Election Day is on Monday, October 21. Don't forget to vote for the candidate of your choice! Please check out the positions from the four parties below.
Read moreMeet your candidates for York Centre
Election Day is on Monday, October 21. Don't forget to vote for the candidate of your choice! Please check out the positions from the four parties below. Learn more about where to vote and what you need to be eligible at www.elections.ca!
Universal Dental Care: Why it’s so important
Growing up I was never one of the kids who left school early or came in late because I had a dentist appointment. From a young age I knew that dentist visits were very expensive and not a financial priority in my household. In short, we just couldn’t afford it.
When low-income families have rent, groceries, commuting, and other expenses it is very hard to prioritize or justify spending hundreds of dollars on dental care for themselves or their children. Yet dental care is important and has a very strong connection with our overall health.
According to research done by Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research “An unhealthy mouth, especially if you have gum disease, may increase your risk of serious health problems such as heart attack, stroke, poorly controlled diabetes and preterm labor.” This means that without regular visits to the dentist it can be almost impossible to determine whether you suffer from gum disease or any other oral health problems like Gingivitis, Periodontitis, or Trench mouth which if left unchecked can lead to more serious health problems.
Research shows that dental care is an important part of our health, yet it is privatized and not accessible for many people in our city. Seeing as we have universal health care it almost doesn’t make sense that dental care is not included under the OHIP umbrella. Here are some average costs, in Canadian dollars, for common dental procedures:
Large Tooth Filling: $325 Small Tooth Filling: $80 (Silver Filling), or $200 (White Filling) Root Canal: $800 Dental Crown: $1425 (Gold), or $1625 (Porcelain) Dental Bonding: $450 Invisalign Braces: $7, 249 Veneer: $1, 750 Adult Dental Exam: $133 Child Dental Exam: $67 Tooth Extraction: $136 (starting at)
Good dental health can be achieved with good oral hygiene, yet this does not prevent an overbite, teeth-grinding, wisdom teeth eruptions, the need for braces, or an injury.
My parents always taught my brother and I to practice good dental hygiene and luckily neither one of needed braces or suffered from any mouth injuries. However, this luck ran out when I was in University and my wisdom teeth started giving me issues. I could feel the teeth growing at the back of my mouth and it caused me a lot of pain and headaches. Through my University I had dental insurance, a mere $500 for a procedure that would cost in the thousands - the average wisdom teeth procedure for the extraction of all four teeth costs about $2300. This seems impossible when you are a student who is in school full time and trying to make ends meet.
It is easier to prioritise the cost of food, books, or commuting over oral surgery. Thankfully, I had a very nice and accommodating dentist who suggested I only take out one of my wisdom teeth (the one that was growing sideways and was causing the most discomfort) and he also suggested doing the procedure without being put to sleep. I was a bit afraid since most of the people I knew who had the procedure were put to sleep first and complained a lot about the recovery. The procedure was very comfortable even though I was awake and since I only pulled one tooth the recovery was quick. The tooth had already erupted so the procedure was quite simple
I did this over my undergrad two more times as my insurance would renew every September. It took some patience and a lot of Advil to combat the headaches and overall discomfort I would experience from time to time. It wasn’t until last year that I finally took out my last wisdom tooth when I found a job with a good insurance plan and did not have to pay out of pocket for the final procedure.
Recently, I also began grinding my teeth in my sleep which would lead to painful migraines as soon as I would wake up. If I wasn’t lucky enough to have my work insurance, it would be back to Advil and pain management. A mouthguard can cost anywhere between $300-$1000 dollars plus consultation fees. This is not a realistic expense for low-income families, let alone those with small children.
Universal dental care should be implemented in Canada especially for families and children who should not have to prioritize living costs over their health. Good oral hygiene only goes so far and we must consider all other issues that can not be prevented.
Another senseless and tragic death at the Fiera Foods factory
On Wednesday September 25th Enrico Miranda died tragically on the job at Fiera Foods. He was crushed to dead by a machine while cleaning it. This is the fifth death at Fiera Foods since 1999. The first victim was , a 17-year old temp named Ivan Golyashov who was killed when a dough mixer was activated while he was inside cleaning it. Then in 2011 it was Aydin Kazimov who was crushed to death by one of Fiera’s trucks. Two years later, Amina Diaby a 23-year-old woman was killed at Fiera Foods when her Hijab was caught in a machine and strangled her to death. In 2016, a man in his 40s was pinned to death at Fiera Foods while getting stuck between a loading dock and tractor trailer. After five horrific deaths Fiera Foods is still operating in North York at 50 Marmora St.
