- Tearing Down the Barricades...Literally - with 230 Fightback

The battle for public housing at 214-230 Sherbourne in Toronto escalated last week, with local housing activists defiantly ripping down an 8ft, barbed wire fence. Or as one of our guests puts it - helping by-law enforcement with their job.

Pat and Ian from 230 Fightback, talk about their organization's focus on reclaiming properties they say "have been a historic part of Toronto’s poor and working class", and pushing back against the gentrification of their neighbourhood.

Their approach? Is to be a big a "nuisance" as possible for the corporation who owns the land, Kingsett Capital. This has meant getting creative and persistent with their tactics, including crashing industry events, hosting World Cup watch Party using bolt cutters, and eventually scaling a fence and tearing it down while others handed out flyers and celebrated.

We hear what went into making that decision, and how it got to that point. The episode also includes a discussion about the importance of social housing, the lack of legal recourse against landlords, and the shrinkage of public spaces.

Hosted by: Jessa McLean

Produced by : Santiago Helou Quintero

Call to Action: Donate to 230 Fightback OR All-Saints Church

Related Episodes:

* Reclaiming Social Housing with 230 Fightback (Sep 2024) Hear how the organization persisted through big shifts, setbacks, and discouragement from their own City Councilor in their battle over a crucial piece of real estate.

* Blueprints of a Rent Strike (Aug 2024 ) Bruno, an organizer with York-South Weston Tenants Union is back to share a victory from an unlikely place, the Ontario Landlord Tenant Board.

More Resources:

* VIDEO: Moss Park Housing Fight—Claim Our Corner (Regent Park TV)

* DATA: Social Housing Waiting Lists (City of Toronto)

* Statement: "In less than sixty seconds you attempted to silence us, but you will not succeed"

* Article: City Council approves 214-230 Sherbourne Street for rezoning (The Bridge News)

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