Domestic Violence is an issue faced by many. Statistics Canda estimated that over 80
percent of victims remain silent because of the lack of safe support.

Every night in Canada, around 3,491 women and 2,724 children turn to emergency shelters to escape domestic violence.

Unfortunately, one Canadian study reports that 38 percent of victims became homeless after leaving their spouse. Why is this? While shelters do exist they have extreme waitlists. There are not enough vacancies to support the victims fleeing their unsafe environments.

On February 17th, 2022, CKOM News reported a 1.1 million dollar budget for victims of domestic abuse or family abuse in Saskatchewan. While this may seem like a lot of money, it is not enough, especially in comparison to a 4.2 million dollar budget towards shelter advancement in 2018.

Numbers of domestic violence have increased since quarantine. Saskatoon police recieved 6,450 calls of domestic violence which is 24.1 percent higher than the 5,198 calls in 2019. Since then, the numbers are still high.

As of December 2021, Statistics Canada reports Saskatchewan having the highest rate of Domestic Violence in Canada.
   
How can we help? By providing more funding, shelters can increase the amount of people they can safely vacate.

Shelter funding would also help advance some shelters to fit a longer-term stay. Immediate shelters could be open to victims just leaving whereas second housing shelters can be for victims who are healing and need time to figure out their next steps.

Second housing would provide victims with stability as well as give them time to heal from very traumatic wounds without all the added stress of becoming homeless. 40% of victims report the abuse causing problems with work and maintaining a stable job.

Most victims fear not being able to access a shelter or be forced out of one with nowhere to go. This often causes victims to return to the unsafe environment.

Home should never be unsafe.

By signing this petition, you are fighting for finance minister Donna Harpauer to increase
the provincial funding and give victims a safe place to sleep at night.

Shelters should encourage people to leave unsafe situations and provide safety, not push them back into that unsafe situation. By working together, we can make shelters accessible.

NO VICTIM SHOULD REMAIN SILENT BECAUSE OF WAITLISTS.