WE CAN TALK ALL WE WANT ABOUT POT HOLES, INFRASTRUCTURE DEFICIT; MALEY DRIVE; SPORTS AND ARTS CENTRES; BUT WE ARE GOING TO BE JUDGED BY HOW WE CARE FOR THE HOMELESS, THE POOR, THE ELDERLY AND THE SICK. I am not looking for many comments on this post. There isnt much to say about this situation, but we do have a lot to do in the New Year to deal with what I call a crisis in humanity in the City of Greater Sudbury. Christmas is the season when we should be taking a good look at what we are doing to human beings in need. and I think it is because of the season that we must identify our true priorities for the coming year. We must address the challenges being faced every day by people who are locked into a cycle of life where poverty, unemployment, and homelessness prevails. In Sudbury, we have about 600 people who do not have a home to go to on Christmas Day. We very seldom see all of the homeless because they find stairwells or other shelters in the wooded areas around the city - any place where they can stay warm and avoid freezing. Past studies have shown that on top of the people who are already homeless, there are many others at risk of being homeless because of the lack of affordable housing and lack of sufficient income to sustain accommodation. Being homeless is not a personal choice. People dont want to be homeless, but if you cant find a job you cant pay rent. People living on social assistance, particularly those who are single and on Ontario Works, are often at risk of homelessness because they receive $626 a month when the average market rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Sudbury is $741. Fleeing family violence, and suffering physical and mental illness also put people on the street. So when the City Councillors begin deliberating on the budget in January, we simply cannot ignore the growing rate of poverty, homelessness, and unemployment that is keeping people trapped in a lifestyle where there is no hope. We must provide they with home and we must provide them with an opportunity to escape this trap they find themselves in. thesudburystar/2014/11/24/sudbury-homeless-rate-not-improving-researcher
Posted on: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 01:04:50 +0000