Ontario Coalition Against Poverty
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| Abbreviation | OCAP |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1989 |
| Legal status | active |
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Region served
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Ontario, Canada |
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Official language
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English French |
| Website | ocap.ca |
The Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP) is an anti-poverty group in Ontario, Canada, who promote the interests of the poor and homeless. The group enjoys a particular notoriety, especially in Toronto, due to its use of publicity-generating techniques such as direct action including demonstrations that are sometimes confrontational.
The coalition was founded in 1989 by activists in the Toronto Union of Unemployed Workers, coming out of a mass "March Against Poverty". The coalition was created to promote concern and action about poverty, homelessness, and gentrification in downtown Toronto. The group is headquartered in Toronto, and that remains the centre of most of their activities, but they have engaged in actions in most major Ontario centres.
On June 15, 2000, OCAP staged a large demonstration on the lawn at Queen's Park in Toronto, during which violent altercations took place between the demonstrators and security officials, police officers, and police horses. The protestors were asking to address the Ontario Legislature in order to demand a repeal of the new Tenant Protection Act which limited tenant rights, to demand increased social housing, to demand an end to the Safe Streets Act which was targeting the homeless and poor, and to reverse the 21.5% cut to welfare payments instituted by the Conservative government. The protestors, which included large numbers of homeless people directly affected by Premier Mike Harris' policies tore up cobblestones to use as projectiles.
In the aftermath, upwards of 40 people were arrested and charged, including three high-profile OCAP members — John Clarke, Gaetan Heroux and Stefan Pilipa. The eventual trial of these three was declared by the presiding judge to be a mistrial due to a hung jury. The Crown dropped the charges against Heroux and Pilipa but elected to proceed again against Clarke. All charges against Clarke were eventually dropped when a judge threw them out owing to the Crown's failure to disclose evidence expeditiously.
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