A “Rally for People and Planet” was held in downtown Kitchener on Saturday. Dozens of people gathered at Carl Zehr Square to hear a united message from politicians of different parties. The event focused on two proposed provincial laws – Bill 5 and Bill 6. Bill 6 targets homeless encampments and drug use in public spaces. If passed, police officers would have more power to arrest anyone in a public space, including a tent, who is in possession of an illegal substance. Those individuals would then face tougher penalties, including up to six months in prison or a fine of up to $10,000. “This gives the government power to push municipalities, to police and jail people who are unhoused, people who might use drugs in public because they have nowhere else to go,” said Aislinn Clancy, deputy leader for the Green Party of Ontario and MPP for Kitchener Centre. Advocates have argued that punitive measures often fail to address the issues causing homelessness and may, in fact, make them worse. Bill 5, meanwhile, seeks to speed up development for certain projects, like mining, and create “special economic zones” where provincial and municipal laws would be suspended. The Ring of Fire is one the sites identified by the province. “It gives Cabinet absolute power to override Indigenous consent, environmental assessment, scraps the Indigenous Services Act and what could override labour laws, municipal planning laws, all in the name of allowing corporations to do whatever they want,” Clancy stated. “The bill was put forward without Indigenous consultation or consent. It overrides the Endangered Species [Act]. We’ve already seen about a 75 per cent extinction rate across the globe when it comes to endangered species. We’re in a climate crisis. We can pursue a healthy economy without abandoning the possibility of a livable planet, without abandoning truth and reconciliation.” Catherine Fife, the MPP for Waterloo and Shadow Minister for Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade for the Ontario New Democratic Party, also spoke to participants at the rally. “We were filibustering this week to make sure that the legislation at least slowed down,” she said. “Really, at the end of the day, one of the most important things is that this Bill 5 is meant to fast track some of the economic development. What’s going to happen is that it’s going to end up in the courts, so it’s going to slow down. It’s a flawed piece of legislation that needs to be scrapped. We need to go back to the drawing board on it.” Fife also applauded the rare cross-party collaboration to oppose the proposed legislation. “The fact is that Greens and the Liberals, they worked together with us this week,” she said. “We’re using what little power we have to really try to hold up the people’s power in Ontario. And that’s what people expect from us.” “We don’t believe that this is democratic and so all opposition parties are united,” Clancy added. Proposed homelessness bill She is calling for a new approach to address homelessness in Ontario. Clancy has co-sponsored a private member’s bill with Lee Fairclough, the former president of St. Mary’s General Hospital in Kitchener and current MPP for Etobicoke-Lakeshore. It calls for the creation of more affordable housing, with guidance from people who know what it is like to be homeless. The “Homelessness Ends with Housing Act” sets an ambitious 10-year timeline to end chronic homelessness. “There’s a zero per cent vacancy rate in Waterloo Region for affordable housing,” Clancy explained. ”We’re losing housing. People are hemorrhaging onto the streets because they have nowhere to go. This is a policy that calls on the government to develop a strategy based on evidence and experts, people with lived experience, to have housing targets, supportive housing targets [and] to expand benefits.” Clancy introduced the bill to the legislature on May 27. It will be debated and voted on in fall 2025.
