Written by Paige Cox
In 1989, there was a promise made in the House of Commons :
This House “seek(s) to eliminate poverty among Canadian children by 2000.” -House of Commons, unanimous all-party resolution, November 24, 1989 (House of Commons, 1989)
At the point that this was promised, over 1 million children were living in poverty in Canada. Campaign 2000 "is a cross-Canada public education movement to build Canadian awareness and support for the 1989 all-party House of Commons resolution to end child poverty in Canada by 2000." (Home, n.d.). In 2016, a report card was released by the campaign, which stated that 1.3 million Canadian children were living in poverty; in 2021, there were 1,313,400 children in Canada living in poverty. Given that these years are farther apart, there may be many fluctuations in these numbers, but there are not. From 2020 to 2021, Canada's poverty rate rose from 15.2% to 17.8% (Racine,2024).
As stated on the Campaign 2000 Website, this campaign has four main goals. They are as follows:
We must raise and protect the basic living standards of families in all regions of the country so that no child in Canada will ever live in poverty.
We must improve the life chances of all children in Canada so that they can fulfill their potential, nurture their talent, and become responsible and contributing members of Canadian society.
We must ensure the availability of secure, affordable, and suitable housing as an inherent right of all children in Canada.
We must create, build and strengthen family support, child care and community-based resources to empower families to provide the best possible care for their children.
They leave you with the main point that “Poverty is never inevitable” (Sarangi, 2018). There is a common misconception that just because an individual grows up in poverty, they are doomed to live in poverty for the rest of their lives. This is never the case.
This video was created as a campaign to raise awareness to the point that the promise for the eradication of poverty was not fulfilled. I will leave this article off with this powerful video.
PSA - Child Poverty Canada (You made a promise)
To learn more about Campaign 2000, follow the link below.
What can we do? 24 years after the goal of eradicating poverty was promised, are there still things that can be done to help? When you look on the website under Take Action, you will see that they mention ways we can take action to support the goals of Capign 2000. Some of the goals that are mentioned are as promised.
Join Campaign 2000 in eradicating child and family poverty in Canada:
Send a letter to your Member of Parliament that calls on the government of Canada to take tangible steps toward eradicating poverty. Here is a sample letter in English or French. Find your Member of Parliament on the Parliament of Canada website.
Campaign 2000 Partners are doing great work with communities experiencing poverty across Canada. Find one in your area to connect with!
Join the Make Poverty History or Dignity for All Canada-wide campaigns against poverty.
Circulate and sign online petitions aimed at eradicating poverty. Find petitions on websites such as change.org.
Host an event or round table discussion about poverty affecting members of your community.
Vote in municipal, provincial and federal elections! Voting is a meaningful way to influence decision-making on poverty and other issues.
There are so many ways that individuals can help in the fight to end child poverty. It is essential to realize that you do not have to be a government official to help create change; everyone can do these things!
Resources
Home. (n.d.). Campaign 2000. Retrieved April 1, 2024, from https://campaign2000.ca/
House of Commons. (1989, November). Original-HofCommons-Motion-Nov1989.pdf. https://campaign2000.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Original-HofCommons-Motion-Nov1989.pdf
Racine, N. (2024). Child Poverty is on the rise in Canada. https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/child-poverty-is-on-the-rise-in-canada
NationalC2000Infographic2016.pdf. (n.d.). Retrieved April 3, 2024, from https://campaign2000.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/NationalC2000Infographic2016.pdf
Sarangi, L. (2019). Setting the stage for a poverty-free Canada – 2019 report card on child family poverty in Canada.