Does it matter who's living in a tent?

Published: March 08, 2010 11:00 AM
Burnaby Newsleader

Re: Fewer losers at these Olympics (Column, NewsLeader, Feb. 20)

Tom Fletcher wants Pivot Legal Society to tell him whether the people taking part in the Red Tent campaign are actually homeless.

But this question is really unimportant; it avoids the main issue entirely.

Homelessness in this country exploded when the federal government decided to stop building low-income housing some years back. This much is clear. I am assuming that Mr. Fletcher agrees that this situation is a national disgrace, and a problem that must be fixed.

In order to end homelessness in this country, a national housing program is required. The federal government does not seem to be interested in implementing such a program. So, the important question is how we can exert pressure on them to do so. Pivot’s Red Tent campaign should be useful in this regard.

Does Mr. Fletcher have a better idea?

If Mr. Fletcher really, really needs to have his question answered, he could simply refer to Pivot’s Red Tent web pages (www.pivotlegal.org). It is explicitly stated there that “Red Tents serve as a symbol of Canada’s homelessness crisis and to call on the federal government to invest in a lasting solution” and that “tents are currently available only to homeless people unless you are planning an action to draw attention to Canada’s homelessness crisis.”

The Red Tent campaign is not intended to provide housing for homeless people directly. Giving a tent to a homeless person would improve one person’s situation by a tiny amount. But if the campaign can help to ensure that we have a national housing program, then it will have contributed to a large improvement in the lives of many people.

Now it appears that, for some reason, 45 homeless people who participated in the Olympics tent city have just obtained decent housing (better than SROs) through BC Housing, and actually, in existing vacant suites.

Is it possible that the Red Tent campaign had any influence? Do you believe in causal relationships, or do things happen just by accident?

Victor Finberg
Burnaby

Link to article