Montreal’s homeless community groups believe that the current crisis is only “the tip of the iceberg” and denounce the rise of intolerance and the “not in my backyard” phenomenon.
“The gap will continue to widen between the most affluent people and those who live in poverty and we will have to question ourselves as a society, because what we see, at the moment, is only the tip of the iceberg. And if we continue like this, without taking action, it will only get worse,” says Tania Charron, director of Ricochet community accommodation in the west of the island.
Gathered Wednesday at La Livrerie, on Ontario Street in Montreal, for the launch of the magazine Beyond the numbers published by the Support Network for Single and Homeless People of Montreal (RAPSIM), the various groups insisted that the official count is not representative of the reality on the ground. They are asking the government to listen to what people on the ground have to say, because they are capable of going beyond the numbers and predicting what is coming.
“We’ve been shouting for years in Quebec that we’re in an overdose crisis, but we were always told that the numbers were supposedly not there. And there, we are stuck with an unprecedented crisis,” illustrates Martin Pagé of the Dopamine organization. “Community groups have a reading of the field, with not only quantitative, but qualitative data, so we see things happening and we have to listen to this data. »
And what groups currently see coming is the rise of intolerance. “We are extremely concerned by the intolerance we see in our neighborhoods,” says Tania Charron. “It’s frightening for us to see the intolerance that is growing and growing. We see the social problems increasing and we wonder how we can be creative to continue to help people, and how we can collectively mobilize our neighborhoods to help these people, because it is becoming more and more difficult. »
Be careful with the Zero Homelessness vision
Annie Savage, from RAPSIM, agrees. “We are seeing a rise in the “not in my backyard” phenomenon by people living there who are worried, often poorly informed. And we can understand this fear, but I believe it is a symptom of blindness and a lack of listening on the part of our decision-makers. »
They also warn the government to be careful before embarking on a “Zero Homelessness” policy, a vision that has been talked about more and more in recent weeks.
“At RAPSIM, we stay away from this expression and we invite you to be careful with this speech,” says Annie Ravage. Of course, from a philosophical point of view, it goes without saying: who wouldn’t dream of a world without poverty and inequality? But in reality, the vision of zero homelessness is implemented through laws that discourage the state of begging and criminalize the fact of being in a situation of homelessness to the detriment of policies that aim for real changes. »
“Eliminating homelessness then becomes just other words to talk about repression, displacement and violence against people we do not want to see and who we seek to make disappear,” deplores Mme Ravaged.
The faces of homelessness
The “Beyond the Figures” report takes stock of the faces of homelessness in Montreal through different themes and neighborhoods. We address the different realities experienced by women, seniors, young people, indigenous and racialized people, people in couples, people with disabilities and LBGTQ+. We also talk about housing, consumption and mental health.
As reported The duty, extremely precarious housing is increasing: vulnerable tenants pay top dollar to live in underground parking lots converted into bedrooms, in a dismal basement without running water or electricity, on a mattress in a kitchen, or in cages. stairs. In addition, women fear being attacked in mixed shelters.
The latest census of visible homelessness, published last month, reported a 44% increase in homelessness in Quebec. No less than 10,000 people find themselves homeless. And this figure is certainly higher because of “hidden homelessness”, underlines RAPSIM in the report.
“Beyond the numbers and the words, the number of people experiencing homelessness or their profile, what should matter to us, our only concern, should be their human experience, their dignity and their security,” concludes Tania Charron .