Canada is experiencing a boom in homelessness, with tens of thousands of people locked out of the housing and rental markets and forced to live on the streets of the wealthy country.
Researchers warn that government data vastly underestimates the number of homeless people across the country, as the social plague spreads from big cities to small communities.
According to a new survey published in September, one in two homeless people in Quebec may be located in rural areas of the eastern province and not mainly in Montreal, as was previously the case.
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- How many people live in temporary camps after leaving their rented houses?
- What does the Quebec government say?
- The humanitarian crisis
- What does the government data say?
How many people live in temporary camps after leaving their rented houses?
Danny Brodeur-Cote has been living for months in a temporary camp in a cemetery in Granby, a city of 70,000 people 80 kilometers (50 miles) east of Montreal, after being evicted from an apartment he shared with his girlfriend in June.
Credit: Reuters
“I work five days a week,” the janitor with messy brown hair told AFP as he pushed a shopping cart to the campsite.
This is the first time in his life, at 39 years old, that he has found himself living on the street. “The few homes there are are too expensive,” she said.
A park a few blocks away has been transformed into a makeshift camp for men and women of various ages, some of whom are working, like Brodeur-Cote.
What does the Quebec government say?
According to an assessment by the Quebec government, almost one in four homeless people ended up on the streets after being evicted from their home.
“In Granby alone we need at least 1,000 affordable homes,” says Karine Lussier, director of a local anti-poverty organization.
The number of homeless people in Quebec increased by 44 per cent between 2018 and 2022, reaching 10,000 last year. According to Lussier, indigenous peoples, who make up 5% of the Canadian population, are overrepresented on the streets, especially the Inuit.
Credit: Reuters
“Three years ago there were no visible homeless people in Granby,” said Mayor Julie Bourdon, admitting that “rents are very high now compared to two years ago.”
Instead of destroying the fields and moving residents, the city chose to maintain what it called “places of tolerance.”
According to France Belisle, mayor of Gatineau, a city of more than 300,000 people across a river from Ottawa, the problem could just be the tip of the iceberg because these are “figures compiled a year ago.”
With the cost of living rising and inflation soaring this year, she believes the situation is much worse than recent data suggests.
People “can’t make ends meet anymore,” he says.
The humanitarian crisis
Quebec, Canada’s second most populous province, is suffering from a severe housing shortage as a result of reasons ranging from the pandemic to record immigration, which is increasing the population and fueling demand.
Credit: Reuters
In recent months, real estate prices have been the main topic on the table, and public opinion and opposition complaints have forced governments to prioritize housing and cost of living issues.
And Quebec is not alone in this situation; Experts warn that the number of homeless people is increasing across Canada.
What does the government data say?
According to government data, there are about 235,000 homeless people in Canada, but this only includes people using shelters, according to Cheryl Forchuk, a professor at the University of Western Ontario, who, like Belisle, believes the real picture is significantly worse.
“We are greatly underestimating the number…we could probably triple the current federal estimates,” he said.
“We are now in a situation where even well-off people are having a hard time getting housing,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau admitted in September.
Quebec Premier Francois Legault called it a “perfect storm.”
Credit: Barrón
This problem “is not acceptable in a society that is nevertheless rich and modern,” he recently stated. Lussier believes that getting off the streets without help is almost impossible.
“We are outraged, sad and angry because for years we have been saying: ‘be careful; we are almost heading towards a humanitarian crisis.'” Brodeur-Côte must continue bathing in a nearby river every day before work, for the time being. she hopes to find more affordable housing. “I never asked my parents for money until three months ago,” he says, unsure what the next few months will bring as winter approaches.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn