THUNDER BAY – Ruth Westcott says Ontario’s now-cancelled basic income pilot project changed her life.
It’s why she’s helping to lead a grassroots effort to ensure the program is available not only in Ontario again, but across the country.
Lifting people out of poverty must become a national priority, she said, speaking at city hall on the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.
“When you give poor people more money they do better,” she said. “But what might surprise some of you, is that when you take away state interference, that is the 100s of stupid rules that make up social assistance, people do way better.”
Economic security leads to autonomy and empowerment, allowing people to take back their lives.
That’s what happened under the basic income pilot, Westcott said.
“A thousand people on basic income in Thunder Bay made plans for their lives in a thousand different ways,” she said. “And the results were miraculous. Everyone talked about one thing – the restoration of dignity.”
Westcott said those taking part in the program reported improvements in health, herself included.
“I was able to work. I’d only been on social assistance for about 30 years. Just like everyone else I know on social assistance, I was getting sicker and sicker and more and more disabled the deeper my poverty was getting,” she said.
“There was no way out if you’re too sick to work. Basic income helped me.”
Today, Westcott says she’s got a job and a car and is able to ride her bike, opportunities that arose from her participation in the basic income pilot.
Stuck on Ontario Works for decades, Westcott said she was trying to get by on an income that put her at about halfway to the provincial poverty line.
It can be a deadly path for many, she said.
“The problem is that Ontario’s economic and social policy for the poor leads to premature death by a shocking number of years. Hamilton measured this over 10 years ago in their famous study, Code Red, to discover their poorest were dying 21 years prematurely, directly due to poverty,” Westcott said.
“We don’t measure this in Thunder Bay, but many say it would be much, much, much worse.”
She also pointed out Indigenous people are overrepresented in poverty.
“That is a serious human rights problem, in a town where authorities say there are no human rights problems.”
She said fellow community activists tried to convince the city to provide free bus service to Thunder Bay’s poor, only to be turned down.
“It’s good for all of us and a way to address income inequality, and the social unrest that plagues our city,” Westcott said. “Let’s be famous for how we increase peace. More police and jails is not going to solve that.”
Westcott is conducting a survey of people who took part in Thunder Bay’s basic income pilot project, trying to track down everyone to find out how the program impacted their lives. She acknowledged it didn’t work for everyone and there were flaws in the system, particularly for participants with outstanding debt.
To take the survey, connect with her on Facebook.
“If you’re not online we can still do it. I can go and meet with you at the Dewdrop Inn or wherever you feel comfortable that way and get your answers. There are no wrong answers,” Westcott said.
She can also be reached at 707-2756.
