Winnipeg, MB – Dec 8, 2014
Report launch: Moving to the City: Housing and Aboriginal Migration to Winnipeg
Tuesday December 9
11:30 am refreshments
12:00 pm report launch
Circle of Life Thunderbird House – 715 Main St.
Despite being the fastest growing segment of Winnipeg’s population, a new report by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives found that Aboriginal people are among the most likely to experience homelessness or live in in housing that is unaffordable, overcrowded or in poor condition.
The 46 page report Moving to the City: Housing and Aboriginal Migration to Winnipeg comes from analysis of caseloads and interviews with staff and people accessing services at Eagle Urban Transition Centre (EUTC) in Winnipeg. EUTC helps Aboriginal people find housing, employment and other services as they make the transition to Winnipeg.
“Many Aboriginal people come to Winnipeg and can’t afford the housing that is available. Without stable housing, everything else – employment, education, health – falls out of reach ” said Josh Brandon, one of the report’s authors. “The role EUTC plays in helping people find housing is vital to their success in making Winnipeg home.”
Recommendations of the report include:
- Work with the Aboriginal community to create housing to accommodate the multi-generational and fluid family structures of many Aboriginal households
- Increase cooperation between levels of government so that Aboriginal migrants do not face loss of services during their transition period.
- Improve funding for EUTC and improve access to transition centres in other cities.
- Increase financial opportunities through better training and jobs for Aboriginal Manitobans and higher EIA rates.
The report officially launches at the Thunderbird House, (715 Main Street, Winnipeg) at 12 pm. Its authors, Josh Brandon (housing researcher for CCPA), and Evelyn Peters, (Canada Research Chair in Inner City Issues at the University of Winnipeg) will be available for comment, as will EUTC staff and participants.
The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives is an independent, non-partisan research institute concerned with issues of social, economic and environmental justice. Founded in 1980, the CCPA is one Canada’s leading progressive voice in public policy debates.
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Contact: Josh Brandon: 204-898-6460