After Amina’s tragic death a writer for the Toronto Star, Sara Mojtehedzadeh, went undercover as a temporary worker at Fiera Foods to investigate. Mojtehedzadeh found that about 70% of Fiera Food’s workforce was hired through work agencies as temporary workers. This is alarming. In Canada only 14% of workers are temporary. The workers at Fiera Food’s are also not hired for seasonal work which is usually why some companies go through agencies during high-demand seasons. The investigation also showed that temporary workers receive very little training, just a 5-minute briefing, do not get paid for sick days, are discouraged from complaining, are deemed easily replaceable, work long shifts with no paid breaks, and are paid under the table in cash through payday lenders. Workers do not receive pay stubs nor a record of their employment.
This tragedy hits close to home as both my parents have worked as temporary workers for factories before, as I am sure many people in our community have. Fiera Foods benefits from desperate workers who are just trying to survive in our country and Fiera Foods is one of many companies that prey on immigrants and workers of colour who might be too afraid to speak up because they know it might cost them their jobs.
No one should go to work and lose their life. The Star found that “Fiera has been slapped with 191 orders for health and safety violations over the past two decades, for everything from lack of proper guarding on machines to unsafely stored gas cylinders.” Yet they still operate. When the Star arrived on the 25th of September, they found that production had not stopped, and workers had not been sent home amidst the tragedy that caused Mr. Miranda’s life.
On Tuesday October 1st, organizers gathered outside the Fiera Food factory and handed workers pamphlets about unionizing. Security guards asked worked to throw away their flyers at the door. The following day more organizers and over 100 members of the community protested with banners asking for accountability. Workers were asked to not come to the day shift and were not paid for the day. No further details have been given by Fiera Foods regarding the death of Mr. Miranda. They have only stated that “As a company, we are heartbroken and have been focused foremost on supporting the family and our employees through these first few difficult days. At the same time, we are fully co-operating with Ministry of Labour inspectors as they review the accident.”
A GoFundMe Campaign has been started to help cover the costs of the funeral of Mr. Miranda. You can donate at https://www.gofundme.com/f/funeral-help-for-tay?fbclid=IwAR0RKDPR2tuP2ZKQsY3DJNo9EqpzoyAHFn__TV8suPb47_GIddDn6FY1JNs
Ford’s child care cuts hurt families
Ontario is currently experiencing an affordable child care crisis.
Parents across Ontario have expressed disappointment at a Provincial Government decision to slash funding for 51 planned childcare projects consisting of more than 3,000 much needed spaces in the city of Toronto.
These new projects, which would have opened up additional spaces in local schools, were already approved and ready to go but are now in jeopardy because the Ford government removed all provincial funding at the very last minute as part of their budget cuts.
Now the City of Toronto and the Toronto District School Board have until August 30 to replace the lost provincial funding, or, these projects will be cancelled.
The Conservatives didn’t seem to have a problem with paying out $1 billion to rip up the Beer Store contract, nor did they have any issue in losing $150 million to get rid of the so- called “Six Million dollar man” at Hydro One, yet they now claim that the province can’t afford to fund vital new child care projects?
Ontario is currently experiencing an affordable child care crisis. Right now, we pay the highest average child care fees anywhere in Canada.
Working parents are under significant stress when trying to find a daycare spot for their children, and spend on average almost $1,700 a month on childcare.
Having fewer available child care spaces could increase costs due to demand, making the situation even worse.
Families deserve better than this.
The Ontario NDP and I have been fighting to make childcare more affordable for all Ontarians. In order to do this, we need to fund more affordable childcare spaces rather than make cuts that hurt Ontario children and their families.
The Vision Zero Road Safety Plan 2.0
The Vision Zero Road Safety Plan 2.0 is a five-year (2017-2021) action plan that aims to eliminate traffic-related deaths and reduce serious injuries on Toronto's streets to zero. At the last City Council meeting in July, councillors voted to boot up the effort.
