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Thank you for signing our petition! We now have over 1,600 signatures. Our petition has been heard loud and clear, and the Park Ex community is overwhelmingly behind these demands.
Since we launched it, we have had some victories, but more needs to be done to make our neighborhood safe, healthy and equitable. Please help us push our elected officials to listen and take action on our demands. Share the petition, and write to our officials today and let them know you think more needs to be done (information below).
Victories
The petition has been covered in Metro, Global News, and Radio Canada.
The borough announced new pedestrian corridors in Park Ex (demand 6). However, more are still needed, especially along main commercial streets like Jarry and Jean-Talon.
Mobile testing clinics (demand 4), arrived in Park Ex that same week, and there are now testing days in the weekend (June 13, and 14). We hope that these get extended to the evenings: Park Ex, even during the Covid-19 crisis, has a working population, and most people can't make the clinic during its current schedule.
Right before our petition started, the Quebec government implemented a moratorium on evictions, and the borough adopted regulations to prohibit permits for evictions aiming to modify a dwelling (demand 1). However, the eviction moratorium is only temporary, and landlords are organizing a campaign to push back on the new regulations.
The borough has also made important steps to support community groups financially (demand 7). We welcome this, but underline that community groups like Afrique au Féminin are still stretched thin and need all the support they can get (you can pitch in yourself by donating here: https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/afrique-au-feminin/
The borough has supported citizen initiatives to distribute translated health information, and a truck went through the neighborhood making announcements (demand 8). But, the truck only passed through one day and most people did not hear it—more needs to be done to educate and alleviate fears.
The crisis continues
Despite the government of Quebec moving to open up services and businesses, Park Extension continues to be in a crisis. Faced with structural issues like a high percentage of agricultural and meat-packaging workers, dense living arrangements, and low-income residents, Park Extension is more vulnerable to a second wave than many neighborhoods.
Indeed, rates of infections are still going up in Park Ex. With the summer heat, more residents are coming out of their homes and finding crowded narrow sidewalks and public spaces. Temporary agency workers are being bused to farms, factories, and plants from Park Ex—still with inadequate protection, as exposed today in the Park Ex News. Eviction rates continue to increase, and July 1st is approaching—when many people will be struggling to find their next place to live as rent increases continue apace and vacancy rates hover around 0%. Many Park Ex residents have not been able to access programs like CERB, as they are temporary residents, refugees, or are students without Social Insurance Numbers.
The situation is urgent. But there continues to be little movement by our government officials to:
- Prolong the moratorium on evictions beyond the public health crisis, extend leases past July 1st for tenants who have not found another place to stay, and invest in the development of social and community housing in the long term (demand 1)
- Push for inspections of poorly-maintained buildings (demand 2)
- Guarantee safe working conditions for temporary agency workers (demand 3)
- Start large-scale distribution of free masks (demand 5)
- Set up public wifi stations (demand 9)
- Make clear moves to address over-policing of racialized residents (demand 10)
- Join in for calls to regularize all non-status migrants and guarantee their access to basic services (demand 11)
We need more actions
Our demands are not radical and are simply calls to meet our basic rights for healthcare, freedom of movement, and safe working conditions. Our petition has shown that Park Extension supports these demands, and that the City of Montreal is listening. Out of 11 demands, 5 of them have seen action from the government—a positive development which we applaud. Yet, more action is seriously needed to meet the challenges of the current crisis.
What you can do
Please share the petition with your neighbors to show that we support these demands.
Join us. We are a group of residents helping each other during the pandemic, and you can get involved. Visit our website (www.bonjourparcex.org and sign up for our newsletter to find out more.
Call or write to our officials to let them know you think more actions are needed.
Message to municipal politicians:
Join the call for a moratorium on evictions
Ensure that essential inspections are taking place
Join their voices to call for better and safer working conditions for agency workers
Start large-scale distribution of reusable face masks in Park Ex
Don’t back down on creating more space for safe distanciation on Park Ex streets, and add more streets to the plan
Installation of public wifi stations
Give a mandate to the police to stop harassing Park Ex residents and start collecting demographic information on the residents they accost
Join their voice for the regularization of non-status members of our community.
Valérie Plante, Mairesse de Montréal
514-872-3101, mairesse@montreal.ca
Giuliana Fumagalli, Mairesse de VSMPE
514-872-0755, giuliana.fumagalli@montreal.ca
Mary Deros, Conseillère de Parc-Extension
514-872-3103, mderos@montreal.ca
Message to public health officials:
1. Keep testing Park Ex residents, and make testing clinics accessible to workers by extending their hours into the evening and holding them on weekends.
2. Join the call for a moratorium on evictions and for essential building inspections.
3. Join their voices to call for better and safe working conditions for agency workers.
4. Start large-scale distribution of reusable face masks in Park Ex.
5. Support the creation of more space for safe distanciation on Park Ex streets and the installation of public wifi stations.
Dre Mylène Drouin, Santé Publique de Montréal
514-528-2400 ext. 3501, mylene.drouin.ccsmtl@ssss.gouv.qc.ca
Dr Horacio Arruda, Santé Publique du Québec
(418) 266-6700, horacio.arruda@msss.gouv.qc.ca
Message to provincial politicians:
1. Declare a moratorium on evictions that extends beyond the public health state of emergency (this moratorium should prevent evictions in case of non-payment of rent and lead to an extension of leases beyond July 1st).
2. Create a comprehensive, ongoing regularization program for all non-status migrants, so that they may fairly and rightfully access federal relief measures such as the CERB—as well as guaranteed access to all mental health, healthcare, and food security services provided by governmental and community groups.
3. Implement safe working conditions and raise the minimum wage for essential but precarious temporary agency workers in agricultural, healthcare, factories, domestic work and warehouses.
4. Fund the large-scale creation and distribution of reusable face masks in Park Ex.
5. Fund the installation of public wifi stations and distribution of computer equipment to working-class families.
Andrés Fontecilla, MNA for Laurier - Dorion / Député provincial de Laurier - Dorion
514 273-1412, Andres.Fontecilla.LADO@assnat.qc.ca
Chantal Rouleau, Députée prov. de Pointe-aux-Trembles & Ministre responsable de la Métropole de MTL
514-873-2809, Chantal.Rouleau.PAT@assnat.qc.ca
Message to federal politicians:
1. Create a comprehensive, ongoing regularization program for all non-status migrants, so that they may fairly and rightfully access federal relief measures such as the CERB—as well as guaranteed access to all mental health, healthcare, and food security services provided by governmental and community groups,
2. Support the province in ensuring safe working conditions and better pay for essential but precarious temporary agency workers in agricultural, healthcare, factories, domestic work and warehouses.
3. Fund the large-scale creation and distribution of reusable face masks in Park Ex.
4. Fund the installation of public wifi stations and distribution of computer equipment to working-class families.
Justin Trudeau, MP of Papineau and Prime Minister of Canada / Député fédéral de Papineau et Premier de Canada
514-277-6020, justin.trudeau@parl.gc.ca
Patty Hajdu, Minister of Health - Ministre de la Santé
613-996-4792, Patty.Hajdu@parl.gc.ca