Sean Horrell walked into the woods with a basket full of hot meals, bottled water, juice boxes and snacks for a group of people living in a small homeless encampment in London, Ontario.
When he approached the camp, he was greeted by a brown dog that was barking and wagging its tail. As Horrell shouted names, four people left their makeshift shelters to collect the lunch he had brought.
It was a cool day in late November, with thick clouds and a light drizzle. which makes the feeling even colder.
“Do you have any winter clothes?” asked a woman wearing a black hoodie with “Good Vibes” written on it.
Horrell replied with a smile: “Yes, you have to walk with me.”
Two men and a woman followed him as he walked through muddy leaves to a minivan in a nearby parking lot, where they tried on jackets, boots and socks.
“On days like today when it’s raining or the weather is getting bad, it means a lot more that we show up and come to them,” Horrell said.
“Not only do they feel very valued, but often if you’re sick here, that’s when you need the most energy and a hot meal.”
As the province seeks to end homeless encampments in public spaces with tougher new legislation, many Ontarians are divided on how to handle the problem amid ongoing housing crises, addiction and mental health.
But Horrell and his team at 519Pursuit, a nonprofit that helps the homeless in London, are determined to continue delivering hot meals and supplies five days a week to people living in tents.
Horrell’s routine is almost the same every day.
In the morning, he goes to a warehouse where 519Pursuit keeps donated items, including sleeping bags, drinks, snacks and pet food.
Then he and a group of volunteers pack food and drinks into plastic bags before heading off in different directions to distribute aid across the city.
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Premier Doug Ford’s government recently introduced legislation giving more powers to police and municipalities to clear encampments from public parks, a move that critics say would further marginalize an already marginalized group.
The bill aims to increase penalties for those who repeatedly break trespassing laws and use illegal drugs in public, but it is unclear when this will take effect since the legislature will not return from its vacation recess. winter until March 3.
The Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness called the pending legislation “ineffective, costly and cruel.”
“The only way to solve homelessness is to create housing,” he said in a press release.
Horrell said the encampments should continue to exist as a “harm reduction” measure for the time being because there is no better solution available.
“The encampments are needed right now because the system itself is flooded, there aren’t enough (shelter) beds,” he said. “If it comes down to a choice between not having spaces for homeless people and being allocated spaces, I think it’s an obvious choice.”
The Prime Minister also announced $75.5 million in additional funding for homelessness prevention programs, including $50 million for affordable housing and $20 million to increase shelter capacity.
Horrell said the issue has always been a “double-edged sword.” While encampments provide homeless people with support and a sense of community, they also pose challenges for area residents and businesses, he said.
While speaking with The Canadian Press, Horrell was approached by a man walking his dog near an encampment. who said he enjoyed talking to a couple in one of the tents when he dropped off food and supplies for them, calling them “good” people.
But he also heard an elderly woman complain about her shoes being stolen from her property and point the finger at residents of a nearby camp – who denied the accusation.
This division is reflected in a recent poll of opinions on the issue across the province.
The Abacus Data survey, commissioned by the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness, asked 1,500 adults about encampments and homelessness. The study found that while an overwhelming majority in Ontario expressed some level of concern about the encampments, a relatively small number of respondents favored an authoritarian approach to cleaning them up.
Although 65 percent of respondents say they are concerned about encampments in their community, only 12 percent support stronger law enforcement measures.
The Association of Municipalities of Ontario has estimated that there will be at least 1,400 encampments in cities and towns across the province in 2023.
The City of London said around 200 people are currently living in 105 tents and another 100 people are completely homeless.
Spokeswoman Andrea Rosebrugh said the city’s approach to encampments is reactive, meaning any removal is based on complaints and subsequent assessment of the sites.
She also said the city’s 396 shelter spaces were still full.
“We continue to approach our city’s encampments with compassion and a desire to support those experiencing homelessness,” Rosebrugh said in a statement.
In Canada’s most populous city, there are about 450 tents spread across more than 100 parks, according to Toronto city officials.
Toronto Deputy Mayor Amber Morley said any efforts to prevent the growth of encampments in public spaces are welcome, but expressed concerns about the proposed provincial legislation.
“I think we need to be really thoughtful and really thoughtful in terms of the solutions that we work together,” she said, adding that pushing people out of their tents before providing them with shelter won’t solve the problem.
“There is an obvious question when we talk about clearing encampments… where are we going to allow individuals in those encampments to go? Morley said at a recent news conference about the city’s shelter plans.
“These are human beings and evicting people who are residents of our city is not, to me, a reasonable or respectful thing that we’re talking about.”
This question was also raised by Michelle Boissonneault, another outreach worker at 519Pursuit in London, who has previously struggled with addiction and homelessness.
Boissonneault said she began using drugs as a teenager and lived on the streets for years.
“I never felt the need to take care of myself,” she said. “I didn’t care, like my humanity had been completely ripped away from me. I was an empty shell of a human being.
Boissonneault said she has been sober for two and a half years and now lives in her own apartment. She visits local encampments three times a week to help those going through what she personally experienced.
Removing the camps will only push people onto the streets, she said, which could make the situation even worse.
Horrell said that while his main job is to make sure people in the encampments don’t go hungry and have appropriate clothing to survive extreme weather, he also connects them with services accommodation and drug counseling.
He said what he was doing was emotionally draining. A woman he knew in a camp committed suicide a few years ago, he said, his voice fading into a sob. Two years ago, he and a few other outreach workers discovered the remains of a man who had died after using drugs, alone in a tent.
Despite the emotional burden, he said, he loves his job because it makes him “feel good.”
Those experiences and the fact that he himself is a recovered addict taught him a lesson, Horrell said.
“I can’t save people, only people can save themselves, but to do that you have to take care of yourself and feel like you’re worth fighting for.”