Woman's outdoor birth sparks calls to address Quebec homelessness

A remark by the mayor of Gatineau, Que., that a local woman gave birth outside earlier this summer is generating a new wave of talk about how to tackle homelessness in both the western Quebec city and province. 

Mayor France Bélisle's comment came Thursday during a meeting of Quebec municipalities on the need for increased provincial funding to cities.

At that meeting, Bélisle spoke about an overflowing local shelter and a camp housing 80 people, as well as a young woman who recently gave birth alone outside. She called on Lionel Carmant, Quebec's minister responsible for social services, to increase provincial investment to prevent such incidents. 

Local paramedics confirmed to Radio-Canada that they took a homeless 27-year-old woman to a Gatineau hospital on June 29 after she had given birth. 

Property taxes are no longer enough to address problems such as homelessness and the housing crisis, local leaders have said.

'A horror story'

Meanwhile, those working on the front lines to combat homelessness say the story shared by Bélisle is only the tip of the iceberg.

"It's a horror story [and] we're going to continue to hear it," said Sasha Yakimichan, a worker at the Outaouais Drug Addiction Intervention and Prevention Centre (CIPTO) in Gatineau.  

Cathy Michaud, who works at the Maison Ru'Elles shelter in Gatineau, said many women who are victims of abuse often hesitate to seek help. 

"Healing people who live or have lived in a situation of homelessness is far from easy," Michaud said. "These women carry wounds, losses, mourning, trauma."

The general director of CIPTO, Yves Séguin, said Bélisle's story illustrates a lack of necessary services and resources for homeless people in the Gatineau area.  

"We need to think in the longer term with social housing. Let's not stop talking about affordable housing, but let's also think about social assistance," Séguin said.

"To think that a shelter with a few other intermediate resources can meet the needs is really to be blind to a crisis that is taking place throughout Quebec, not just in Gatineau."

Lise Paradis, the general director of Le Gîte Ami, another local shelter, said people set up 30 tents near their building last spring. Today, there are more than 150 tents, she said.

The organization is looking for a temporary solution for the winter and then a lasting solution for the future, including a warming centre, Paradis said. 

Mathieu Lacombe, Quebec's minister responsible for the Outaouais region, also reacted to the mayor's comment and the issue of homelessness, calling it a delicate subject.  

"We have taken a lot of action," Lacombe said. "We must work as a partner, and that is what we will continue to do."