Summer 2011.indd - Calgary Drop-In & Rehab Centre

14 | CONNECTION Issue 29 Summer 2011
CONNECTION Issue 29 Summer 2011 | 15
On the Margins John Rowland
For people experiencing homelessness, Calgary’s economy
is a wild card. For those living on the edges of the economic
margin, the Boom Bust economy can be very difficult to
manage as their limited resources provide a different
experience than the rest of Calgarians.
To explain this, I would like to review the last 15 years in
Calgary for the population.
The late 1990’s was a bad news period. Governments
had instituted a series of reductions in programs,
deinstitutionalization and no social housing had been
built since the 1980’s. In addition Employment Insurance
and welfare roles were being cut to balance government
budgets. There was some work, but wages were low.
However this was offset by moderate land costs & rents. It
was a period of gentrification with low rent housing in the
communities such as Inglewood, Ramsey, and Kensington
being torn down, or renovated. This was a time of slowly
increasing numbers of people experiencing homelessness,
as the people who lived in these areas were displaced with
nowhere to go to. In this period two emergency shelters
were opened for the first time.
The years 2000 to 2003 were more ‘homeless friendly’. A
combination of two new large shelters being built, plus the
addition of satellite shelters in Sunalta and Hillhurst meant
more housing options for those who had been sleeping
rough. This was also a period where wages were going
up faster than rents. This was a period of hope, as many
people who had been homeless were finding good jobs,
and secure housing. The down side of this period is that
workers were starting to migrate to Calgary which started
to put pressure on the housing market.
The years 2004 to 2007 were also challenging for this
population. There were a lot of jobs, and anyone who
could work, was working. However, having income
did not guarantee housing; rents went up quickly, and
people on fixed incomes found themselves unable to
maintain housing. Developers were buying properties, and
converting rental units to condos, and many people with
housing found themselves priced out of the market. Whole
tracks of low rent housing were torn down in Victoria Park,
The Beltline, and East Village and much of it still has not
been replaced. It was a period where many people reported
that they were working, staying clean and sober, and saving
money. But that was not good enough as landlords had
their pick of tenants, and people who were not viewed as
desirable would be passed over for a better tenant. Many
people became discouraged, and would in a moment of
frustration, gamble or buy drugs with the money that they
had worked hard to save.
2008 to 2010 was when the Boom peaked, then crashed.
The spring of 2008 was a period where there was lots of
work and things seemed to be going well, but as spring
turned to summer, and then fall, the number of people
who found themselves without work or money started to
increase. The peak number of people flowing through
Calgary shelters was in the Winter of 2008 / 2009 as people
who had been working, lost their jobs, then their housing,
and found themselves on the street. Many people who had
been off the streets for several years found themselves back
in the shelters again. There were also a number of people
who became homeless for the first time. The spring and fall
of 2009 saw an out migration from Calgary, as people who
did have housing or employment left to return to the homes
they’d moved away from when coming to Calgary.
The period since the fall of 2009 has been one of a slow
reduction in the number of people seeking housing in
shelters. This has been due to dropping rents, increased
vacancies, additional social housing being made available,
and a gradual improvement in employment. This has
continued to the present.
In Calgary at least, another sustained economic boom would
not be good news for those trying to escape homelessness,
as once again we would likely see rents go up, vacancies
go down with the corresponding discriminatory practices
of landlords when choosing tenants, and many people who
are presently housed returning to the shelters. Booms do
not spell economic gain for people on the margins of our
society.
WHERE Book Review Timothy Wild, RSW
Sadly, all too often, people get lost in policies. We forget the
reality of the faces and too easily trust in our interpretation
of the dry facts. We plan around economically, socially
and culturally marginalized individuals, and see them
as “problems” that require our intervention, plans and
solutions. We view them as “economic liabilities” that
need our attention…before they cost us even more. We
act as experts and they are our subjects. And, through
this process, well intentioned though it may be, we often
forget about the person’s basic humanity and all that that
recognition entails. “We” look through “them”.
But to really solve complex social problems, we must base
our responses in an understanding of the inherent dignity
of each and every person, and act accordingly. We need
to get a better understanding of their hopes, histories and
dreams. We have to negotiate complex realities. The “we”
has to become bigger. Not always an easy or comfortable
task. However, the provocatively titled book WHERE: 50
Years of Ending Homelessness, helps do just that. As noted
by editor Louise Gallagher and co-editor Jordan Hamilton,
the book “tells the DI story in 50 photos, 50 words, 50
voices.”
Using photographs by calgary photographers christina
(plus) nathan, vivid in colour and haunting in black and
white, plus stories, portraits, poems, single words in large
bold font, even entries from staff logs,
the volume weaves a rich tapestry that
illustrates elements of homelessness
in Calgary in general, and the role that
the Calgary Drop-In & Rehab Centre
plays in meeting the needs of some of
our city’s fellow citizens who happen
to be homeless.
And it presents it whole – warts and all.
For example, the poem Broken, written
by Faith, concludes with the lines:
I am beautifully broken
And wonderfully wild.
In a contradictory way, that sums it all
up. Simply put, this is a beautiful piece
of work. It is beautiful in its content. It
is certainly beautiful in its presentation.
And it is beautiful in the role that it will
undoubtedly play in provoking the
much needed transformative social
change in Calgary.
Let’s be clear though, homelessness is not a beautiful
subject. In fact, it is a downright ugly social problem.
We need to look at the interplay of economics, domestic
violence, poverty, addictions, mental health and a slew of
other structural factors. We need to look at the role our
collective political choices have played in causing this
problem. We also need to look at robbed childhoods,
dreams dashed, opportunities lost, relationships smashed
and people broken. The poem Hidden, by Lesley and the
essay Addiction by Grant Fischer both jarringly illustrate
elements of this sad reality. But we also need to look at the
potential of people and the resilience of the human spirit.
WHERE provides that balance, once again, warts and all!
Overall, the book reveals that the DI is a place “where hope
lives, where community connects, where healing begins”.
As noted by one of the contributors to the volume “finding
your voice begins with being heard”. This volume amplifies
the individual voices and, hopefully as suggested by the
Zimbabwean historian Terrence Ranger, will provide “ears
for the earless”. It certainly succeeds in the first part, and
has great potential to achieve the latter. The volume shows
that it is the people that count, and lovingly brings the
individual to the foreground. Not bad, I say.
WHERE: 50 Years of Ending Homelessness is a great book.
The Photos are the creative expression of the DI Story as seen through the camera lens of
photographers christina (plus) nathan.
The Voices are the words of clients, staff, volunteers, donors and those who contributed prose and
poetry that expressed what the 50 words meant to them.
The Book expresses the depth and breadth of what we do at the DI. This book refl ects how much we
do and have done to create value in the lives of the people we serve.
Filled with beautiful photography, expressive words and heartfelt sentiments, WHERE is the story of
the DI as we turn 50.
Visit www.thedi.ca/where to order your copy today.