At a press conference in Ottawa on August 14, advocates released an open letter to Prime Minister Trudeau signed by over 170 (and counting!) organizations and prominent Canadians urging the Prime Minister to fulfil his commitment to the right to housing by enshrining that right in upcoming National Housing Strategy legislation.
The letter was penned by Amnesty International Canada, Campaign 2000: End Child and Family Poverty in Canada, Canada Without Poverty, the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness, housing and homelessness researcher Emily Paradis, and the Social Rights Advocacy Centre. Supported by the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to housing, the letter outlines key requirements of right to housing legislation consistent with international human rights law.
The letter also refers to draft legislation prepared by legal scholars and civil society experts that offers suggestions on how the right to housing could be incorporated into the proposed National Housing Strategy legislation, consistent with international human rights law, and including mechanisms through which people affected by homelessness and inadequate housing can bring complaints about systemic violations and require the government to respond.
Read the full text of the letter and draft legislation below
English: press release | open letter | draft legislation
En français: communiqué de presse | lettre ouverte | ébauche de projet de loi
See who has signed the open letter
Show your support! À l'action!
- Add your name to the open letter and call for the meaningful legislation of the right to housing | Ajoutez votre nom à la lettre ouverte en demandant la législation du droit de logement.
- Email your MP to tell them you support the legislation of the right to housing. | Envoyer un courriel à votre député pour lui dire que vous êtes en faveur de la législation du droit de logement.
- Spread the word to your social networks via email, Facebook or Twitter and using #legislateR2H | Répandez la nouvelle à votre réseau social par courriel, Facebook ou Twitter en utilisant #untoitundroit