by Vancouver Island Public Interest Research Group
Victoria, Coast and Straits Salish Territories - A new research report that raises critical questions about whether enforcement is an effective way of dealing with poverty will be released this week in Victoria.

The research is based on over 100 interviews that "peer interviewers" conducted with street-involved individuals on their perceptions and experiences of policing and the criminal justice system. "It was enlightening, eye-opening and disturbing," said peer interviewer Hillary Marks.

The research results suggest that people who are homeless or street-involved are profiled and heavily policed. Over half of the
respondents said that people who look homeless are treated unfairly, and a significant number of street-involved people report
experiencing social and racial profiling by police.

"Many street-involved people have no choice but to use public spaces to meet their basic needs and seek sustenance," said VIPIRG
researcher Tamara Herman. "Most of the encounters with police involved minor infractions committed by street-involved people - many of whom were homeless - in public spaces. This report provokes the question: if people are told to move on from places just because they look poor, what public spaces they can actually be in?"