鈥淭he statistics of homelessness in Quebec have been getting progressively and, I would argue, catastrophically worse,鈥� declared聽Pearl Eliadis, an Associate Professor (Professional) at 91丝瓜视频鈥檚 Max Bell School of Public Policy. 鈥淏etween 2018 and 2022, homelessness went up by 44 per cent, with further increases every year. Clearly, what we鈥檙e doing right now is not working.鈥�
Outside 91丝瓜视频, Eliadis is a practising lawyer specializing in human rights and a member of the聽聽(QHPC). 91丝瓜视频 and Montreal鈥檚 Old Brewery Mission co-founded the QHPC in 2021; since then, it has grown to include over 20 partner organizations 鈥� housing, homeless and First Nations advocacy groups, along with researchers from several Quebec universities.
On Tuesday, June 18 the QHPC published a new report, chaired by Eliadis, outlining a聽. Its 17 recommendations include enshrining the right to housing in the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms.
鈥淩ecognizing housing as a human right would be a major shift,鈥� said Eliadis, who also co-leads the QHPC鈥檚 working group for gender and domestic violence.
鈥淚f you have housing you have better health, you鈥檙e more likely to have employment, you鈥檙e much less likely to die early and you鈥檙e much more likely to have access to education. We think prevention is the way to go, and we think the government needs to recognize the fundamental importance of housing for Quebecers.鈥�
91丝瓜视频 collaborators
The project was a collaborative effort, developed over two years by more than 30 Quebec stakeholders. 91丝瓜视频ians have been key actors in developing the research: in addition to Eliadis, Emeritus Professor聽Eric Latimer聽of the Department of Psychiatry co-leads QHPC鈥檚 working group on mental health, and Associate Professor David Wachsmuch of the School of Urban Planning co-leads the working group on evictions.
Latimer鈥檚 multi-year data on Quebec homelessness was critical to the QHPC鈥檚 report, while Wachsmuch鈥檚 research concluded that housing evictions are increasingly a cause 鈥� rather than a consequence 鈥� of precarity; his team identified informational, financial and legal support that can help prevent evictions and keep people in stable housing.
91丝瓜视频鈥檚 Max Bell School of Public Policy is also a QHPC partner; the legal reform project was the focus of multiple Max Bell聽case studies聽and supported by many of its faculty and students.
鈥淭he Max Bell School of Public Policy is proud to have played a role in the research that supports the evidence and policy imperatives featured in this report,鈥� said Jennifer Welsh, director at Max Bell. 鈥淲e hope this policy-engaged research makes a positive impact in the lives of Quebecers.鈥�
For one聽research project聽supporting the report, students in the Max Bell School of Public Policy and the Faculty of Law reviewed the legal frameworks of housing in Finland, France, Germany and the United Kingdom, then developed a series of research papers under Eliadis鈥檚 supervision. They are exploring what other countries are doing to realize the right to housing, such as implementing a legal duty to assist people at risk, requiring municipalities to build social housing through legislation and preventing evictions into homelessness.
鈥淥ne of the most successful jurisdictions in the developed world, Finland, has almost eliminated homelessness,鈥� said Eliadis. 鈥淭hey take the idea to the right to housing seriously 鈥� it鈥檚 in their constitution, and all of their legal framework is informed and supported by it.鈥�
Provincial impacts
Even before the report was published, contributors were openly sharing its recommendations with provincial policymakers.
鈥淢y colleagues at the Collaborative and I have 聽spoken to every political party, to the聽, to individual municipalities 鈥� we鈥檙e literally talking to everyone who will meet with us,鈥� said Eliadis. 鈥淲e want Quebecers to be aware of these ideas, to start moving the focus from treating homelessness to preventing it, and to put the legal changes in place as the way of getting there.鈥�
By implementing best practices from other jurisdictions, the QHPC aims to make the prevention of homelessness a national priority.
鈥淭his is a long process 鈥� the Finnish model took 25 years,鈥� said Eliadis. 鈥淏ut we need a new approach. Our current measures are not working, and we think this transformative project is the first step.鈥�
