Episode 16: The Community of Encampments

This episode of Homelessness in Hiding: Our Youth Between the Cracks is part three of our four-part series about encampment communities. Host Mya Moniz sits with Jimmy Kim and Mari Leesment, two Organizational Leaders with the Blue Tent Church. This religious organization serves people experiencing homelessness in the Region of Peel and works closely with a number of encampment residents. Blue Tent Church serves anyone in need of community, connection, and love. Their weekly congregations and barbecue act as a safe space for folks to come together, give thanks to whomever and whatever they feel, share their stories, and find comfort and trust in each other. Hear about the remarkable transformation of two community leaders and the heartwarming stories of those living rough on the streets of Peel.

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Encampment communities have been around for decades, but the COVID-19 pandemic has complicated and proliferated their existence in Peel, Canada, and worldwide. At the beginning of the pandemic, the Region of Peel supported the increase in encampment communities, even promising that established communities would not be disturbed. Ontario, as well, was supporting folks by providing municipalities like Peel with emergency funding to provide folks experiencing homelessness with rooms in hotels and motels if they wanted them.

Now, however, in 2022, much of that funding–much of that understanding, that compassion–has run out. Let's talk about that.