Vision Zero 2.0's main measure is to reduce speeds on main, arterial roads, further preventing casualties from occurring in the first place. The plan also includes specific programs that are dedicated to expanding cycling infrastructure across the city and boosting safety zones for seniors and school children. The School Safety Zones program is dedicated to implementing measures that protect children who walk or bike to and from school.
This program includes a variety of traffic safety measures that improve the visibility of school zones and signal drivers to slow down and pay better attention to their environment. Enhanced pavement markings, pavement stencils, driver feedback (Watch Your Speed) signs and flashing beacons are all examples of the strategic measures being used. These measures will continue to be installed within the boulevard or public right-of-way areas to ensure that they do not hinder vehicles, pedestrians or properties. You can expect to see more of these measures over time.
While the City is not required to provide advance notice to residents before the installation of poles and signs within the public right-of-way area, they do notify residents whose property is next to a new School Safety Zone sign two weeks prior to the installation. All locations that have been selected for the installation of traffic safety measures have been reviewed by the City's top advisors and engineers.
The City of Toronto will continue to install these safety measures year-round according to priority. As of October, 2018, the City began the installation of school safety zones at 61 locations and has been on track to increase that amount to 88. Several of these zones are in the Downsview or Humber River-Black Creek area.
The zones and measures being implemented are examples of how the City is working hard to protect pedestrians and road-users. The Downsview Advocate will continue to share updates about Vision Zero 2.0 as they become available.
For more information, please visit: toronto.ca/VisionZero
Pensions in Canada are leaving seniors in poverty
In July most seniors on Candian Pension Plan (CPP) saw an increase of only $12 to $16 a month – not enough
It is hard for many of us to imagine that Finch Avenue was once a dirt road, lined with countless apple orchards. Back then, the City of Toronto was much smaller. The area was known for its farmland and cottage country bungalows. Those who remember those days would have been contributing to their Canadian Pension Plan for decades before retiring.
Many of our neighbours have lived in the Downsview area for over 40 years, making them the original homeowners. While they are retired now, they continue to be active leaders on their own streets and at local community centres.
The CPP was created in the 1960’s as a response to people living longer and the rising level of poverty conditions for seniors at that time. The Old Age Security and Guaranteed Income Supplement were added to ensure a base level of income for all seniors. The system was designed to protect people from destitution in their old age and to give them both dignity in life and dignity in their hard-earned retirement.
Today, our system is not keeping up with the realities of modern life. Most young people are aware of the difficulties of buying a home in the current real estate market. What many people do not realize yet, however, is the difficulty that many seniors are facing as rents rise. To illustrate the problem, a person living off of CPP and OAS could very well make $20,000 a year. A one-bedroom apartment in our neighbourhood now costs around $1500 per month, or $18,000 per year. Many who rely on their pensions live on the knife’s edge of poverty.
Pensions go up on July 1 of every year, but most seniors only saw a monthly increase of $12-$16 per month. With real estate prices sky-rocketing and rents following suit, many seniors can barely afford their homes anymore in addition to keeping up with other living expenses. The problem is likely to get worse, as we are the only major country without a plan to deal with the realities of an aging population.
The beauty of Canada has been its caring disposition, tolerance and acceptance. This is what makes our country one of the best places to live, and has created some of the highest standards of living in the world. That being said, the current government has done little to change make life affordable for seniors and they have no plans of making any significant changes. Seniors have it too hard and we are not doing enough to help them.
Opinion: Canadian corporations enjoy billions of dollars in tax cuts while we bear the burden
In 2013 I wrote an article in the Toronto Star where I laid out the unfortunate reality that exists for large corporations in Ontario.
In the article, I described how Ontario's large corporate tax rate was reduced to just 11.5 per cent by the then governing Ontario Liberals. It would have been reduced even lower had the NDP not stopped the Liberals' campaign to make the mega-corporation tax rate a lowly 10 per cent.
Each percent back then amounted to roughly $1 billion in lost revenue during a time when the economy was growing, corporations were sitting on record piles of cash, and the Liberals were proposing charging you directly for transit expansion with toll roads and other daily fees and taxes.
