A new monitoring project from the Canadian Human Rights Commission and the Office of the Federal Housing Advocate, Monitoring the right to housing for people with disabilities confirms that people with disabilities are overrepresented in nearly all aspects of inadequate housing and homelessness. It provides clear evidence of what people with disabilities in Canada have been saying for many years: their fundamental human right to housing is being violated.
People with disabilities in Canada face many barriers to housing. Many can’t get the support they need to live independently and can’t find safe and accessible homes or struggling to pay their rent. People often experience homelessness because of these barriers. Some people even lose their lives. Some people with disabilities are turning to Medical Assistance in Dying because they can’t access housing and supports that meet their needs. This needs to change.
The data shows that people with disabilities are:
- four times more likely to experience homelessness
- more likely to become homeless due to violence
- more likely to live in unaffordable housing
- almost twice as likely to live in core housing need (housing that is unaffordable, not in good repair, and with not enough space for the occupants)
- often living in homes that do not have the physical aids they need.
VIEW Monitoring the right to housing for people with disabilities
