Winnipeg Without Poverty
Campaign Overview
More than 76,000 Winnipeggers live below the poverty line, lacking the resources to meet their most basic needs.
In 2021, the City of Winnipeg released its first ever Poverty Reduction Strategy, signalling that it was ready to address the suffering we see on our city streets every day.
But in spite of good intentions, both implementation plans the City has released since then have lacked teeth and been inadequately funded.
To end poverty in Winnipeg, City Council must allocate concrete resources to initiatives that actually help those in poverty. In particular, they must prioritize funding that addresses the areas of housing, transit, community safety, and anti-oppression.
We urge the City of Winnipeg to implement these evidence-based policy recommendations:
Housing
• Commit to the development of 750 units of social housing annually over ten years owned by public, non-profit, co-op, or Indigenous-led housing providers, in partnership with other levels of government.
• Hire at least 7 full-time staff dedicated to the development of new social and affordable rental housing.
Transit
• Increase the WINNpass subsidy to 80 per cent off the cost of a monthly transit pass and make it easier to access.
• Commit to a timeline for piloting fare-free public transit.
Community Safety
• Redirect at least 10% of police funding to community-based organizations, with priority to Indigenous-led organizations, that address the root causes of crime and expand support for 24-hour safe spaces, alternative community safety models, public washrooms, and safe consumption sites.
Reconciliation & Anti-Oppression
• Mandate and provide ongoing anti-racism and anti-oppression training to all City employees as well as targeted training for first responders around non-violent crisis intervention, de-escalation, mental health first aid, trauma-informed care, and harm reduction.
• Facilitate work focused on poverty reduction, social inclusion, cultural reclamation, and healing by hiring at least 3 more full-time staff in the City’s Indigenous Relations Division and ensuring the City’s operating grant process prioritizes funding for Indigenous-led community-based organizations.
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