Volume 49 No. 12
BEACHMETRO.COM
September 8, 2020
Virtual Terry Fox Run in Beach planned PHOTO: ALAN SHACKLETON
Community members put up messages against racism in Dentonia Park during a rally on Aug. 29. The messages were torn down the next day by unknown persons. There is now a call for a permanent display against racism to be installed in the park.
Permanent anti-racism display being sought for Dentonia Park By Alan Shackleton
CALLS ARE being made to install a permanent display against racism in Dentonia Park in the wake of a number of racist incidents that have taken place in the area this summer. On Saturday, Aug. 29, community members made a stand against racism with a rally and the putting up of anti-racist signs and posters on a fence near the park’s cricket ground. The next day, the signs were torn
down by unknown persons. Organizers again put up messages and posters against racism and hate, and again they were torn down earlier last week. Beaches-East York MPP Rima Berns-McGown, who attended the Aug. 29 anti-racism rally, told Beach Metro News that the community won’t back down after these latest acts of hate. “I was disappointed but not surprised that the banners have been destroyed, not once but multiple times,” she said.
“We know that white supremacists and hate live in the east end, and Dentonia Park has been the site of more than one instance of it.” Berns-McGown said she is in support of a permanent art installation or mural in the park against racism. “We will continue to rise. We are determined to find a permanent way – through a permanent art installation or mural – of making that message loud and clear. Love will win. There is no place for hate in
Beaches-East York.” Also, another anti-racism rally was held in the park on the morning of Saturday, Sept. 5 (after Beach Metro News’ deadline for this edition). Organizers of the Sept. 5 rally said it was important to show resolve against these acts of hate. “We left beautiful messages of love and a clear stance that hate and racism will not be tolerated,” said a Facebook post from Old’s Cool General Store in East York, which was one of the groups that Continued on Page 14
THE 40TH annual Terry Fox Run is going to be a lot different from the previous 39. Set for Sunday, Sept. 20 across Canada, including the Beach, this year’s runs will be taking place virtually due to COVID-19 restrictions. Instead of large crowds of runners and walkers gathering to take part in community runs, organizers are asking residents to support the cause online with activities within their own area and social circle. “There are no physical events this year as we are asking Canadians to join in this annual celebration of our very own hero, and raise money for cancer research which has been hit hard due to the pandemic,” said a release from the Terry Fox Run. Fox ended his journey running to raise money for cancer research 40 years ago: running for 143 days, through six provinces, and covering 5,373 kilometres. Locally, Beach Terry Fox Run organizer Pamela Politano has info on how residents can support the cause this year. That info is available by going to www.terryfox.ca/ pamelapolitano
Tents moved from Ivan Forrest Gardens last week By Ali Raza
THE COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated many issues the City of Toronto was facing – and homelessness has certainly been one of them. A combination of city staff suspending some shelter work at the height of the pandemic in March and April, and limited physical distancing space in existing shelters led to a spike of encampments in parks across the city. Residents living near Ivan Forrest Gardens and Glen Stewart Park in the Beach have on many instances contacted the city via 311 regarding encampments in the park belonging to people experiencing homelessness. City staff is often called to the area to respond to complaints as well as its own program of helping
homeless people find respite and shelter. Beaches-East York Councillor Brad Bradford said the tents “continue to be a challenge” but noted that it is important for the city and the community to find an empathetic solution. “We have a fine line to walk between keeping the community safe, making sure the folks living in these situations are also safe, and not using unnecessary force to remove people,” he said. Bradford added that Toronto has seen “unprecedented” numbers of people setting up encampments in parks due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the beginning of the pandemic, 3,500 people have moved through the emergency shelter system in the city into temporary community centre programs, ho-
tels, and permanent housing. That includes 1,300 individuals who have been transitioned to permanent housing to achieve physical distancing of two metres between shelter beds. And the city has opened 30 temporary facilities in addition to the 75 shelters and respites that were available before the pandemic. The entire shelter system, citywide, houses approximately 7,000 people. “That’s a lot of capacity we’ve created, and a lot of people in the system,” Bradford said. “We want to avoid forcing people into the shelter system if they don’t want that.” While there remains capacity for additional people, “for better or for worse, some people simply refuse,” Bradford added. The city’s Shelter, Support, and
Housing Administration (SSHA) is responsible for outreach to people experiencing homelessness under the Streets to Homes program. It works with community partners, including The Salvation Army Gateway, and it has increased engagement with people at Ivan Forrest Gardens. The city’s Solid Waste Management staff has also attended the sites to clean up any hazardous waste materials and garbage from the area. “At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, encampment clearing had not been happening due to the city’s focus on creating safe physical distancing within the shelter system,” a statement from SSHA read. Work with people living in encampments restarted on Apr. 29, and as of Aug. 26, 790 people have
been moved from encampments to safer spaces inside, leading to 52 encampments across the city being cleared. Demand for transitional homes from people experiencing homeless has also increased in response to the pandemic. Most recently at Ivan Forrest Gardens, staff attended three times during the week of Aug. 24. On the Aug. 29/30 weekend, one person agreed to work with city staff and move into a hotel program. Three additional people remained onsite in encampments at Ivan Forrest Gardens earlier last week as they had declined offers of city services. “If they continue to decline, we’ll work with Parks staff to post and clear the site within the next Continued on Page 16