling beforehand established courtroom rulings that will prohibit encampment clearings.
In 2023, an Ontario Superior Court docket decide dominated that the Area of Waterloo didn’t have the rights to evict residents of encampments on Victoria Road and Weber Road.
“I would put pressure on the mayors of Waterloo and Kitchener to leverage their platforms to say ‘Our region does not stand for violating people’s right to life’,” mentioned Alton. “There’s still many other councillors both at the region level, but also at the city level, who can also add their voice.”
Alton famous that in different situations of individuals being displaced, like within the case of a pure catastrophe, organizations just like the Crimson Cross would step in and ensure individuals are taken care of, however when individuals experiencing homelessness are displaced, there’s no expectation of assist or care.
He added that native governments might leverage the instruments used in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, like warming tents the place vaccinations have been administered, and arrange tents for people who find themselves being displaced.
“We have people who are experiencing displacement after displacement after displacement, and then once they’re on the streets, they’re constantly spat on by people, denied access to sleep, denied access to the bathroom,” mentioned Alton. “How are we expecting people to stabilize and move through that trauma if we are not giving them the social safety net to help them stabilize and do that.”
Failing to seek out options to those issues, Alton mentioned the group can be violating the essential human rights of these dwelling and being displaced from encampments.
