It’s National Week for the Dignity of People on Social Assistance in Quebec. For the occasion, social assistance recipients held a mock court, in the street, in the company of community organizations. They gathered in front of the Service Québec offices, in Jonquière, in Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, to assert their demands and denounce the injustices of which they are victims.
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François Legault and the Minister responsible for Social Solidarity and Community Action, Chantal Rouleau, are accused of economic violence against welfare recipients. They are condemned to undergo therapy to develop their empathy towards people in poverty.
This is the verdict that was fictitiously handed down by welfare recipients, who held a street court in the company of community organizations.
“We were looking for how to get our message across. One of the good ways is to create a tribunal so that people see that the arguments that governments give us as a response are completely outdated and without logical support,” explains Sylvain Bergeron, coordinator of the LASTUSE organization in Saguenay, who is coming helping unemployed people in the region.
“People on social assistance are people who are pushed back a lot. These are people who were hushed up and told to stop talking. We are speaking out again today,” proclaims a young woman present at the event.
Changes requested
They want the eligibility deadlines for the basic income social assistance program to be abolished.
“As soon as you have a severe employment constraint, you should have access to basic income,” underlines Mr. Bergeron.
Those who wish to have access to basic income must have had a severe constraint for 5 and a half years before being eligible. In the meantime, they must turn to the social solidarity program.
“It’s around $800 per month depending on the case, while the basic income is a little higher, but it’s still just a little. How do you want to find a decent job when you don’t have money to dress yourself to appear in front of the employer?” asks a social assistance recipient.
And if two social assistance recipients are a couple and are part of the social solidarity program, they are only entitled to one check for the entire household and not one check per individual.
“Couples can’t put money together and be able to help each other. If a woman experiences violence, she cannot escape her environment to try to get help because it is often not she who has access to funds,” underlines a woman who works at the budget service to help social assistance recipients.
“You don’t have the right to be in love on welfare because you’re going to pay for it. It’s an archaic principle that should be revised!” adds Sylvain Bergeron of LASTUSE
“We are not apart from others, we have to defend ourselves in life. Maybe one day we will manage to get by,” hopes a lady who benefits from social assistance.
They don’t plan to stop there. Other initiatives will be organized so that the message reaches the National Assembly.
