May 11, 2018
Homeless Hub – Debra Schilling Wolfe; Johanna K.P. Greeson; Sarah Wasch; Daniel Treglia
Human Trafficking Prevalence and Child Welfare Risk Factors among Homeless Youth: A Multi-City Study
Sponsored by Covenant House International, the study involved three US cities (Philadelphia, Phoenix and Washington, DC) over 1,000 youth, and sought to clarify the prevalence of human trafficking and youth homelessness. “The result is shocking; a total of 36% of those interviewed reported engaging in a commercial sex act at some point in their lives.” The study was done by the Field Center for Children’s Policy, Practice & Research, University of Pennsylvania. “Of those interviewed, 20% were victims of human trafficking, including 17% who were victims of sex trafficking and 6% who were victims of labor trafficking. Fourteen percent engaged in “survival sex” to meet their basic needs.” https://fieldcenteratpenn.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/6230-R10-Field-Center-Full-Report-Web.pdf (The link is to the full 60 page report in pdf format.) Related article: Homelessness Hub: Homeless to Housed in a Hurry: Extending the use of Diversion to help families exit homelessness https://buildingchanges.org/images/documents/library/2018_DiversionOverview_FINAL.pdf Homeless Hub Link: Homeless to Housed in a Hurry: Extending the Use of Diversion to Help Families Exit Homelessness http://homelesshub.ca/resource/homeless-housed-hurry-extending-use-diversion-help-families-exit-homelessness
Huffington Post – Canadian Press
Trudeau Government Showing ‘Totalitarian’ Tendencies with Summer Jobs Program: Andrew Bennett
Andrew Bennett, former ambassador to the Office of Religious Freedom, says that the efforts by the Trudeau government to require attestations letters to be eligible for grants used in summer student employment by charities smacks of totalitarianism. “The government says it is not targeting beliefs or values but churches and other faith-based organizations say they are being forced to choose between staying true to their values and seeking grants to help them run programs — from summer camps to soup kitchens — that have nothing to do with abortion.” No one knows yet how much actual money is involved or how many student jobs will be lost in the confrontation. Both sides are resolute and the government position is under legal challenge from a coalition of charities. The backlash from charity supporters and civil libertarians appears enough for government to review at least the language of the attestation; obviously timing for summer jobs in critical. https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2018/05/09/trudeau-government-showing-totalitarian-tendencies-with-summer-jobs-program-andrew-bennett_a_23430620/?utm_campaign=canada_newsletter
CBC News – Kristy Hutter
Three Percenters are Canada’s ‘most dangerous’ extremist group, say some experts – Far-right group says it welcomes everyone, but some who’ve studied it say it’s an anti-Muslim militia
The Three Percenters, a US group who claim only 3% of America participated at the time of the revolutionary war, were quietly present in Charlottesville, VA. Then they developed a following in Alberta, then Ontario and Quebec. “They are the most dangerous group right now,” said Maxime Fiset, a former neo-Nazi who works with the Centre for the Prevention of Radicalization Leading to Violence in Montreal. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/three-percenters-canada-1.4647199
CBC News
Ottawa group proposes mobile supervised consumption site – Sure Shot Mobile Outreach asks for provincial funding for site that could move to where demand is high
The not-for-profit is asking the provincial government for $368,700 over the next six months to be able to bring safe injection to parts of Ottawa known to be high frequency for overdoses. There are currently four safe injections sites in Ottawa but this non-profit says the mobile response allows them to go to unserved areas and to react quickly to a batch of cases in one place after bad street drugs are identified. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-mobile-supervised-consumption-1.4656258
Toronto Star – Rachel Ariss
Lakehead University betrays law school’s Indigenous rights mandate
Last week Angelique EagleWoman resigned from her position as dean of Lakehead University’s Bora Laskin Law School in the face of what she called “systemic racism and indifference to Indigenous participation,” a contradiction to the raison d’être for the law school. The Law School then appointed Justice Patrick Smith of the Ontario Superior Court, as Interim Dean, inciting a backlash. Smith had a history with the Indigenous people in a legal fight over the Platinex Mining Company who falsely claimed to shareholders consent for Indigenous land encroachment and launched a lawsuit to sustain the claim. The case led to six months imprisonment for contempt of court against six Indigenous leaders. https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/2018/05/09/lakehead-university-betrays-law-schools-indigenous-rights-mandate.html
The Sentencing Project – Marc Mauer
Incarcerated Women and Girls, 1980-2016
This is a fact sheet on incarcerated women or women under the control of the prison system, jails, state prisons and federal prisons. It shows an alarming trend in that while many more men are imprisoned, the rate of incarcerating women has doubled since 1980. The fact sheet also shows that while the rate for Black women has been declining, the rate for Hispanic and White women is on the rise. In 2016, while the state rate varies considerably by state (cf link for state-by-state), the national rate was 64 per 100,000. https://www.sentencingproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Incarcerated-Women-and-Girls-1980-2016.pdf?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=12d509dd-a247-4f77-a4f8-6d0fdbe0cd6e Related article: Sentencing Project: In anticipation of Mother’s Day, five leading women advocates who are prioritizing the issues confronting women and girls in the criminal justice system. Impacted advocates use their experience to raise awareness around female incarceration https://www.sentencingproject.org/news/6186/?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=12d509dd-a247-4f77-a4f8-6d0fdbe0cd6e