[Wamvan] Fwd: welfare food challenge

[Tami Starlight]

FYI


** ** ** ** **

Hi****

This is a longish message, please take time to read it and give any
comments or feedback. Thanks****

** **

After a successful Welfare Food Challenge (checkout the website if you
haven’t had a look: http://welfarefoodchallenge.org/) we had a successful
Raise the Rates planning meeting (Notes attached).****

** **

*Please Write a letter to Christy Clark and Adrian Dix*

We asked all the Challenge Takers to write letters to Christy Clark and
Adrian Dix urging them to raise welder and take action to end poverty. Many
of you have written such letters before but please write another one now;
we want them to receive lots of letters. Write about your experience, why
welfare needs to be raised, why BC needs to tackle poverty. BC has the
worst poverty with over 500,000 people in poverty; the worst child poverty
with over 137,000 children in poverty; and the worst inequality in ****
Canada****. And BC is one of only 2 provinces without an anti-poverty plan.
Poverty in BC costs the health system alone over $1 billion a year.****

** **

There is lots of info on the website such as: Cost of Poverty summary:
http://raisetherates.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/costofpovertyfactsheet.pdf*
***

** **

**·    **Christy Clark (Premier) (West Annex, Parliament Buildings, ****
Victoria**, **BC**, **V8V 1X4****)****

**·    **Adrian Dix (Leader of Opposition) (Room 201, Parliament Buildings,
****Victoria**, **BC**, **V8V 1X4****)****

** **

*Want your Views*

At the meeting we discussed a number of issues that we would welcome
comments on:****

**·    **We are thinking about some event for the Welfare Food Challenge
participants in February – any ideas?****

**·    **We want to do another public awareness activity in the Spring
(similar in impact to the *MLA Welfare Challenge* and the *Welfare Food
Challenge*) – any suggestions?****

**·    **We looked at our demands for raising welfare and tackling poverty
and are considering some amendments. We won’t change the focus of our
energies which is to highlight the poverty levels of welfare and push for
government action, but are looking at:****

**§  **Clearly stating that welfare should be raised to the Market Basket
Measure (The government’s poverty line) ****

**§  **Demand that 10,000 units of social housing be built each year in BC
(In line with demand of the Social housing Coalition)****

**§  **Add provision of universal publicly-funded child care (Would benefit
some people on welfare and those getting jobs and many low paid workers) ***
*

** **

*Upcoming Events*

**·      ***BC Teachers Federation* doing various activities during
November about poverty in BC (http://www.bctf.ca/EndChildPoverty/)****

**·      ***First Call’s* *Child Poverty* report launch, Wednesday, Nov 21,
9:30am, BC Teachers, 550 W 6th ****

**·      ***Poverty Reduction Coalition* is launching is ‘*BC’s Hardest
Working’*, a response to the richest 100, at the end of November (poster
attached)****

**·      ***Raise the Rates *will be organizing something around the* CBC
Food Bank Day *in December, stay posted for more news****

** **

I know this is a lot but please consider the points and take action and
respond.****

Thanks ****

bill****

** **



-- 
Hiy Hiy/Thank you/Merci
*Tami M. Starlight*
Unceded & occupied Coast Salish Territory
Vancouver, Canada
tamistarlight at gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/tamistarlight
http://theantioppressionnetwork.wordpress.com/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Decolonize-Anti-Oppression-Workshop-Tour-with-Tami-Starlight/327348970683291
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