Hello <<First Name>>,
As a society, we place a great deal of trust in our frontline health care workers. We entrust them with the care of our loved ones, friends and neighbours. They work long, difficult hours to ensure that sick individuals are cared for with decency and respect, and they deserve the same in return. During the pandemic, we've taken to calling them heroes, but some of the choices the government has made, and continues to make, are leaving many to wonder if the government has their back.
In previous newsletters, I've outlined some of our concerns. We pressed the government to institute pandemic pay to acknowledge the risk facing those on the frontline. The government ignored our call to backdate these funds to the beginning of the pandemic, and many still haven't received the benefit. Others frontline workers, such as lab technicians, were inexplicably left off the list of eligible workers. And now, as registered nurses call on the province to repeal bill 124, those calls are being ignored.
Bill 124 was passed in November and placed unconstitutional limits on public sector worker's rights to collective bargaining. This resulted in a pay increase cap of 1% or less for the next 3 years for nurses and other healthcare professionals in Ontario. Male-dominated fields like policing and firefighters were exempted from the legislation, and don't have the same restrictions placed on them. It's time the government do the right thing and reverse course on this flawed legislation. Rather than continue with hefty legal fees for a case the government is sure to lose, we should be honouring these workers, by repealing Bill 124, and exempting health care workers.
Today, City Council is meeting to discuss police reform in Toronto. It is an important conversation that needs to happen, but it is also not the first time governments have been asked to look inwards, and identify recommendations to address systemic racism in policing. For decades, governments have commissioned reports, and watched as they collected dust on a bookshelf. That needs to change. Our party is backing a coalition of Black organizations that are calling for the immediate implementation of recommendations from 3 reports dating back as far as 2014. To learn more about our proposals, please see the press release below. If you haven't had an opportunity, I would also encourage you to read our policy paper, where we set forward some tangible reforms.
As always, my office is here to help. Please call at 416-243-7984, or email us at fhassan-co@ndp.on.ca.
Take care, stay home, and wash your hands.
Best Regards,
Faisal Hassan
Member of Provincial Parliament
York South—Weston
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Each level of government has useful information to support you during this crisis. For more information, visit the resources below:
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News Release
NDP backs Black community coalition calls for implementing report recommendations on policing reform
QUEEN’S PARK — Responding to a coalition of more than a dozen Black organizations heading to Queen’s Park Monday, the Ontario’s Official Opposition NDP and NDP Black Caucus are backing their call for the government to finally implement recommendations from reports that have been collecting dust since they were completed.
“For decades, governments have commissioned reports, studies and committees in response to community calls for action to address hurtful and deadly anti-Black racism,” said NDP Leader Andrea Horwath. “And time and time again, these reports have been completed only to have one premier after another put them on a shelf to collect dust, never implementing their recommendations. We need to implement them now and actually start tackling systemic racism in policing.”
The NDP is echoing Black organizations in calling for all recommendations from three reports to be implemented immediately, including:
- The Report of the Independent Street Checks Review (2018)
- The Police and Community Engagement Review-PACER (2014)
- The Report of the Independent Police Oversight Review (2017)
The Ontario NDP and NDP Black Caucus has also been calling for the recommendations Roots of Youth Violence report (2008) to be implemented.
“If the government really listened to community, they would hear the call to finally act,” said Laura Mae Lindo, Ontario NDP Anti-Racism critic, and chair of the Ontario NDP Black Caucus. “The Black, Indigenous and racialized people’s voices that went into writing these reports deserve to be heard, and their recommendations must be acted on.
“We must stop the cycle of government after government doing nothing more than talking. It’s time for action.”
The Ontario NDP Caucus has released its Commitment to Action, called End Police Violence. Invest in Black, Indigenous and Racialized People’s Lives. It commits to:
- Overhaul police oversight
- End carding and destroy all data collected through this unconstitutional practice
- Invest in alternative first responders
- Rather than the police, alternative first responders should respond to mental health, addictions, homelessness and school discipline calls
- Demilitarize our police forces. Too much is spent on things like tear gas, which has been banned in war zones by the Chemical Weapons Convention since 1997
- Give elected representatives the help and power to set their policing budgets
- Invest heavily in programs and supports that improve quality of life by considering and addressing the social determinants of health (social and economic factors that influence people's health) and use an anti-racist, anti-oppression framework
The Ontario NDP Black Caucus is the first official Black Caucus in the Ontario Legislature. Its members are Lindo (Kitchener Centre), Jill Andrew (Toronto—St. Paul’s), Rima Berns-McGown (Beaches—East York), Faisal Hassan (York South—Weston), and Kevin Yarde (Brampton North).
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Community News:
Effective July 2, masks or face coverings are mandatory when travelling on the TTC, with the exception of:
- Children under two years of age.
- Persons with an underlying medical condition which inhibits the ability to wear a mask or face covering.
For more information on the plan, read HERE.
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York West Active Living Centre is continuing to provide virtual programming to residents. For a program schedule, click HERE.
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On June 30 at 2pm EST, FoodShare will be hosting a panel titled "Black Women on Black Food Sovereignty" on Zoom! Learn more about ways in which colonialism, anti-Black racism, capitalism, white supremacy, and patriarchy are among the organizing principles embedded in the food system.
Tickets are now available for purchase on Eventbrite HERE.
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The Syme 55+ Seniors' Centre, in partnership with Syme Woolner Neighbourhood and Family Centre and the Daily Bread Food Bank, have come together to open a new food bank in the York South—Weston community.
Date: Each Wednesday, starting July 8th, 2020
Time: 2:00pm-4:00pm
Address: 33 Pritchard Ave Toronto ON M6N 1T4
For more information, contact:
Phone: 416-766-0388
Email: syme55@syme55.com
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Toronto unites online this year for Canada Day. On July 1, join morning, afternoon and evening livestream programs showcasing Toronto’s brightest talent. For more info, click HERE.
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