Executive Director @planningtoronto. Views are my own.
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ALT On Thursday, May 15, Brian Passifiume of the Toronto Sun published an article entitled “Community groups sign letter opposing proposed 'bubble zone' bylaw.” In it, he made reference to a joint letter for which Social Planning Toronto was gathering signatures from community partners. The letter, which has since been sent to City Council, was responding to a proposed bylaw that would limit where peaceful protests, pickets, and demonstrations would be allowed to take place in the City of Toronto. The letter expressed concerns that the “bubble zone” bylaw could limit our Charter-protected rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, silence marginalized communities’ voices in particular, lead to police overreach, and inadequately respond to hate. It acknowledged the alarming suppression of rights and freedoms we are witnessing in the U.S., and urged Councillors to remember their legal obligations to uphold Charter rights and freedoms and protect our democracy.
ALT In his article, Passifiume incorrectly identified the author of the letter, calling out an SPT staff member by name and misattributing quotes to them throughout the piece. At 10:30 a.m. May 16, Social Planning Toronto’s Executive Director Jin Huh sent an e-mail in good faith to both Passifiume and Toronto Sun Editor-in-Chief Adrienne Batra asking that all references to the staff member be removed. This was done both as a matter of correcting the public record, and out of concerns that the staff member in question, who is Muslim, will be the target of harassment. By 3:30 p.m., the factual errors in the article had still not been corrected, and Passifiume and Batra were contacted again. The e-mails in question have been published in their entirety below, though the name of the misidentified staff member has been redacted to protect their privacy. We ask that Passifiume and Batra correct this mistake as soon as possible.
ALT E-mail from Jin Huh to Toronto Sun journalist Bryan Passifiume and Editor-in-Chief Adrienne Batra, sent Friday, May 16 at 10:30 a.m. Full text: https://www.socialplanningtoronto.org/toronto_sun_misinfo
ALT Follow-up e-mail from Jin Huh to Toronto Sun journalist Bryan Passifiume and Editor-in-Chief Adrienne Batra, sent Friday, May 16 at 3:30 p.m. Full text: https://www.socialplanningtoronto.org/toronto_sun_misinfo
ALT Screenshot of a letter. Black text on white background. Read full letter text via link in Tweet - text exceeds character limit for image descriptions. Text reads: Re: Timely Access for all Canadians to Wireless Services on the TTC Application for Mandatory and Injunctive Orders in Respect of Rogers Communications Inc. to Ensure Timely Access for all Canadians to Wireless Services on the TTC Dear Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commissioners, All transit users need access to cellular service, regardless of who their provider is. We, the undersigned organizations, are writing in agreement with Bell Canada’s request that the CRTC act in the interest of public safety and convenience and ensure timely access for all Canadians to wireless services in the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) subway system. Cellular access on Toronto’s subway system is not a nice-to-have, it is an urgent necessity.
ALT Screenshot of a letter. Black text on white background. Read full letter text via link in Tweet - text exceeds character limit for image descriptions. Text reads: In 2012, BAI Communications was awarded a contract with the TTC that gave them the exclusive right to build, own, and operate a cellular network in Toronto’s subway tunnels. The TTC’s original Request For Proposals (RFP) asked that the proponent establish a contract with enough wireless carriers that at least 60% of cellular customers in Toronto would be able to access the network. This requirement did not make it into the contract, and only Freedom Mobile has signed on to use the existing infrastructure. The current network is extremely limited, with 25% of the subway currently covered. Coverage exists only in subway stations, within the downtown “U” tunnels, and within the tunnels of the Toronto-York Spadina Subway Extension (TYSSE) between Downsview Park and Vaughan Metropolitan Centre stations.
ALT Screenshot of a letter. Black text on white background reads: We urge the Commission to intervene and ensure that all transit users, regardless of who their provider is, gain access to cellular service within the TTC as soon as possible. Sincerely, TTCriders Founded in 2010, TTCriders is a membership-based organization in Toronto that gives transit users a voice. OpenMedia OpenMedia is a grassroots community of Internet users that work to make Canada’s Internet accessible, open and surveillance free. WomanACT Woman Abuse Council of Toronto (WomanACT) is a non-profit organization that works to eradicate gender-based violence through research, education, and advocacy. A Voice for Transit A transit advocacy group composed of current Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University) students and alumni that was founded in March 2019. CodeRedTO A volunteer-led transit advocacy group in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA).
ALT Screenshot of a letter. Black text on white background reads: Leadnow Leadnow is an independent advocacy organization that brings generations of Canadians together to achieve progress through democracy. Social Planning Toronto Challenges inequity in our city – through knowledge generation, debate, civic engagement, advocacy, and collaboration – to spark social and policy change. Toronto Youth Cabinet Established in 1998 by Toronto City Council, the Toronto Youth Cabinet is the official youth advocacy body to the city. We are a youth-led organization that promotes youth participation in municipal affairs and policy development. Transport Action Ontario Transport Action Ontario is a regional division of Canada's leading citizen transportation advocacy group, Transport Action Canada. YWCA Toronto YWCA Toronto is a non-profit, multi-service organization dedicated to improving the lives of women, girls and gender diverse people through service and advocacy.
ALT A screenshot of a contract to be awarded to Neptune Security Services. It details that the security contract will patrol public parks, and that it is valued at $2,440,160 for 2023.
ALT New clients to food banks by month from July 2020 through Feb 2023
ALT View of an urban city street. On the left sidewalk in the foreground, is a row of about 5 tents at the curb's edge.Opposite them are storefronts, and further in the distance, office buildings. Trees line the sidewalks on both sides of the street.
