At an event at McLaughlin College at York University last Thursday, emotions were mixed as to how the battle against poverty was progressing so far.
“So here we are, on the eve of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, facing a year that will test our strength and solidarity,” said Carol Goar, one of Toronto’s leading journalists who writes regularly on poverty in her column at the Toronto Star.
Ms. Goar expressed concerns that a global recession could push poverty further from the government agenda, especially since Prime Minister Stephen Harper did not make any firm commitments to poverty eradication during the recent election campaign.
“But I genuinely believe that Canadians who care about their less fortunate neighbours at home and abroad can make progress, even in hard times,” she said later.
Goar said poverty has continued to climb in opinion polls of Canadian priority lists and now comes in fourth place behind the economy, health care, and the environment. She cited Barack Obama’s likely election as cause for hope given his background as a poverty activist.
“Imagine what a difference it would make to have America led by a man who’s fought poverty on the front lines,” she said.
She was also inspired by the “remarkable creativity” of the non-government sector as well as the shift toward corporate social responsibility.
“These rays of light are no substitute for a collective effort by the world’s richest nations to eradicate poverty. But they certainly are a fine supplement.”
“Despite all the statements of political leaders…we have not been able to do much about poverty at a global level,” said Dr. Bhausaheb Ubale, who also spoke at the event.
He complained that while political leaders talk about poverty, they do very little, and the gap between words and actions is “so deep and so wide…it makes the Grand Canyon look like a ditch.”
Dr. Ubale is a former Ontario and Canadian Human Rights Commissioner and a recipient of the Order of Ontario, the highest honour given in the province of Ontario, for his contributions to human rights.
He likened the situation to a fable about a man walking home in the night while a thunder storm rages above. As the lightning flashes and the thunder booms, the man becomes deeply afraid and begs the heavens to give him more light but less noise.
The message to political leaders: “Don’t talk too much. Give some more resources,” said Dr. Ubale.
But Dr. Ubale is a realist. In his many years fighting poverty, he’s seen massive shifts but little progress.
In the 60s he saw a “wind of change” as African countries became independent one after another and economists and professors in universities talked about the need for economic development on the continent.
With no money, no savings, and no investment, Africa was in a “vicious cycle of poverty.”
Later, the invention of the World Bank as well as foreign aid brought money, but not enough to stem the tide.
While admonishing political leaders to do more, Ubale stressed that poverty “has a human face” and that the wealth of a few could bring the world’s poor to a “volcanic anger.”
“If we don’t do anything, in time, they are going to burn us.”
He reserved hope however, that a new generation of young people and rapidly evolving technology could help poor nations develop. Heart-warming stories of children emptying their piggy banks to help tsunami-torn nations and environmental activists who moved into trees to protect forests gave him hope, he said.
“These people are going to help.”
