The fight against poverty and social exclusion does not take any holidays! Throughout the summer, organizations meet young people and listen to their needs and aspirations.
Posted at 9:00 a.m.
As the first rays of warm weather finally warm us, it’s good to remember that the sun doesn’t shine equally for everyone.
For some children, these inequalities stem from the difficulty their parents have in finding suitable and affordable housing. Last week, a Léger survey conducted on behalf of the Observatoire des tout-petits revealed disturbing data: 72% of parents report that it is now more difficult than before the pandemic to have access to affordable housing. Remember that in Canada, housing is considered affordable if it costs less than 30% of the household’s pre-tax income.
The scientific literature is clear: the cost of housing has an impact on the development of young people. Parents who pay too much for housing have less money to spend on other basic needs, including food, with the result that their children often weigh less than their peers.
For other young people, school holidays bring their share of inequalities.
In Greater Montreal, the offer of activities to occupy young people during the summer is very varied, from private camps to institutional camps, including those organized by the cities. There are also camps offered by community organizations.
Recently, I discovered a “day-evening camp”. Offered in the borough of Saint-Laurent, it welcomes young people four days a week, from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m., all summer long. Curious as a schedule, right? The objective is to offer activities to young people during those critical hours when they might be tempted to hang out in the streets.
This camp is not led by facilitators, but by speakers who rub shoulders with the young people throughout the school year and therefore know them very well. The program focuses on autonomy and the acceptance of individual, cultural and social differences, while promoting the adoption of healthy lifestyles. We try to give young people a sense of belonging to a group with which they can identify for the right reasons. Hence this sentence, launched by the director of the organization: “Their street gang is us. »
This approach is echoed in other neighborhoods. I was impressed to see how the community organizations offer their services where the young people are. In business, we would say: “in a decentralized way” or “according to the needs of the customers”. No market studies here, however, but a detailed knowledge of the needs of young people and an urgency to act.
Many of these young people are marginalized. They face discrimination and feel trapped in stereotypes, whether because of their appearance or the neighborhood they live in.
Violence, too, is a permanent pitfall. These young people live in an insecurity from which they would like to escape, but which pushes them, as early as 15 years old, to wear a bulletproof vest.
In Montreal North, we offer, among other things, “rupture camps” that try to help the most marginalized children get out of the asphalt and project themselves into the future. The ultimate goal is for young people to be able to reclaim their space, change the image of their living environment and put an end to stigmatization.
I was struck by the answer of the director of a summer camp in nature when I asked him what was the first benefit of a stay in a camp for young people from vulnerable backgrounds: “You know, at the start of the school, when the teacher asks the young people what they did during the summer? Well, these young people will be able to tell that they went to the countryside, played in the woods, swam in a lake… Quite often, it will be their first real vacation. »
For children and families in vulnerable situations, Centraide of Greater Montreal subsidizes more than 28,000 overnight stays at a reduced price in ten summer camps. These camps allow young people and families to get out of the city and play in the forest, often for the first time in their lives. And I would add that they have three good meals and two snacks a day there. In addition, these young people spend time with better-off families, thereby encouraging not only diversity, but also self-esteem and social inclusion for all. In short, the fight against poverty and social exclusion does not take summer holidays: it is carried out 12 months out of 12.
It is often said that young people are the future. It is also said that the latter cannot be predicted. If these two statements are true, the fact remains that we can contribute to building a future where young people, regardless of their living environment, are part of our society, fulfilled and equal.
To achieve this, we can take the example of the camps mentioned in this column, which meet young people and listen to their needs and aspirations. The community sector is full of these stories of organizations where the desire to reduce inequalities shines in order to allow young people to live this sunny future of which they dream.