Hundreds of handbags containing thousands of health and beauty products were distributed on Wednesday by Montreal police officers to organizations that help homeless women. An initiative that aims in particular to build “a bond of trust” between the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) and these vulnerable people.
In recent weeks, boxes that had been set up in the various SPVM offices and neighborhood stations have collected hundreds of new or slightly used handbags that were collected on Wednesday morning in a Citron Hygiène office. , in Brossard. These were then distributed in the afternoon to around ten organizations housing or supporting homeless women in the metropolis.
When passing the To have to in Brossard, several volunteer police officers, some wearing Christmas hats, were busy filling handbags with various products. “I feel like shopping! asked a volunteer while placing a toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, hairbrush and tampons in one of the bags, among other things. Women’s clothing was also collected in anticipation of this distribution, led by police officers working for various specialized units of the SPVM and by employees responsible for taking 911 calls.
“The objective is for the person to have a batch of products that can be used for them when they need them, either in a resource [pour personnes en situation d’itinérance] or if it compromises towards a more permanent accommodation”, explains to the To have to Agent Laurent Dyke, responsible for the homelessness file within the SPVM’s Prevention and Urban Security Division.
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Among the organizations that received dozens of well-filled handbags and boxes of hygienic products on Wednesday were, among others, Chez Doris, La rue des Femmes, Quebec Native Projects and the Old Brewery Mission, which includes a pavilion reserved for homeless women.
“Any possibility of having a rapprochement with the police is a good thing”, reacted to the To have to the general manager of the Chez Doris refuge, Marina Boulos-Winton, who has also noticed a growth women’s homelessness in Montreal. “We still refuse an average of nine women per night,” she notes.
“It’s full every night. We are not always able to meet the demand because we do not have enough places, ”also raises the director general of Native projects of Quebec, Heather Johnston, whose shelters welcome many women in situation of roaming. However, she too is delighted with the SPVM’s initiative. “It shows a certain sensitivity to the needs of women on the street,” she says.
Specialized SPVM units for sexual exploitation and domestic violence will also keep a certain number of handbags containing hygiene products. Police officers will then be able to distribute these to women in need as part of their work, says Laurent Dyke, who hopes that this initiative will contribute to build “a bond of trust” between the police and homeless women.
“It’s a very vulnerable population in our society, so we want to be there for them, we want to have good ties in our society and that if they ever need us, we are there,” he adds.
Ontario inspired
This “Operation handbags to fill”, which is in its second edition in Montreal, first took shape in Ottawa a few years ago, before being imported into the Quebec metropolis.
“Last year, we took over the concept and brought it to Montreal so that we too could offer handbags filled with hygiene and beauty products for women,” notes Mr. Dyke.
The activity is carried out in collaboration with the company Citron Hygiène, which has been responsible for mobilizing many suppliers to make donations of hygiene products for women as part of this initiative. This is how thousands of various essential products have been piled up in the last few days on the company’s premises, in anticipation of their distribution on Wednesday.
In all, about 25 volunteers were used in this activity. “I think you have to give to each other, especially during the holidays, when we know that everything is expensive. People are in need and people have needs,” notes Ismael Sougou, who is a community development advisor at the SPVM. He hopes that this initiative will contribute to “humanizing” the SPVM with the traveling community.