The city has failed to provide shelters for homeless residents during the COVID-19 pandemic, and is now working against those attempting to help
In Toronto, a carpenter named Khaleel Seivwright has been providing the homeless in the city with tiny shelters to help them get through the winter since last fall, even raising over $200,000 to help with project costs. The city has now filed an injunction against Sievwright in response to his attempt to help not only improve living conditions for those without a home of their own but also to help save lives. If the injunction is granted, Sievwright will have to stop providing these shelters, or he will risk facing fines, criminal charges, and imprisonment.
YouTube channel Toronto Tiny Shelters shared a video of testimonials from people about the positive impact that these small shelters have had on their lives. Among the many ways that having a shelter has improved her situation, a woman told them that “One of the great things about them is because it’s off the ground, even if it rains, there’s no dampness in there at all; it’s warm, it’s dry.” According to many, having a tiny shelter is one of the best things that has happened for them in a long time, providing safety from the elements and a secure place to keep belongings. One man the channel spoke to explained how having a shelter to stay in has helped his stress to go down and enabled him to get back into a routine, sleep more solidly at night, and as he put it, “I just feel more healthy, more like I can just actually have a life.”
Winters are especially hard on those without a place to stay, and with the COVID-19 pandemic making it more dangerous to gather together with others at shelters, having the ability to be indoors while also distancing from others helps greatly. It’s something the city should not simply try to strip away from those in need until a better alternative can be provided. As mentioned in an article from the Globe and Mail, “Seivwright says the city should focus its resources on getting people housed rather than fight him in court.”
As reported by the Toronto Star, the city’s excuses for filing an application for an injunction to stop Seivwright from not only building but also fixing or relocating the tiny shelters on land owned by the city, are that “the encampments are a safety hazard” prohibited by bylaws and that the tiny shelters are a “fire hazard.” This is not only something you could say about ANY home, but every shelter is also equipped with a fire alarm and a carbon monoxide detector along with a fire extinguisher. Fire safety tests have also been conducted, and a fire safety inspection was even done by a credentialed inspector. Tragically, a man did die in Toronto earlier in February after a wooden structure caught fire, but there has been no indication or proof that the structure was one of Seivwright’s tiny shelters.
If we want to speak of real “hazards,” is it not hazardous for people to be forced to sleep outdoors in the wet and cold? It seems more like the city is sending a message about just how much they value property over their own suffering people.
“Encampment residents tell me how important the tiny shelters have been — for their safety, for their privacy and dignity,” Seivwright said in a video statement which can also be found on the Toronto Tiny Shelters YouTube channel. “I hope there will come a day when the tiny shelters are no longer needed, but that day has not yet come.” And in the meantime, hopefully the city will consider working with Seivwright to help stop vulnerable people from being left to fall through the cracks instead of wasting time and resources trying to stop one of the few people actually trying to take action and empower homeless community members.
In a statement from March 2, Seivwright said that the city of Toronto has not dropped their injunction against him. In response, those interested in contributing can donate funds to his GoFundMe page, which will go toward legal fees, with the excess funds stated as going to the Encampment Support Network.
