Legal Advocate's Report on the Findings of THE SQUEEGEE PROJECT Written by Rina Zweig, BA, and LL.B June 9, 1999 Preliminary comments In reading this report, I would like to challenge you, whether you are part of the justice system, the Ministry for Children and Families, a counselor, psychologist etc. or part of a concerned public to act on the findings presented here. The findings I have compiled and commented upon depict a tragic tale of children falling through the cracks. We are failing to address the most basic human needs of our children and youth, things like food, shelter, education and medical services. We are failing to address the social, emotional and developmental needs of our youth. Our failure to provide a minimum standard of care and freedom from abuse is leading young people to suffer violence, fall prone to substance abuse, to sexually exploit themselves and ultimately, to suffer an unacceptable mortality rate. Part of the drama looks at various legislative initiatives, which serve to deal with the "nuisance" of "squeegeeing" and "pan-handling." It is clear that these bylaws meet the needs of business and property owners as well as anxious citizens. However, their effect is to further marginalize youth who have precious few options. We need to work together to minimize the effects on some of the most vulnerable members of our society, children and youth who are on the streets. It took courage for the six young people in the play to stand up and tell their stories. We, those of us who are listening, have a duty to ensure that we respond in whatever way we can. This report sets out the public's interventions and recommendations made in response to the Squeegee drama. You may have your own solutions to the growing problem of children and youth in crisis. But please, act now! What follows is the cast's opening statement and request to be heard: This speech was written by Rachael and read by Lisa each night before the play was presented: "Thank you for coming tonight. We are happy to see people here who are willing to listen and open their minds. We in doing this play want you to know we are kids. Just kids. We are all different. Some kind, some not, but we deserve more than just a stereotype of "street-kid". We deserve to be looked in the eye and listened to. We are kids who have been tossed into a corner, whose opportunities were cut off, when we decided to save ourselves from our homes. Left too long to be forgotten about. The Squeegee Project was not created to gain people's sympathy, but so people can learn what needs to be done in preventing children from living on the street, and to accommodate the lack of support and guidance in their lives. We are here to show you how we've been made to feel like criminals for trying to live honest lives by supporting ourselves through squeegee-ing and panhandling, instead of stealing or selling drugs, or more criminalization things. We would like you to question the situation and not just to believe what's been presented before you." Reported as the number #1 Issue: Accessibility and Provision of Information and Services Inability to find needed information around food, shelter, legal services Inability to get access to limited services Evidence that basic human needs for older youth aged 15 to 18 are not being met, things like food, shelter, education and medical services Intervention #1: How to find help in the form of food and other resources and services on the streets for children and youth? The drama lets us know how difficult it can be to find help on the street due to lack of information, scarce resources and even unhelpful peers who look at new kids as unnecessary competition. Many of the solutions presented in the play are degrading: such as combing through "dumpsters" and garbage cans for discarded food and engaging in prostitution. Even similarly situated people - other street kids - will not help those who are perceived as having other options such as going home. Intervention #2: When a child or youth is unable to remain in the custody of the parents or "in care," with government or foster parents, finding a safe living situation and meeting one's basic needs is very difficult The danger being presented here is that youth are vulnerable to being sexually exploited in order to obtain basic needs such as food. Squeegeeing and panhandling are growing activities because they offer the youth a legal, if unpopular means of meeting their basic needs. Many of the youth involved in these activities have no other legal or viable options - they are already marginalized and silenced due to the fact that youth on the streets are often there illegally - runaways from an abusive situation. The majority of youth who stay away have been subjected to a variety of factors at home, including sexual, physical or verbal abuse, substance-abusing parents and other complicating factors such as poverty. All too many kids who have been in care report that foster care is a replication of the past victimization they were hoping to leave behind. It is not uncommon for youth in care to bounce around from caregiver to caregiver. In response to audience interventions, more than one of the actors in the play confirmed that they shared this experience. In one Ontario document Voices from Within: Youth Speak Out (1998), more than 57% of the young people who contributed information had had five or more placements. Contacting the authorities under present legislation and guidelines will not ensure their health, safety or wellbeing. This is the main reason that these children and youth live outside of the system and are unable to access most forms of societal support. Intervention #3: Critical lack of medical facilities dealing with drug and alcohol abuse for young people Drug and alcohol abuse is a real fact for street involved youth. Although mentally, they must be extremely mature to survive, in many ways these people are just kids. Street involved youth are, by definition, at high risk to abuse drugs and alcohol due to bad role models at home and on the street. Easy accessibility of drugs in areas where street involved youth congregate adds to this problem. Continue Report   Back to Headlines Past Work