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#OutintheCold Report Officially Released!
Submitted by ocap on Mon, 02/15/2016 - 19:48.
Image description: Cover of the Out in the Cold report: A picture of a gymnasium full of sleeping mats and chairs, along with backpacks, sleeping bags and garbage bags. Above the picture on an orange background are the words "Out in the Cold: The Crisis in Toronto's Shelter System"
A survey and study of Toronto's shelter system backup, the volunteer-run Out of the Cold (OOTC) program, conducted last month by members of the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty has been publicly released today and is already driving discussion around the ongoing implosion of the emergency shelter system.
The study's findings, based on numerous visits to OOTC locations and interviews with over 100 service users, point to a shelter system on the verge of collapse, plagued by constant overcrowding, inhumane conditions and a city government unwilling to take action to alleviate a crisis that has been decades in the making and shows no signs of easing. The study affords a rare glimpse into the night by night struggles of hard-working people of conscience desperate to fill the gaps left by an overcrowded, underfunded shelter system and the toll this state of affairs has on both the program's volunteer staff and the service users lost in the cracks.
OCAP isn't merely content to document the obscene state of affairs in the city's homeless shelter system. We demand action as well. In that spirit, join us on Wednesday, February 17 as we publicly launch our Out in the Cold report with a demonstration and march to City Hall! Even with numerous deaths on Toronto streets last year, the City still has the audacity to deny funding for vital 24 hour warming centres, much less do the needed work of expanding the shelter system. Come out on Wednesday to hold City Hall to account and join a movement that demands no one is left #OutintheCold!
Public Release Event for Out in the Cold Report and March on City Hall!
Wednesday, February 17
11:00AM
Queen + Sherbourne
Soup provided!
Be sure to watch out on social media for the #OutintheCold, #InTheColdTO and #OITCFacts hashtags and share them widely!