ALLIANCE NEWSLETTER - March 2018
March 22nd, 2018 - The City of Ottawa's Housing Services Branch presented a
report at this weeks Community and Protective Services (CPS) Committee Meeting
detailing the 2014-2017 outcomes of the City's 10-Year Housing and
Homelessness Plan.
The Alliance to End Homelessness Ottawa
provided comments to CPS Committee Members following an initial review of the
report. The Alliance will continue to produce our Annual Progress Report on
Housing and Homelessness in Ottawa, to be released in May 2018.
The
Progress Report will provide further analysis on the evaluation of
achievements made to date under the City's 10-Year Plan, and will address the
continued investments and leadership required to support evolving needs in
homelessness and social housing communities in Ottawa.
As we enter year 5 of our 10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan, real progress is lacking. While we see the City’s report as a positive step forward in providing accountable reporting to Council and the community, we look towards the need for renewed goals and targets to prevent and reduce homelessness in our city. Read the Alliance CPS deputation.
Read the City & Deputy Mayor's Full Reports
Read the City's Housing Services Branch full report on the
10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan. You can also access the City's new
10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan Progress Report.
Deputy Mayor Mark Taylor, Special Liaison for Affordable
Housing and Homelessness in Ottawa, has also released a report titled "Everyone Together - Ottawa: A Caring and Compassionate City", that can be found at the
following link.
Thank you to our members for joining us March 6th for our Members Meeting. We
presented for feedback drafts of the Alliance's provincial and municipal
briefs that will be used to inform our advocacy, communications and elections
planning.
We want to hear from you. If you would like to
comment further, please provide feedback directly to
[email protected] by March 27th.
Provincial Brief Municipal Brief
The Alliance has added two new research reports to our website:
"Building Bridges: Perspectives on Youth Homelessness From First Nations,
Inuit, Metis and LGBTQ2S+ Youth in Ottawa" and
"Landlord Engagement Toolkit: A Guide to Working With Landlords in Housing
First Programs"
Be sure to check them out!
By: Karen Umurerwa, Expert Steering Team Member
Housing and Mental Health in Black Communities
In 2012, my family made the hard decision to move from Rwanda to Canada. The transition from my homeland to Canada was the toughest process I could have gone through. Canada was a land of opportunities, but it was one that was completely foreign to us as we had no friends or family that could ease our integration.
By: Yetunde Amanda Ona
Embracing Identity: The Bonds of the African Diaspora
The following piece was written by Yetunde Amanda Ona who arrived in Canada 6 years ago with her young children as a refugee claimant. She navigated the homelessness system, and is now an Alliance staff member working to create a more effective and dignified housing and homelessness system. These are her reflections on identity and the African Diaspora.
By: Gail Gallagher
National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women (Dec. 6th)
On this day, we remember the innocent lives lost and of the murder of 14 young women at Polytechnique Montréal on December 6, 1989. As a result of this tragic event, December 6 was designated as the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.
In addition, the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence begins on November 25 (International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) and ends on December 10 with International Human Rights Day. The 16 Days of Activism are an opportunity to come together to speak out and renew our commitment to end gender-based violence.
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