TCLCF launches women’s housing and homelessness project

By
Martin C. Barry
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Towards a better understanding of aging and women’s needs

The Table de concertation de Laval en condition féminine (Laval Women’s Issues Roundtable) launched the Women, Housing, Precariousness and Aging project at the Simonne-Monet Chartrand Community Centre in Chomedey on October 1, bringing together around fifty stakeholders from community and institutional sectors.

The TCLCF is a regional feminist collective advocacy group representing over 30,000 women in Laval through its member groups. For over 35 years, it has been working to improve the quality of life and living conditions for women.

The launch was accompanied by an immersive community education workshop led by the PARRFAITES collective, a group by and for women experiencing homelessness. (Photo: Martin C. Barry, Laval News)

Aging women’s needs

Led by the TCLCF, the Women, Housing, Precariousness and Aging project draws its strength from a partnership uniting four Laval organizations, each with respective expertise in housing, seniors, homelessness and combating violence.

The project aims to come to a better understanding of the realities and needs of aging women in Laval with regards to housing and accommodation in order to identify concrete solutions to increase their residential safety.

As Marie-Ève ​​Surprenant, coordinator of the TCLCF, pointed out during the presentation of the project last week, “Older women should be at the forefront of discussions surrounding the housing crisis in Laval, as they are disproportionately affected, which exacerbates their economic insecurity, their risk of homelessness and their vulnerability to violence.”

Understanding women’s homelessness

The launch was accompanied by an immersive community education workshop led by the PARRFAITES collective, a group created by and for women experiencing homelessness. The interactive activity, combined with an element of game-play, provided some first-hand explanations about the especially traumatic impact homelessness can have on aging women.

The conference participants were invited to take part in a type of board-game similar to Snakes and Ladders that illustrated some of the obstacles women facing homelessness must contend with, including constant insecurity and potential violence – not unlike the pitfalls involved in Snakes and Ladders where the snakes outnumber ladders.

“Older women should be at the forefront of discussions surrounding the housing crisis in Laval,” said Marie-Ève ​​Surprenant, coordinator of the Table de concertation de Laval en condition féminine. (Photo: Martin C. Barry, Laval News)

According to the organizers, the encounter illustrated and created context for situations that are too often overlooked. As Annie, one of the presenters, testified: “We’re all one step away from this happening to us,” while adding that they believe it is imperative to take preventative action to ensure women’s housing safety.

Proactive action needed

“Acting proactively would prevent years lost for far too many women and the permanent consequences that generate immense social and human costs,” said the TCLCF’s ​​Surprenant.

“In this regard, the TCLCF reaffirms the importance of mobilizing to provide housing for all,” she continued. “A woman on the street is a woman who has been abandoned.”

The project was carried out with the financial participation of the City of Laval and the provincial Secretariat for the Status of Women as part of the 2024-2028 Sectoral Agreement for Development on Equality Between Women and Men in the Laval Region.

Help available as needed

  • The Centre des femmes de Laval, which bills itself as “a place of belonging, socialization and advocacy to combat isolation.” Phone: 450-629-1991. Address: 69, 8th Street, Laval.
  • Travail de rue de l’Île de Laval (TRÎL): Direct intervention in the field with vulnerable individuals. Phone: 450-662-6444.

In Laval, several community resources and organizations offer support, listening services and housing solutions to persons experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity (although their services may not necessarily be specifically for women). They include:

There are also these emergency housing resources:

  • L’Aviron / Refuge de Laval: Emergency and transitional shelter services for homeless individuals in Laval.
  • Relais communautaire de Laval: Day centre, food assistance and social intervention. Telephone: 450-668-8727.

And there are these contacts for emergencies and referrals:

  • 2-1-1: Free hotline service to find community and social resources in Quebec (24/7 or during business hours).
  • Social Emergency Police / CISSS de Laval: 450-662-4595.