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441-02401 (Justice)
- Keywords
- Discrimination
- Homelessness and homeless
Original language of petition: English
Petition to the House of Commons in Parliament Assembled
Whereas:
- The homeless in Canada are mistreated and discriminated against as a matter of routine;
- Crimes against them go unpunished, ignored. At the same time they are falsely accused;
- Many NGO groups and government agencies have been using Band-Aid methods to help;
- Many studies have shown that housing them and helping them directly would be less costly but the establishment refuses and has even fought against this advice; and
- Instead, a campaign of terror has been waged against them by police/security, the business community, and residential associations.
Therefore: We, the undersigned, Canadian citizens and residents, call upon the House of Commons in Parliament Assembled to implement a federal law making it illegal to discriminate against any homeless person in this country - Making it illegal to confiscate their private property, arbitrarily forcing them to move from public property when they have nowhere to go, and making it illegal to criminally harass them.
Response by the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
Signed by (Minister or Parliamentary Secretary): The Parliamentary Secretary James Maloney
Canada is a country that is governed by the rule of law. This means that the laws in Canada apply equally to everyone, regardless of status or wealth, and that homeless individuals are entitled to the same rights and protections as anyone else.
The Canadian legal system serves to protect people from unlawful acts, regardless of who commits them– including from intimidating or harassing behaviour. For example, the Criminal Code makes it illegal to knowingly or recklessly harass a person through conduct such as following or engaging in threatening conduct without lawful authority such that a person fears for their safety or the safety of another person (section 264 of the Criminal Code). Where private property is confiscated by individuals such as business owners or associations, depending on the situation, offences such as theft may also be prosecuted (section 322 of the Criminal Code).
While police play a unique role in our society, and their powers differ from those of private individuals and associations, they must nonetheless act with lawful authority. Bylaws and court injunctions, for example, may provide lawful authority to remove property or individuals from public property. However, police cannot arbitrarily seize items or search people. If there are concerns that police powers have been abused, there are complaint systems in place in jurisdictions throughout Canada.
- Presented to the House of Commons
-
Laurel Collins
(Victoria)
April 19, 2024 (Petition No. 441-02401) - Government response tabled
- June 3, 2024
Only validated signatures are counted towards the total number of signatures.