The homelessness crisis happening in Toronto is best described by one social worker as “completely out of control.”
“We have … closer to 13,000 people who we know are currently homeless within our shelter system,” said Diana Chan McNally, a community and crisis worker in the downtown east side.
“And then we have so many people out on the street sheltering on the TTC, in libraries, anywhere that they can find any kind of indoor space and, of course, in our parks.”
Chan McNally, who since 2014 has worked with people experiencing homelessness, estimated the number of unhoused residents is likely more than 20,000 when including individuals who are difficult to count and invisible to city officials: Those who couch-surf, stay with friends, hang out in hospital emergency departments, sleep in doorways, under bridges and in ravines.
Some people choose to stay out of city shelters because it is not a safe option due to overcrowding and at times very few staff on hand, Chan McNally said. Theft, assault and sexual assault are also concerns.
The root causes of homelessness include job loss, family breakup, family violence, mental illness, poor health, substance use and physical, sexual or emotional abuse. In recent years, the affordability crisis and high rents have also contributed to growing numbers without a stable roof over their head.
Looking deeper into Toronto’s homeless crisis, the facts are grim.
According to Toronto Public Health, nearly one person a day who experiences homelessness dies in the city.
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The health unit earlier this month reported a total of 631 deaths of unhoused people in the city in 2022 and 2023. In the first six months of 2024, 135 residents lost their lives.
“We also see people dying in the shelter system,” Chan McNally said. “Almost a quarter of the people who are homeless who have died in Toronto in the past year have died in the system itself.”
Women, who make up just a fifth of the city’s unhoused population, are more vulnerable and are losing their life at a very young age. In the two years prior to 2024, women died at a median age of 42 and 43 respectively. However, in the first six months of 2024, the median age was just 36.
The median age at death for unhoused men has held steady at about 50 years old during that same time frame.
By comparison, the median age at death for Toronto’s general population was 85 years for women and 78 years for men in 2022.
“What we see is a particular danger when you are a woman out on the street,” Chan McNally said. “That comes through exploitation, violence and frankly sexual violence. Pretty much everyone I’ve met — doesn’t matter what age you are, who you are — you’re out on the street, you’ve been raped. And you’ve been raped multiple times.”
Chan McNally also says women living on the street are taken advantage of, exploited by human traffickers who give them drugs and force them into sex work.
“This is incredibly traumatizing for people,” she said. “What they need are services and supports specific to women, which we don’t actually have a lot (of) … So, we are not really addressing the specific harms for women in particular on the streets.”
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Toronto Public Health reported slightly more than half — 55% — of homeless deaths can be attributed to the toxic drug supply on the streets. Among women, that number has seen a sharp increase from 55% of deaths in 2022 and 69% in 2023 to a staggering 81% in the first six months of 2024.
Nearly two years ago, city council declared homelessness an emergency and approved staff recommendations for warming centres that would increase access when the temperature dips below -5 C or when freezing rain, winter storm or snowfall warnings are forecast.
In addition, Toronto has more than 100 shelter sites that are funded by the city and operated by not-for-profit partners.
In December, the city announced six new shelter locations to be developed as part of a 10-year strategy to expand winter services for people experiencing homelessness. When opened, the shelters are expected to accommodate about 80 people at each location, which the city said will help it move away from more expensive shelter hotels.
While the city is constrained by what it can do due to budgetary issues, Chan McNally said additional resources should be poured in by provincial and federal officials to build more affordable homes and supportive spaces.
“The majority of people in Toronto and throughout the province understand that the solution to this is housing. But I don’t think we are building enough housing because the crisis continues to get worse. I think the city gets that, but we do need commitments from the province and from the federal government to realize this in a good way.”