De Silvia-Legault: Don’t fear Ottawa’s homeless. Help them

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When I first moved to Ottawa as a wide-eyed 18-year-old from an incredibly suburban community in the Greater Toronto Area, I was terrified. That’s because all my life I was taught that I should fear the homeless — that they were somehow dangerous and would harm me.

Growing up in my suburban bubble, I rarely saw poverty of that kind, and had no experiences to challenge what I had been taught. But here’s what I know now: homeless people aren’t bogeymen to be feared. They are human beings and it’s about time we start treating them as they are.

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There will always be rotten apples in the basket, but that goes for any population of people, including the ones with homes. While living around Rideau Street, I’ve seen some of the greatest acts of human kindness from neighbours who live on the street.

Once, after five hours of freezing rain, I was walking up the hill at the intersection of Rideau and Nelson streets, and I noticed an UberEats driver who had gotten stuck right on the hill. I tried helping, but there was nothing I could really do. All of a sudden this guy who had been with a group outside the Sandy Hill Community Health Centre trying to stay warm crossed the street with one of his blankets in hand and put the blanket under one of the wheels, in an attempt to get the car unstuck. His blanket got soaked. After a while, we were able to get the car unstuck. The UberEats driver’s delivery order had been cancelled because of the delay and Uber told him he could keep the meal, so he gave it to the man with the wet blanket.

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Some may ask, “What about all the crime?” To them I would say, think about what the ByWard Market is: an entertainment district. It’s a place where you come and you drink, and that attracts crime. It’s important to understand that there are widespread issues with addiction in our homeless population, but that people with addictions are not criminals; they are ill.

Surrounding vulnerable neighbours with police also isn’t the answer, and rehabilitation is expensive in Ontario. Those who can’t afford to pay for treatment can wait up to six months for care while those who can pay get to skip the line. All too often we blame people with addictions, especially the homeless, saying they aren’t trying hard enough; but if you can’t get access to help, what are you expected to do?

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We don’t need more police on Rideau Street; We need affordability, and we need to care. We need to stop blaming our homeless for being homeless, and we need to stop fearing them like they are the bogeyman.

Keith de Silvia-Legault is a Rideau-based community organizer and charity fundraiser, previously head organizer of the Rideau McDonald’s Farewell March, and a former municipal candidate in Rideau-Vanier and Rideau-Rockcliffe. Twitter: @keithottawa