Category Archives: homelessness
Shoot!! Or, maybe talk?
It’s almost a year since an 18-year-old boy, Sammy Yatim, was shot to death by a Toronto police officer. He was alone in a streetcar. With a 3” knife. I guess they thought that heavy, iron streetcar couldn’t contain him. … Continue reading
Yes, it is our job to feed our neighbour’s child.
Once again, a typical Conservative statement of values (with apologies to Hugh Segal): Minister James Moore says “Well, obviously nobody wants kids to go to school hungry. Certainly we want to make sure that kids go to school full bellied, … Continue reading
Housing, dignity, caring + sharing
As I did my seven-minute stroll to my favourite café this morning, I passed no less than three ‘homeless’ people I didn’t recognize. If you spend a lot of time ‘out in the neighbourhood’, you recognize the regulars, chat with … Continue reading
What do we want? Homes!!
Okay, so where are the activists on housing? Why do we not see rallies at City Hall or Queen’s Park, with Naomi Klein stirring the crowd? Naomi: “What do we want?” Crowd: “Homes!” Naomi: “When do we want them?” Crowd: … Continue reading
Toronto’s loss, Hamilton’s gain?
A friend of mine – single mother of three wonderful adolescents – is trying to find a two-bedroom apartment close to their father, in the west end of Toronto. That way they could easily visit back and forth between the … Continue reading
The tender cafe
How precious is the kindness and gentleness that surrounds me every day. I treasure it. It is part of a sub-culture hard to find in many places. I think that’s why I head here every morning. I can’t imagine a … Continue reading
Condos, condos everywhere…. or, suburbia?
Well, here we are once again reacting to another condo proposition in Roncesvalles Village. Our city councillor (Gord Perks) hosted a neighbourhood meeting the other night, the purpose of which was to provide the developers (Mattamy Homes) with feedback from … Continue reading