Though inequity has always been part of the social landscape
of Canada,not
since the Great Depression of the l930’s have there been
so many people
living on the margins of society. The cutting of funding for
social housing
by the Liberal government in 1991, coupled with the rise in
rents, have had a
dramatic effect on many people’s lives. Canadian companies
moving their
businesses south, changes in the eligibility of unemployment
benefits and
the lowering of welfare rates, have forced struggling families
into shelters
and teenagers onto the streets. We are becoming more like our
American
neighbours, where poverty and homelessness are endemic and
cheap labour is
always available.
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