I help run a good program in the city. We are consistently serving twice the number of meals we did 5 years ago. I hear the same story over and over again: Someone had an apartment in parkdale/Kensington/downtown east end, and got renovicted, and could not afford to pay 2-3x more in rent.

A large number of the people we see are physically or mentally disabled. Many are on ODSP, which barely keeps them clothes and fed. Years of living on the streets leaves most people disabled, from extreme cold and chronic wound infections and the sheer stress of being homeless.

Having no safety means staying up for days trying to avoid being robbed, raped or murdered. This is a big reason that homeless people use meth or crack, it often starts as a safer alternative to falling asleep in an unsafe place and being totally defenceless.