In response to Simon Nattrass’ article, “A Crisis of Youthful Poverty,” that appeared in the April edition of Focus magazine, Paul Gerrard, a Saanich Councillor, wrote the following letter to the editor. It is a clear description of the problem as well as a cry for all sectors of the community to start addressing this challenge. The letter is reproduced in its entirety and appears on page 6 in the current May edition of Focus magazine.
I have just been appointed to the Coalition to End Homelessness, and the article on homeless youth really hit a nerve with me. Some years ago, as part of the homeless count, I interviewed a group of young people at a drop-in centre in a downtown church basement, and found a mixed bag of circumstances in their stories.
Many had fled a violent or sexual situation at home, some had been thrown out for drug use, and some, sadly, had been told that they were worthless and weren’t wanted anymore. Imagine what hearing that does for your confidence and self worth?
Remarkably, I found an intelligent group of young people who had a selection of survival techniques, and most importantly, looked after and supported one another. They shared friendly “couch surfing” addresses, camped together in our parks, shared food and drink, and had a drop-in centre to go to that was a welcome refuge from the streets. One thing everyone agreed on: shelters were a last resort, and everyone had a bad experience to recount. We really need supportive housing for all of our homeless population; shelters are just a band-aid solution and only suit
It is refreshing to hear such a wonderful and informed response from a politician who understands the struggles youth have in their own communities. Readers should be aware that BC has one the highest child poverty rates in the country. The 2007 Urban Poverty Project states that BC is the only province with increasing youth poverty rates, specifying Victoria’s youth poverty rate as the highest in Canada. One out of every 4 of our impoverished community members are between the ages of 15-24. According to local Community Council research, approximately 200 youth (aged 13-18), and 300 young adults (aged 19-24), are without stable housing and struggling with extreme poverty in the Capital Region. In a McCreary report (Making the Right Connections, 2011) on adolescent health in BC, one of the major contributing factors to health issues was unstable housing. Eight percent of males and females had an unstable home life. When compared to youth without these experiences, youth with an unstable home life were more likely to report extreme stress (24% vs. 13%), despair (14% vs. 5%), a mental or emotional health condition (7% vs. 3%), to self-harm (30% vs. 16%), to consider suicide (23% vs. 11%) or attempt suicide (17% vs. 4%). Furthermore, having an unstable home life lowered the likelihood that youth would report good or excellent health (74% vs. 85% of youth with a more stable background) or have post-secondary aspirations (64% vs. 79%).