Immigration Minister Sean Fraser confirmed on Tuesday that the federal government has allotted an additional $97 million in funding to the City of Toronto amidst its housing crisis.
The emergency allocation of funding comes in response to public outcry over hundreds of African and Afro-Caribbean refugees that have been sleeping on Toronto’s streets for weeks.
Asylum seekers had been camping outside of Toronto’s shelter intake office at 128 Peter Street waiting to be assigned housing amidst a chronic lack of funding and resources.
Thanks to community organizers and activists, the refugees were temporarily relocated to Revivaltime Tabernacle church in North York.
But weeks of multi-level quarreling across governments have forced local services to adopt band-aid solutions.
Founder of Paramount Fine Foods Mohammed Fakih, in addition to helping with fundraising, has donated $20,000 of his own money in aid of the grass-roots operation, which is looking to secure shelter, food and basic necessities for the refugees.
Olivia Chow pushed Ottawa for an additional $160 million dollars last week.
Many advocates have spoken out about the neglect, referring to it as a rejection of duty on the part of politicians and calling the crisis an overt act of government sanctioned racism.
A group of activists are demanding the immediate resignation of the general manager of the City of Toronto’s Shelter Support and Housing Administration (SSHA), Gord Tanner, in an open letter, citing his “repeated mismanagement of the shelter system… violations of the City of Toronto’s Sanctuary Policy and fuelling xenophobia,” as reasons.
Pastor Judith of Revivaltime Tabernacle Church is asking for the following supplies for the refugees:
- Blankets
- Towels
- Washcloths
- Bodywash
- Food – rice, onions, potatoes, pasta, sauce, oil
- Money
- Volunteers
- Cleaning supplies
- Laundry Services
- Cleaning Services
Other services needed include drivers and anyone who can lend their time to help run errands or assist with serving meals.
