Housing must be declared a human right

Re Woman hit by reversing garbage truck dies, Jan. 16 We are only three weeks into 2019 and already tragedy has struck the homeless in Toronto on many occasions.

Crystal Papineau died in a donation box retrieving clothes for her friends, this unnamed lady was crushed by a garbage truck as she was sleeping on a grate for warmth, and the city has begun evictions of homeless people sleeping under the Gardiner. These are but a few of the ones we know of.

If our politicians were to prioritize housing as the most important issue our city is facing (as they continually claim it is) then tragedies such as these would not occur.

Housing is a human right. Our politicians apply lip service and declare that they care. Yet they have declared that tents under the Gardiner are esthetically displeasing and the safety of the homeless is paramount. The solution is to evict them. To go where?

These are our fellow citizens. They come from among families and friends. Would you condemn your family and friends to an impossible situation with no solutions available?

The city has provided a few resources to in- crease the number of beds in the shelter system, but when they are full to capacity and the conditions are less than adequate for long-term emotional health, it does very little to bolster confidence that political indifference is changing.

All levels of government need to step up to the plate and begin consultations to enshrine housing as a right in the charter.

If they do not, then they will be condemning future generations of homeless to a bitter and cold existence. Troy J. Young, Toronto Why would the city begin to evacuate tent cities of the homeless at the coldest time of the year in brutal winter conditions?

I could understand if the city’s shelters were empty, but at 93 per cent capacity, they are obviously not the solution yet. Surely the city could wait until the new promised shelters are open before putting more of the homeless in harm’s way.

This is simply inhumane and un-Canadian. The tent cities should be allowed to stay until the long promised new shelters are available. June Mewhort, Woodville, Ont.