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Lest we forget: Poverty in Canada
Poverty in Canada and Toronto is spreading under Harper and Dalton McGuinty, and it’s important we not forget the facts as the financial crisis gets thrown to the forefront:
500,000+ homeless people across Canada
4,000+ homeless people on Toronto streets & in overcrowded, disease-ridden shelters
70,000+ underhoused, at-risk families on Toronto’s “social housing” waiting list during last 5 years
100,000+ people forced to use food banks in Ontario
50,000+ children are hungry everyday in the GTA
5,000,000+ Canadian citizens ‘live’ in poverty
100,000+ Aboriginal people on federal reserves are poor, underhousesd, seriously ill (e.g, diabetes, HIV-AIDS, TB), addicted, denied basic sanitation facilities (e.g. no flush toilet, substandard water & sewage treatment plants), and lack essential health services
100,000+ Aboriginal people and environment are threatened by Canadian logging, mining, paper mill, gas-and-oil companies that plunder their land, poison their health, destabilize ecosystems, pollute the environment itself.
500,000+ psychiatric survivors in Canada are or have been seriously abused and denied fundamental civil rights, Charter and human rights—incarceration without trial or public hearing, labeling with bogus or pseudo-medical diagnoses (e.g.”schizophrenia”,”bipolar”, “ADHD”..), physically restraints, chemically restraints and forced drugging, electroshock (“ECT”), torture, humiliation, marginalization and stigmatization.
the Harper-neocon government has betrayed millions of citizens by its broken promises and failures to initiate national affordable housing strategy, national anti-poverty strategy, and national child care strategy, and a national drug plan (“Pharmacare”); in response to the global economic crisis, the Harper government recently tried to destroy trade unions by proposing a 2-year ban on the right to strike but soon revoked the proposal because of public & political pressure.
the Ontario-McGuinty government has betrayed and failed 100,000+ poor people: by its refusal to repeal the conservative-Harris government’s 21.6% cutback in social welfare payments; its bureaucratic tactics that cause long delays and hardships in processing poor people’s applications for special diet supplements; its refusal to raise the minimum wage to $10; its failure to build many thousands of urgently-needed affordable housing units across the province; its refusal to repeal the Safe Streets Act which criminalizes thousands of poor youth who are forced to panhandle on the street.
Deaths caused by psychiatric drugs, electroshock, physical restraints, Tasers, hospital & and government cover-ups.
Matthew Brett is the Canadian Dimension weblog manager. The views expressed on this blog do not necessarily represent his own. Read more by Matthew Brett.
A fighter i am, but need everyone’s help….
I am A diabtic, and trying to get the curefrom denise Faustman at Mgh Hospital boston. tese trips to get there cost me out ofownpocket, hence 200 for each trip but Gov does not want diabetics cure so no monies, but i wish it for all diabetics, Same with ODSP special food allowance given by the Ont Gov. Five years being on this ODSP prgogram and the allowance has not icreased what so ever! Each person gets what their diet calls for in carbs, My carbs don’t change but the cost of food has! Dramatically and the has been no adjustment to this either. Ont Gov, and the goverment of Canada has heard this, but npo action! time for a bit of compensation for the stuff i am having trouble getting. no wonder the working poor are helping out through food banks, I too have resorted to this. Ont Gov make action on ODSP special food allowance!
#1. Posted by Rad on December 2nd 2008 at 8:03am
Hi Jonathan,
Ok, don’t let the separatist to power,
don’t want Canadian to pay for Le Bloc Québécois but don’t you know that Québécois are paying their taxe too? on a regular pay of 50 000$ they pay aprox. 42%% of their salary to the government…don’t tell me they don’t have to right to say a word.
Don’t you know that Bloc Québécois is fighting Harper and ask him to provide a plan to rescue the Quebekers workers and the Canadians too ? I think that the Block Quebecois loves better the Canada than Harper does actually.
Everthing is collapsing in Québec, health, jobs, and a Canadian party (libéral party of Quebec with Jean Charest) we are on our knees, they controls our news, our news papers, let me tell you this is not right at all.
Hey Québekers are trying as much as possible to defend their point of you, why don’t you all stop to accussed the Québekers of your weakness and all the problems you have, you should start you own party, you may call it the FTC, Front Libéral du Canada : ) or Front de Libération de l’Ontario.
Quebekers have the same right as you all Canadians are allowed as long as they pay their tax to Ottawa.
Don’t you know that removing the rights to have a public find to pay either the Bloc Québécois or even the Conservative won’t be constitutionaly Democratic this will be a dictatorial country such as our Popof in the year’s 80: here is the def:
A dictatorship is usually defined as an autocratic form of government in which the government is ruled by a dictator
This above statments looks alike Harper don’t you think ? The conspirators, the richs and the lords of wars will be kings in your country those guys are counting on you the kill the last breath of freedom we have and sending Canadians and Quebekers to war for Opium Fiels in Afhganistan, not for Ben Laden. Socialist is not that bad, what is bad is the Marxist undercover with the costum of capitalism…fuck wake up, harper is finance by Conrad Black, Harper and Conrad are members of Bilderberg group…you trus them ??? me not at all !
Don’t you know that Paul Desmarais(Ontario) is financing Jean Charest (first minister of quebec),manipulating: Paul Martin, Jean Chretien even Kofi Annan(U.N.) and this guy stoled the french society by several billions ( see: GDF Suez scandal). The Caisse de dépôt du Québec lost aprox. 20 to 40 billions this year because of this free leadership, we beg to have the right figures and numbers and Jean Charest is not providing us the right picture…you tell me that this is Democratic ???
You are betting watching out The Teachers fund (in Ontario) they will do the same to you and make you believe that this is because of the actual crisis or the Quebekers or even the green aliens and you will believe them.
This is what is happening now, those guys in place to stole our ressources, Canadians, Quebekers or whatever they don’t mind, they will f…y…up to the a…
I suggest you to watch a documentary call: Social Genocide (Directed by: Fernando E. Solanas) , you will see what the are capable of ! You will freak out man ! and you will wake up !
#2. Posted by Charlie on December 2nd 2008 at 11:48am
Oh, and by the way, when everyone prospers, charity prospers as well. There will be enough to go around. Socialism does not bring about prosperity for the individual that wants it. It perpetuates a poor class.
#3. Posted by Pete on December 4th 2008 at 12:15am
Socialism will never be the answer. There is no socialist country in the world, past, present, or future that is or will be truly successful in balancing social and economic freedom. Socialism makes the individual weak and reliant upon the state. Initiative, self-sufficiency, independence, and freedom of the individual are all but lost in welfare states. No government can keep feeding a growing mass of lazy, disaffected people with no drive or inkling of personal accountability.
You complain about taxes…just wait til to see what the socialists and socialist leaning parties will do. You think the current atmosphere is one brought about by free-market capitalism? We have never ever had such a thing as free-market capitalism in the entire history of civilization. Why? Because government has always been involved. You want real change? Bring back minimal government. Throw out all the political parties and pare government down to be a basic administrator of public services only. (policing, emergency services, etc.). De-centralize the structure so that smaller communities can democratically govern their own circumstances. In matters that affect the whole country, put the power back in the people’s hands…direct balloting.
And for once, let a true free market reign. In a true free market, balance is achieved by competition. There is no such thing as a monopoly in a free market, nor will there be a need for such things as unions, or trust regulations. It is not a government that defines the greatness of the country it is its people. You have had ample time to see the monkeys in Ottawa misbehave to know that this is true.
#4. Posted by Pete on December 6th 2008 at 8:12am