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Well, we're still the only province in Canada without a poverty reduction plan. Although we're always optimistic, we weren't really expecting that to change in the 2016 BC Budget last week, but we were hoping for more for people with disabilities.
But, as you’ve probably heard, the BC government announced a completely inadequate increase to the disability rates of $77, and then cut the bus pass for people with disabilities making the increase even smaller – in some cases, only $11!
There was no raise for the basic income assistance rate despite being frozen at $610 for the last 9 years! As you can see in the graph below,
assistance rates are still far below the poverty line let alone a dignified rate.
Join the Rally Today
Come out to support
BC ACORN and their low-income members struggling to survive on these rates. Please share widely - we need a big crowd to send a loud message to the government!
When: Today, Wednesday, February 24, 11:30am
Where: Burrard Skytrain Station, Vancouver
Join the Facebook Event here.
Sign the Petition
Please also consider
signing and sharing the petition launched by Inclusion BC. They have over 9,000 signatures, help them reach their goal of 10,000.
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For more on the budget, check out
Iglika Ivanova’s great analysis from the CCPA here, inlcuding updates on housing, MSP, education, child care and transit.
“The measure of any society is reflected
in the degree to which
it is willing to help the most vulnerable.”
Minister de Jong started his BC Budget 2016 speech with this famous quote, but Iglika responds stating, "if this is the measure we apply to Budget 2016, then BC is failing miserably. What this budget offers to BC’s most vulnerable is a drop
in the bucket.”
More detail on the inadequacy
of the housing investment from CCPA's Marc Lee here.
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Make Poverty Visible
Local Stories need BC Plan
"We want to make our experience visible to people who haven't lived our lives."
On Monday, in partnership with
Raise the Rates, we're launching the Make Poverty Visible exhibit at the Vancouver Public Library. The exhibit brings stories from across British Columbia to show that poverty affects every one of our communities.
Last year, we set out on a
road-trip around the province hosting community workshops about poverty and what we can collectively do about it. Come and see the Poverty Flags created by community members throughout BC from Prince Rupert to Cranbrook.
Where: Vancouver Public Library, 350 West Georgia Street
Starts: Monday, February 29, 12 noon, featuring local story-tellers
Ends: Sunday, March 13
Join and share: Facebook
event page here
Join us on March 6, 12 or 13 any time between 12-4pm to make your own flag and add to the story of poverty and our shared hopes for a better BC.
Whether it's a family in Richmond choosing between food and toilet paper or a little girl growing up in Nelson with mushrooms in her bedroom because of a leaking roof,
all these local stories are connected by the need for a BC poverty reduction plan
to tackle the root causes of poverty. |
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The BC Poverty Reduction Coalition acknowledges and honours the fact that
our communities lie on unceded Indigenous lands. |
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