November 30, 2023 – Aboriginal Legal Services is intervening in an upcoming court case to argue that Ontario’s anti-panhandling law discriminates against Indigenous people and violates the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Fair Change Community Legal Clinic started the case, and a number of other organizations became involved, including the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, the Ontario Human Rights Commission and ALS.
The case is about the Safe Streets Act, which restricts where and how poor people can panhandle. While the law is supposed to eliminate aggressive panhandling, it criminalizes many other kinds of activities as well. For example, it prohibits people from asking for money at an ATM, on public transit, or when someone is in a vehicle. The law makes an exception for people who work for charities so they may ask people for money in these settings when poor people themselves cannot. It prohibits panhandling when intoxicated, even if the person asks for help politely. ALS will argue that the law targets the most vulnerable members of our community and causes more problems than it solves.
As a result of decades of colonialism and racism, Indigenous people are over-represented as people who experience homelessness and are less likely to access services. Most people who get a ticket do not actually go to court, which means people are convicted without a hearing. One of the people who provided evidence is Gerry Williams from Fort Albany First Nation. In the affidavit filed as evidence in the case, he explained how his family’s experiences at residential school and his experiences at day school led to mental health problems, including addiction and homelessness. He lived on the streets of Toronto for many years. After he took steps to address his health issues and get sober, he learned he had over $65,000 in unpaid fines, which created many barriers, including getting a driver’s licence. With the help of Fair Change, he had the fines replaced with an order to complete community service, but the court application was a lot of work and took a long time. Fair Change, ALS and the other organizations will argue that the law should be struck down to avoid more people in Gerry’s situation being given multiple tickets.
ALS will file a written argument in December and the case will be heard in the Ontario Superior Court in February 2024. The case is an example of the law reform activities ALS takes on when legal proceedings will have a significant effect on the Indigenous community or the potential to change the law to prevent further harm towards Indigenous people.
Emily Hill – Senior Staff Lawyer