Driving around Herongate in Ottawa, I saw the usual signs of a low-income neighbourhood: social housing, worn apartment buildings, modest townhomes. I parked at the plain, low-rise community centre and followed the handwritten “Tenants Meeting →” signs on the cinder-block walls, carried along by lively chatter that led me to a room full of people. Residents had gathered because they were being evicted from their homes. One hundred and five families were at risk—more than 500 people.
The space was packed: elders, parents, young people, children, able-bodied and disabled alike. Later, I would learn that 93 percent of the community was racialized, with roots in Africa, the Arab world, and Asia. This was the most diverse neighbourhood I had ever visited in the city, and its residents were being displaced by Timbercreek—a financial firm dressed up as a landlord, with close to $12 billion under management.
I agree Canada’s rental property market is being exploited, but the Walrus is so left it ruins an important story by crying Capitalist racism at every turn rather than speak to real causes like the LPC’s exploitation of immigration policy.