There was absolutely *no* reason to make life easier for corporations, and life harder for you. In fact, the economic conditions in 2013 were the exact kind when you ask big business to pay their fair share.
The Federal Liberals under Trudeau are no better. They kept Stephen Harper's tax cuts to mega-corporations and there is no sign of rolling them back. All the while they pledged to deficit spend on our backs.
A recent report by the Canada Revenue Agency detailed how corporations are still avoiding paying taxes. It estimates that corporations, in just one year avoided between $9.4 billion and $11.4 billion in taxes. That is money we are going to have to pay instead with our taxes.
Today the economy is still chugging along as it was before the tax cuts. Corporations are raking in record profits while still not paying their fair share. The corporate tax rate in Ontario is still at 11.5 percent and the Conservative Provincial government has pledged to finish the job the Liberals started by reducing the corporate tax rate to 10.5 percent.
This will take away roughly another $1 billion in revenue while healthcare, education, childcare, child nutrition programs, and front line services you rely on are cut.
It seems we're expected to pay more for less, while corporations are paying less and raking in more profits.
Supporters of this tax cuts plan will argue it "stimulates job growth." As I detailed in the 2013 article, studies show that despite over 15 years of corporate tax reduction, corporations have simply banked the money instead of reinvesting it as was intended. This notion holds even more truth today. It is madness to continue this policy.
To be clear, I am not speaking about taxes on small businesses. They enjoy a completely different and smaller tax burden, as they should. This is about the mega corporations with assets of over $50 million who are sitting on piles of cash yet refuse to pay their fair share.
For years and years, both the Conservatives and the Liberals have counted on your vote so they can subsidize the profits for their big business friends on your back.
This fall, don't let them take your vote for granted again.
Maria Augimeri is the former Councillor for Downsview, Former Chair of the TTC, TRCA, North York Community Council and Downsview Aerospace Working Group, and the current federal NDP candidate for Humber River—Black Creek. She is a periodic contributor to the Downsview Advocate.
Opinion: The Federal government failed communities when the Cannabis Act did not include expungements
MP Murray Rankin proposed a Private Members' Bill demanding to expunge records.
In the Fall 2019, the current Federal Government passed the Cannabis Act which legalized use of marijuana and up to 30 grams of possession. However many critics rightfully pointed out that the Cannabis Act a does little for those who have had their lives, families, and communities targeted by the “war on drugs.” The Cannabis Act did not expunge records and has left many marginalized communities by the wayside.
Which begs the question: what kind of Canada are we building if our laws do not address the social, racial, and economic injustices that our communities face?
Expungement means that records of those who were charged with a crime that no longer exists would be erased. Over 500,000 people in Canada are living with criminal records for the possession of under 30g of marijuana - an amount that is now legal [1].
Across Canada and right here in our neighbourhood of York Centre the Liberal promise to legalize marijuana held many promises but its implementation was lackluster. The Federal government created and moved forward legislation without acknowledging and addressing the concerns of those people who have been and continue to be negatively impacted by the criminalization of marijuana.
Many were skeptical from the onset when MP Bill Blair was announced as lead of this file. As many remember, MP Blair was the former Chief of the Toronto Police Services (TPS) who was instrumental in the continued over-surveillance and over-criminalization of communities which led to disproportionate possession charging and arrests of racialized folks, particularly Black/African diasporic peoples.
The Toronto Star article, “Toronto marijuana arrests reveal ‘startling’ racial divide”[2], outlines how the criminalization of marijuana has led to the disproportionate charges and arrests of Black/African diasporic and other racialized community members. The negative effects of marijuana criminalization on Black and racialized communities are widely accepted, however the Federal government did not prioritize this in the process of legalization.
Another issue of this is that the unrolling of the legalization of cannabis illustrates how the legislation did not seek to help those who were most affected by the criminalization of marijuana. Instead of the lives of those affected being at the heart of this legislation, the Federal Liberal government did very little to address the concerns of those who were the casualties of this drug policy.
Now Toronto magazine wrote an article entitled: “The ex cops, politicians and friends of Bill Blair cashing in on legal weed”[3] - illustrating that the very people who pushed the over-criminalization and policing of drugs like marijuana are now profiting off of its legalization. This further reinforces what we already know; that profit, not justice, seems to be at the heart of the Cannabis Act.
