‘We see you mass evicting,’ Christmas carollers protest Bill 60 outside Doug Ford’s Etobicoke home

Dozens of Christmas carollers gathered outside of Premier Doug Ford’s home last week, singing festive songs of protest against Ontario’s controversial Bill 60. 

Last Thursday, tenant advocacy groups dropped by the premier’s Etobicoke residence for a carolling session that remixed the lyrics to popular Christmas songs to call out the government over the legislation, which critics say benefits landlords and weakens tenant protections.

A collaboration video shared on Monday by the York South-Weston Tenant Union, Climate Justice Toronto and the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now recapping the event has been circulating on social media, showing dozens of participants singing the reworked carols.  

@nowtoronto Carollers were seen singing outside of Premier Doug Ford's home but changed the lyrics to classic Christmas songs to protest #Bill60, which critics say weakens tenant protections. What do you think of their songs? #DougFord #onpoli ♬ original sound – Now Toronto

“Dougie the Crooked Premier,” a rendition of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” was one that made the highlights. 

“We see you mass evicting/We know you withhold pay/We know you’ve ruined countless lives/ Well, the secret’s out today,” the carollers sang into the night. 

Another one was the classic “Silent Night” turned into “Wealthy Night,” where carollers sang about greedy developers demanding “cash for keys,” and committing “landlord schemes.” 

The video also shares a short clip of the remixed “12 Days of Christmas,” with reimagined lyrics: “Rushing through the vote, Bill 60/Go and get a job/Says our premier in a pear tree.” 

It was not confirmed if the premier was actually home at the time, but the video showed a heavy police presence with multiple cruisers as well as a drone. 

Ryo Nishibayashi, a member of the York South-Weston Tenant Union and organizer, says while the carolling session was fun-spirited in nature, the message of the bill’s impacts are very real. 

“It obviously shows a lighter side, but it’s also to remind people that we’re still here. Tenants are not going to go away,” he told Now Toronto on Tuesday. 

Groups like the Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario say Bill 60 was passed without adequate public consultation and warn the legislation will reduce protections for renters by shortening timelines to avoid eviction and appeal Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) decisions. Nishibayashi says the government claims that the changes will benefit tenants by speeding up the LTB process don’t reflect the reality renters face.

“One of the points that [Ontario Minister of Housing Rob Flack] adamantly repeated was that this is also going to benefit tenants by cutting down the wait times at the LTB. What he fails to mention is that none of these changes will cut the 12 to 18 month waiting time for tenants to actually get the first hearing for any tenant filed concern,” he said, adding that it’s often an additional six to 12 months of waiting for a future hearing afterwards. 

“For him to say that this benefits tenants is a rather selective way of putting things.”

Under Bill 60, changes include halving the time tenants have to pay back rent to avoid an eviction hearing to seven days, shortening the window to appeal LTB decisions from 30 days to 15 days, and placing new financial barriers on tenants before they can raise issues such as disrepair or safety concerns during arrears hearings. 

Nishibayashi also warns that the new legislation makes way for LTB filings to become publicly searchable, which could lead to exposure of extremely private information. 

He pointed to a recent case involving a York South-Weston tenant allegedly facing eviction over 98 cents. He said the tenant had a payment plan with their landlord and was actually nearly two months ahead, but the landlord filed for eviction due to “flawed record-keeping.” During the hearing, Nishibayashi says the adjudicator reviewed the payment history and ordered an eviction over a 98-cent shortfall from a month the landlord had not even cited. While the tenant was able to successfully challenge the order, Nishibayashi says this situation only underscores the major impacts that the legislation will have on renters in the coming months. 

“It just shows how in favour of tenants the LTB system really is,” Nishibayashi stressed. “Here’s an example of someone doing more than they were supposed to and still facing the consequences.”

The York South-Weston Tenant Union is calling for support in an online petition opposing the legislation, urging the government to implement fair rent control and stronger protections to prevent landlords from exploiting loopholes in existing laws. From disrupting the vote at Queen’s Park to crashing the Federation of Rental-housing Providers of Ontario’s annual MAC Awards Gala, Nishibayashi says the union has carried out a series of demonstrations to draw attention to the real-world impacts of the bill and plans to continue until meaningful change happens.

“We want to remind the general public that everyone knows a tenant in their life, whether or not they are one themselves. Bill 60 will affect them and those they care for, tenant or not,” Nishibayashi said. 

“We invite the public to join us and their neighbours, tenants, immigrants, and workers alike, to understand that this government is not in their best interests and that we must come together to organize against this government in many different ways, and sometimes those ways will be as fun as carolling.”