Close to two dozen advocates braved the cold conditions on Wednesday to rally in front of Saskatoon City Hall asking for more to be done for homeless people in the city.
Last week, Saskatoon released its point-in-time count that showed there are close to 1,500 homeless people in the city, nearly triple the number of homeless people from 2022.
On Wednesday, the City of Regina released its count showing 824 people are homeless in the Queen City, nearly double the number of homeless people from 2021.
Advocate David Fineday said more people need to support those who are homeless.
“The homeless people are getting sick and dying and ending up in homes and in hospitals,” he said. “They need more emergency shelters.”
Read more:
- ‘We’re in crisis’: STC Chief Mark Arcand wants Saskatoon to do more for homeless
- St. Mary’s warming shelter in Saskatoon opens a week earlier than expected
- Warming centre fights to keep Saskatoon’s homeless safe in freezing cold
The city is preparing to open a temporary downtown shelter on Pacific Ave. in 2025, but Fineday said more needs to be done now.
“I can talk and talk and talk but if the right people don’t hear it, that’s why I have to keep talking, if they don’t hear me the first time, they’ll hear me the second time,” he said.
Fineday said he is not going anywhere and will continue to support those who are homeless.
There are more shelters on the way but Fineday wants to see them geared towards the needs of First Nations people.
“With smudging and praying in them,” he said. “That’s what we’ve lost in 100 years, we lost all of that.”
Saskatoon Tribal Council Chief Mark Arcand shared a similar message last week, asking for the city to approve more First Nations operated initiatives like a task force or shelter.
Fineday said he believes if more shelters promote the First Nation culture, it would make homeless people who are First Nation more comfortable.
Saskatoon Mayor Cynthia Block said that the homelessness situation in the city has reached an all-hands-on-deck point and that it’s going to require community support to fix.