Internet for All: ACORN Member Testimonies

“I just can’t afford the internet” is a common theme that’s emerging from a series of testimonies ACORN Canada has collected talking to its members across Canada. The testimonies also clearly show that the most vulnerable are being hit the hardest as telecom companies continue to record billion dollar profit. The pandemic has underscored, greater than ever, the need for affordable and reliable internet. 

 

With internet plans ranging from anywhere between 50 to 150 dollars and more, as Corey Daniels, an Ottawa ACORN member says: “Just because the internet is there, doesn’t mean I can access it”. Read this resource to read testimony of Corey and many more ACORN members who are struggling to access the internet.

Internet is an Essential Service

The need for expanding the Federal Government’s Connecting Families to ALL low-income people is greater than ever! Governments – federal and provincial – have called for social/physical distancing during the ongoing health emergency due to COVID-19 but that requires access to the internet for anything and everything anyone can imagine. However, the reality is that not all Canadians can afford the internet. The issue of digital divide cannot be overemphasized, especially during a pandemic like this, as internet becomes a lifeline for most people. 

Through this resource, ACORN Canada calls on the government and CRTC to take some urgent actions to address barriers to digital equity, especially during COVID-19 pandemic.

ACORN Canada submission to the 2019 Ontario Budget consultation

We encourage the Ministry of Finance to take this opportunity to consider the needs of almost 2 million low-income Ontarians. Poverty costs the province $32-to-38-billion per year: it is a problem worth tackling. We believe that Ontario can lead the way in Canada by tackling housing affordability, rising child care costs, energy poverty, an inequitable financial system, and benefits that do not meet the needs of our most vulnerable, to foster a fairer, more inclusive province.

ACORN Canada submission to the Review of the Canadian Communications Legislative Framework

ACORN Canada members feel strongly that access to home internet is essential and a right. Since 2013, ACORN members have been organizing on our Internet for All campaign, after members identified the high cost of home internet as a major barrier to low-income earners’ participation and success in the digital economy. ACORN Canada is fighting for affordable home access to high-speed home internet for all Canadians

CRTC Inquiry into the Retail Sales Practices of Canada’s Large Telecommunications Carriers: ACORN Submission

Recently, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) began an inquiry into the sales practices of telecoms companies, to understand whether services are being sold fairly and transparently. ACORN invited members across the country to share their experiences. Many members who reached out had been misled when buying a product or service, encountered pushy salespeople, or found their phone, internet or TV package confusing.

Pages

Renovictions in Hamilton

Renoviction is the practice and tactics used bylandlords to evict or force out tenants under theguise of major renovation. The goal is to displace lowand moderate income tenants who are paying belowmarket rent. Vacated units are renovated and re-rented out at a higher rate.

Rein in the REITs

Posted on 3rd February, 2021

The federal government is giving huge tax subsidies to billionaire landlords or the Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). Through this report, we highlight the blliions of dollars that have been lost by way of these sweetheart tax deals and the action that needs to be taken to ensure that affordable housing is developed and maintained. Time to REIN in the REITs!

ACORN Tenant Engagement Report - Retrofits

Successful energy retrofits can specifically benefit residents of low‐income apartment buildings. Programs like TowerWise show that retrofits can lead to a 30% reduction in energy and carbon usage. Energy efficiency programs can also have up to a 2:1 cost‐benefit ratio. Retrofits of low‐income housing can potentially result in the co‐benefits of carbon reduction, energy efficiency, and costs savings, as well as positive health outcomes. On a macroeconomic level, retrofits can reduce the need for government spending on health and energy subsidies, which can be redirected to other types of social spending for low‐income Canadians.

Forced Out: Evictions, Race, and Poverty in Toronto

This study, conducted by the Wellesley Institute, aims to add to the knowledge on evictions in Toronto in three ways. First, it describes the numbers and rates of formal eviction applications in Toronto 2010-2018. Second, it maps their geographic distribution. Third,it correlates formal eviction application filing rates with census tract sociodemographics of renter households from the 2016 Census to uncover who may be at increased risk of eviction. In order to examine these questions, we use administrative data from the Landlord and Tenant Board, and 2016 Census data.

 

Pages

ACORN Votes: The People's Platform Responses

ACORN Canada, founded in 2004, is a grassroots membership based organization that has rapidly grown into one of the country's most effective voices for low- and moderate-income Canadians.  With over 130,000 members in 22 chapters in 9 cities across the country, our central purpose is to effectively represent and champion the interests of Canada's low- and moderate-income urban citizens on the critical issues of social and economic justice.

ACORN members have been conducting a number of campaigns, both at the federal and provincial level. ACORN Canada is a multi-issue organization, as a result, we have a range of campaigns that have emerged from community organizing around the issues that affect the lives of low and moderate income communities.  This document captures the main campaigns that we continue to fight for, at the federal level. 
 

ACORN Canada's submission to CMHC's rights-based approach to housing consultation

By introducing a National Housing Strategy (NHS) and making a commitment to a rights-based approach to housing, the Federal Government is taking a significant step towards tackling Canada’s housing crisis. ACORN members welcome this national plan. Yet, we acknowledge that there is a long way to go to overcome the systemic issues that have led to so many homeless and underhoused Canadians. 

Broadbent Institute: Networked Change in Canada

This groundbreaking report maps out the strategies and practices that lie behind today’s most successful advocacy campaigns both in Canada and abroad. In the process, it demonstrates how and why they succeed in creating lasting change on the issues they address while so many others fail. Based on a study by authors Jason Mogus and Tom Liacas that looked at mostly U.S.-based case studies, this report now presents similar innovations in Canada by reviewing in depth case studies of eight breakthrough Canadian campaigns. The report’s goal is to transmit a model that can be learned and replicated by other campaigners for how to blend grassroots participation and organizing with disciplined central planning to win.

Pages