TORONTO (CUP) — About 60 people camped out in front of Ontario’s legislature the night of Nov. 22.

They spread cardboard, tarps and sleeping bags on the ground, some of them in solidarity with Toronto’s homeless population and some of them because that’s what they do every night in various parts of Toronto.

Earlier in the day, six people were removed by police and issued trespass notices for trying to set up tents. They were told they would be arrested if they returned.

“People refused to take down the structures, because the housing crisis is so bad that people continue to die on the streets, and pitching a tent hardly seems like a crime compared to letting people die on the streets,” said Danielle Koyama of the Toronto Disaster Relief Committee, which organized the camp.

Koyama said they were prepared to spend the night across the street from the main group, but were told later in the day they could return.

By 10 p.m., the police and security presence had dwindled and many had settled down for the night, though volunteers kept popping in with another carafe of coffee, or a few more sandwiches.

This was the second Sleep Out in as many days organized by the committee. But while the Nov. 21 Sleep Out at Toronto city hall was a solidarity action with the many people who spend their nights there, this time, organizers had a definite message for Premier Dalton McGuinty and his Liberal government.

Kathy Hardill, a committee member and street nurse, is asking the government to fulfil promises it has already made, including funding 35,000 new rent supplements for low income housing.

“It’s not like we’re asking for outrageous things. They’ve said we’ll do it; we’re saying, come on, it’s been a year, we gotta do it, people are dying. Here in Toronto we have two homeless people die every week, it’s a high, high rate of mortality,” said Hardill.

She also wants Ontario to match the $350 million promised by Ottawa to build about 20,000 new affordable homes. The money was first promised in 2001, but until the province matches it, it will continue to sit in the bank.

The Toronto Disaster Relief Committee also advocates the so-called one per cent solution. Currently each level of government spends about one per cent of its total budget on public housing. An additional one per cent at each level of government would significantly help alleviate homelessness.

-REKA SZEKELY
CUP ONTARIO BUREAU CHIEF