Tiny Hearts

The City of Toronto filed an injunction against Khaleel Seivwright for his efforts combating homelessness— that too during Black History Month , which John Tory has said is a reminder of “the work that lies ahead in building a better, more inclusive and equitable city for all.”

ICYMI Seivwright is a carpenter who builds tiny wooden structures for homeless people, as an alternative to tents or crowded shelters.

Feedback from Tiny Shelter residents has been overwhelmingly positive:

An injunction is a court order to compel specific behaviour. Here, the City wants to stop Seivwright from "building unsafe wooden structures and depositing and illegally depositing them on City property."

Encampments popped up throughout Toronto as hundreds fled shelters in 2020 for fear of contracting COVID-19. In fact, the city has been taken to court (and lost!) about not adhering to physical distancing standards in the shelter system.

The City’s news release about the injunction refers to a deadly encampment fire, which occurred a week after the application got filed. It’s unclear whether the fire took place in a tiny shelter.

Tiny Shelters are outfitted with smoke detectors and fire extinguishers.

Per Seivwright, the City should “focus its resources & efforts on what matters— getting people safely housed... it’s February. The city should not be removing or destroying tiny shelters until real alternatives exist and COVID-19 is under control.”

Says a lot that Toronto City council would rather litigate than collaborate with a citizen whose work has materially improved the quality of life for homeless people.

Imagine if this energy were redirected to productive purposes?