Toronto mobilizes parks ambassadors to clear encampments
Toronto mobilizes parks ambassadors to clear encampments
Housing activists say they ve noticed increased surveillance of people living in parks By Julia Mastroianni
Photo Courtesy Ginger Dean
Parks ambassadors, in the yellow vests, called on Streets to Homes workers and the police to approach encampment residents under the Gardiner Expressway in 2020.
Around the start of COVID-19, at an encampment on the property of Holy Trinity Church in Toronto, residents received certification papers from church leaders verifying they were allowed to live there.
But Teanna Macintyre, a resident at the time, says city parks ambassadors came by almost daily to try and force everyone off the property.
One of Toronto s roughest intersections is getting security cameras but some aren t happy
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City councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam announced this week that the Toronto Police Service and the City of Toronto will be installing security cameras at the corner of Dundas East and Sherbourne Streets an area that has long been known to be particularly crime-ridden.
Announcing the news in an online newsletter on April 20, Wong-Tam said the cameras will be installed within the next couple of weeks and will provide TPS with additional resources so they can continue to address community safety in the Cabbagetown South neighbourhood.
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The TTC has been making an effort to be more diverse and inclusive, which has included examining the ways in which systemic racism plays into its day-to-day operations
And, unfortunately, new data from a third-party review into enforcement on public transit in Toronto has found that there has indeed been severe racial inequity, especially when looking at who is being stopped by fare inspectors.
According to a new report for which U of T researchers examined customer data over 10 years, Black and Indigenous riders were over-represented in enforcement incidents, being cautioned and charged more often than other commuters, when it comes to both checking fares and other safety and security concerns.
This ongoing series of spotlight blogs profiles our Blue Parks Ambassadors: a group of ocean champions across diverse spheres who care deeply about safeguarding life in the sea. Blue Parks Ambassadors build the momentum toward the Blue Parks aim of securing effective protection for 30% of the ocean by 2030 by communicating the value of these protections for revitalizing the health of the ocean. They connect government leaders, protected area managers, ocean enthusiasts, ocean-related businesses, and future generations of ocean-lovers with resources for understanding and celebrating effective marine conservation practices. What unites them is their passion for marine wildlife.
This week, meet Tharaka Sriram: a marine conservationist, educator and activist for women’s rights and against racism.