“Everyone
in Metro Vancouver knows that we have a homelessness issue, that we have a lot
of people on the streets and that shelters are overcrowded … [but] there is
this horrible stigma surrounding it,” says Teresa Grant, social justice
coordinator for the Capilano Students’ Union.
Grant
was one of the organizers for the 5 Days for the Homeless event, which started
on campus on Mar. 12.
“It’s
a national campaign, and it essentially involves students from universities
sleeping outside to garner attention to the issues surrounding youth
homelessness in the city,” Grant explains. “At Cap, we’re really hitting hard
with different events throughout the week to highlight issues specific to Metro
Vancouver, and even more specifically North Vancouver. We have six students who
are sleeping outside for the five days, and they’re from all different
programs.”
Dolly
Reno is a film student and was one of the “homeless” volunteers for the event.
She has personal reasons for participating in the campaign: “I think that the
main reason is that when I was 16, I was homeless. I was in Montreal, and I was
homeless for a couple of months. I just got out of a really intense
relationship that got me there. At this point, it just seems so far away from
that point to where I am now. Homelessness is still all around me even though
it’s not me. It just struck a chord because it’s a really huge issue. I’m well off
at this point, but I know that there [are] a lot of other people that could use
help.”
Reno
also took advantage of the opportunity by filming footage for a documentary
about the experience. “[The documentary] is about the event itself and the
process of the other five participants and what they go through, intertwined with
what this event can do; what it does for the participants and their
understanding of what homelessness is,” says Reno.
She
plans to make a ten-minute promo of the film for the CSU, as well as a
30-minute documentary that she will send out to film festivals. For each day of
the campaign, Grant focused attention on a different issue related to
homelessness, such as mental health and addictions, First Nations homelessness,
and youth homelessness.
Grant
hopes to raise attention about the homelessness issues specifically in North Vancouver.
“When I tell people [about homelessness], people say, ‘Well, it’s a great
cause, but there are no homeless in the North Shore’. Actually, the statistics
were just released for Metro Vancouver homeless numbers, and the North Shore is
tied for third in terms of the worst population of homelessness. It’s clearly
an issue here and no one knows much about it,” says Grant.
The
last day of the event featured a forum with local politicians and community
leaders, including Jane Thornthwaite, the MLA for North Vancouver-Seymour; and
Richard Walton, the Mayor of the District of North Vancouver, as well as some
representatives from local homeless shelters.
So
far, the campaign has raised well over $3,000 dollars from sponsors, and more
donations are expected to come in. However, despite the event now being over,
Grant hopes that people will continue to donate to the cause. “There are lots
of ways that people can donate. If it’s easier, people can go onto our website,
5days. ca.” All of the funds raised by the CSU are going to the North Shore
Youth Housespace.
Grant
is hopeful that the event has raised awareness and promoted conversations about
the issues: “I’m really into visual demonstrations that are respectful, and
that foster dialogue. This is a cool visual way to bring up conversation. It was
also really important that we weren’t saying, ‘Oh, here are some privileged,
primarily white students who are going to see what it is kind of like to be
homeless for five days,” she says, referring to the fact that the supplementary
events were put on to provide a deeper analysis of the issues.
Reno
thinks that the event resonated with students, as many carry financial burdens
while going to university. “I don’t think we have the total understanding of
what it means to have nothing except for the clothing on your back, and
sometimes not even a lot of that,” says Reno. “We’re not far off from that
situation as students. I think most of us worry about where we’re going to sleep
or what we’re going to eat almost everyday, or at least every month, because we
can’t afford to pay for our own education, let alone our living.”
//Leah Scheitel, writer
//Photograph by Jason Jeon
//Leah Scheitel, writer
//Photograph by Jason Jeon
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