Legislating expungement would have righted the wrongs of poorly planned legislation and criminalization practices that have greatly impacted Black and other racialized communities.
It is elected officials’ duties to also right the historical and present-day wrongs.We must pass legislation that create the conditions for people to thrive rather than prioritizing profits over justice. Comprehensive policy would have justice at its core and the call for the expungement would be instrumental. Without expungement, individuals are bearing the brunt of being charged with crimes that are no longer crimes.
This is the kind of legislation what our communities deserve.
[1] https://www.cbc.ca/news/opinion/cannabis-convictions-1.4876783
[2] https://www.thestar.com/news/insight/2017/07/06/toronto-marijuana-arrests-reveal-startling-racial-divide.html[3]https://nowtoronto.com/news/cops-politicians-cashing-in-on-cannabis/
The redevelopment of Wilson Station’s main parking lot: A brief overview
Wide streets with right-of-ways, narrow sidewalks, and parking lots. It’s no secret that our sprawling city was designed to accommodate vehicles – often at the expense of pedestrians, cyclists, and surface transit.
But today, Toronto is at a crossroads. To improve our quality of life and to ensure an equitable city for generations to come, we need to accommodate a quickly growing population in an increasingly unaffordable city. In part, this means adding density to our neighbourhoods by giving up space dedicated for vehicles to build public amenities, retail, and housing at both market and affordable rates.
Of course, one of the most significant barriers to doing so is the scarcity and high cost of land in Toronto. But to tackle this challenge, the City has established an agency called CreateTO (formally Build Toronto) to assess the development potential of Toronto’s ‘surplus’ real estate, including the three commuter parking lots at the Wilson Subway Station.
At its peak, there were a total of 2,110 parking spots dedicated to commuter parking at Wilson Station. Today that number has shrunk to nearly 1,000. This has left many commuters often lining-up to access parking or even being turned away in frustration by the “lot full” sign.
In 2016, CreateTO sold the Wilson West Lot (610 parking spots) to a developer who transformed the land into retail space. And in 2017, the Wilson South Lot (541 spots) was sold and turned into a mid-rise condominium. Commuters were assured that the reduction in parking spots would be offset by additional spots at Yorkdale Station and at new stations along the recently extended Yonge-University subway.
Now, CreateTO has turned its attention to the final remaining parking lot at Wilson Station, the Wilson Main Lot at 50 Wilson Heights Boulevard. The agency sees the redevelopment as an “…opportunity to create a new pedestrian focused complex…[with] an affordable housing component within the development”. This is supported by the City’s ‘Housing Now’ initiative to redevelop multiple city-owned properties into “affordable housing within mixed-income, mixed-use, transit-oriented communities”.
But the local community is split on the issue.
On one hand, people accept that Toronto’s streets are clogged with vehicular traffic and that the future of our transit system can’t be based on parking lots, but instead based on connecting people to our transit system in more efficient ways. These people recognize the necessity of transit-oriented development, especially building affordable housing near our subway stations. Supporters also point to data collected by CreateTO which suggest that the parking lot at Wilson Station is not serving local residents, but rather, 70% of spots are being used by commuters from the Greater Toronto Area, places like Woodbridge and Kleinburg.
On the other hand, people see the redevelopment of the parking lot as yet another attack in the longstanding “war on the car”. And while some, including York Centre Councillor James Pasternak, acknowledge the need to build more affordable housing in Toronto, they believe the selection of a commuter parking lot is “ill-advised”. “It would be far more prudent to build [affordable housing] on [a] site where you are not disrupting hundreds of commuters and creating anxiety in the community,” he said at a public meeting to discuss the proposed development. Furthermore, some community members have expressed concerns that have nothing to do with parking, but rather a lack of a strategic planning for the infrastructure required to accommodate an increase in population, such as local schools and parks.
Councillor Pasternak has set up a working group for community members to discuss the proposed development at 50 Wilson Heights Blvd. and to address the concerns raised regarding parking capacity and accessibility. The first working group meeting will be held on August 14th at 6:30pm at the 6:30pm-8:30pm at Beth David B’nai Israel Beth Am, Sisterhood Hall.
This is a developing story which I will continue to cover over the coming months.