Outrageous. Here we go again.

Many of you may not be familiar with the ongoing controlled movements of people experiencing homelessness in #Victoria.

Here’s a quick synopsis for you.

#bcpoli https://twitter.com/dave_eby/status/1354587548455104513
At the onset of the pandemic, with essential services closing/reducing capacity, those experiencing homelessness were directed to camp either at Topaz Park or the Pandora corridor.

At one point there were 200+ tents at Topaz. People in either of the encampments were neglected.
At the onset of the pandemic, with essential services closing/reducing capacity, those experiencing homelessness were directed to camp either at Topaz Park or the Pandora corridor.At one point there were 200+ tents at Topaz. People in either of the encampments were neglected.
At the onset of the pandemic, with essential services closing/reducing capacity, those experiencing homelessness were directed to camp either at Topaz Park or the Pandora corridor.At one point there were 200+ tents at Topaz. People in either of the encampments were neglected.
Many of us saw the harms that were generated from #COVID19 restrictions. We saw the indifference our decision-makers felt about people who were homeless. It took:

❌7 days for clean water
❌17 days for showers
❌>35 days for laundry

Worst of all was the changing drug supply.
Amidst fears of the global pandemic was the very clear and present danger of the #overdose crisis. Or should I say the mass poisoning crisis.

We called on decision-makers to offer housing, urgently, as the risk was rising exponentially for people camping in the park.
Amidst fears of the global pandemic was the very clear and present danger of the #overdose crisis. Or should I say the mass poisoning crisis.We called on decision-makers to offer housing, urgently, as the risk was rising exponentially for people camping in the park.
Amidst fears of the global pandemic was the very clear and present danger of the #overdose crisis. Or should I say the mass poisoning crisis.We called on decision-makers to offer housing, urgently, as the risk was rising exponentially for people camping in the park.
Unfortunately, those who could help acted too late.

We lost people in both sites, in a short amount of time—cheque week in April to be specific.

I can’t stop thinking about the people who are no longer with us.

The ones we promised not to leave behind. https://www.timescolonist.com/news/local/two-men-found-dead-at-topaz-park-site-of-encampment-for-homeless-1.24122720
Two men found dead at Topaz Park, site of encampment for homeless

Two men were found dead Wednesday afternoon in separate tents at Topaz Park in Victoria. The deaths have been deemed to be not suspicious by the Victoria Police Department, the B.C. Coroners . . .

https://www.timescolonist.com/news/local/two-men-found-dead-at-topaz-park-site-of-encampment-for-homeless-1.24122720
After these preventable deaths, and a wave of negative press, the @CityOfVictoria moved to relocate campers to various hotel sites, and the Save on Foods arena. Sound familiar?

This process was also disjointed, poorly planned, and resulted in harms. https://www.timescolonist.com/opinion/op-ed/comment-having-a-home-is-a-basic-human-right-1.24202005
Comment: Having a home is a basic human right

Bernie Pauly is a professor at the University of Victoria’s school of nursing; Corey Ranger is a ­ Victoria outreach worker. Both are RNs. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently said that COVID. . .

https://www.timescolonist.com/opinion/op-ed/comment-having-a-home-is-a-basic-human-right-1.24202005
Meanwhile a number of people experiencing homelessness continued to survive in other parks, because they never got an offer to go to a hotel.

Or they didn’t qualify.
Or they were evicted from the hotels.
Or they just seemed to be overlooked/ignored. https://twitter.com/beaconhillfolks/status/1350588602447663104
But as people were moved into hotels and the pandemic lulled between wave 1 and wave 2, the arena was ‘decamped’. Some were given shelter/housing options. Others were left to camp at Central Park. One block from the police station.

Then the park flooded. https://www.google.ca/amp/s/beta.ctvnews.ca/local/vancouver-island/2020/12/29/1_5247595.html
'Everything was flooded': Victoria to remediate Central Park after storms, campers moved

Heavy rain and snow in Victoria have flooded a park where people experiencing homelessness were living, and officials are still trying to find a permanent location for them.

https://www.google.ca/amp/s/beta.ctvnews.ca/local/vancouver-island/2020/12/29/1_5247595.html
In the absence of a viable emergency weather protocol, the city of #Victoria once again shuffled people to a new location. This time it was a parking lot.

An outdoor parking lot. In winter. During a global pandemic.

Many once again called out for better, more humane options. 👇 https://twitter.com/coreyranger/status/1341546669825880065
But that didn’t happen. And another tragic, preventable death occurred.

The cycle of indifferences ravages on.

So the arena shelter has opened again. And anyone who heralds this as a success needs to re-examine what’s transpired in the last 10 months. https://www.google.ca/amp/s/www.cheknews.ca/hes-loved-calls-to-reopen-arena-shelter-grow-after-victoria-homeless-man-found-dead-738090/%3famp
'He's loved': Calls to reopen arena shelter grow after Victoria homeless man found dead

Tina Dawson was home in her tent in the parking lot next to Royal Athletic Park in Victoria on Sunday when she heard an all too familiar scream.

https://www.google.ca/amp/s/www.cheknews.ca/hes-loved-calls-to-reopen-arena-shelter-grow-after-victoria-homeless-man-found-dead-738090/%3famp
Months of trauma and apathy directed towards those made most vulnerable by an oppressive system.

We are not in this together.

FYI there is a national protocol for homeless encampments in #Canada.

It’s those in power choosing not to follow it.

https://www.make-the-shift.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/A-National-Protocol-for-Homeless-Encampments-in-Canada.pdf
You can follow @CoreyRanger.
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