Housing Rights

A rent supplement program in the Canadian province of New Brunswick excludes people with disabilities. This seems odd, as people with disabilities have higher housing costs and lower incomes...

Tent encampments are a visual reminder of homelessness. They are hard for us to look at. Some see the people living there are failures. Others don't want to look...

'Tent encampments' and 'tent cities' are terms commonly used to identify largely unofficial camp sites of people who are unhoused. It gives them a hint of permanence, though with...

Have you got money to invest? THE SHIFT advises a human rights approach, especially when thinking about investments in housing. In one way, this comes as no surprise. Leilani Farha...

"Civil government . . . is in reality instituted for the defense of the rich against the poor, or of those who have some property against those who have...

Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled on the case of Grants Pass v Johnson, what’s next? This post is the final one in a four-part series about...

Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled on the case of Grants Pass v Johnson, what’s next? This post is the third in a four-part series about post-decision...

Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled on the case of Grants Pass v Johnson, what’s next? This post is the second in a four-part series about post-decision...

In 2007, Canada signed on to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. If you have a disability, or know someone who does, you probably...

The price of generating electricity with wind or the sun is coming down. Battery storage capacity is also growing. Plans for new coal plants are being cancelled and old...

Apartheid in South Africa officially ended 30 years ago. Even though the country's constitution confirms that all citizens have a right to adequate housing, cities are still physically divided...

The Canadian Women's National Housing and Homelessness Network (the WNHHN) has just published a report recommending National Standards for Emergency Shelters (Emergency Shelter Standards) that integrate human rights and...

THE Peasant's Revolt is world famous — at least in the English Language world. It occurred in the 14th century and was modestly successful in extracting concessions from the...

The wait for the US Supreme Court to rule on Grants Pass v Johnson is over. It is not the decision that Gloria Johnson (the Johnson in Grants Pass...

Imagine that you’ve been chosen to work with the government to "progressively realize" the human right to adequate housing. You know something about housing, having worked in the field...

In 2023, Canada's National Housing Council convened a Review Panel to investigate the financialization in purpose-built rental housingFor more about the Review Panel try: The Right To Adequate Housing...

A conservative U.S. Supreme court is currently considering the circumstances, if any, that would permit an individual American to demand housing as a RIGHT. Since such a right is...

If you have been following the unfolding of Canada's commitment to the right to adequate housing, there's a new report to check out. The subject is evident in the report's...

If you really want to understand how an entire nation tolerates being buried in shit, play a little catch-up with United Kingdom's current 'progress'. Buying into the 'neoliberal' political...

The mayor of São Paulo, Brazil, says the city needs 400,000 additional rental homes. Faced with such a large shortage, residents have taken housing matters into their own hands....

American Jurisdictions across the nation wait for the U.S. Supreme court to rule on the rights of people who are unhoused to make free with public lands. Arguments have...

Unhoused, or in danger of becoming so? What are you at risk of losing? Some things are perfectly obvious: for example, a waterproof roof you can call your own. Not...

Two unrelated people buying a house is becoming more common, not only in EuropeTry: Not Married But Need To Share A House? Verantwortungsgemeinschaften! , but also the United States. The...

A disabled pet, a homeless encampment, well-meaning animal rescue workers, an activist intervention, an overwhelmed new pet owner. Result: two deaths to date, one by euthanasia. These events are...

Some, many, American citizens are sorry they cannot give their fellow citizens a precious gift of housing. The U.S. Constitution, alas, did not sanction such an honour for all...

Folklore makes 'sneakers' into American running shoes. It can take considerably more than a few steps in a pair to make an immigrant into an American citizen. Part of that...

The third in three-post series explores how we as humans come to grips with social issues. The series started in Australia, where cost-benefit analysis has been applied to two...

Canada has a standard for adequate housing. It was last revised in 1980! At that time, the focus shifted from whether there was indoor plumbing to structural issues like...

For better or worse, America's legal protections for its citizens are currently trapped in an 'originalist' time warp. The results are based on the belief that when the American...

For many decades, women from developed countries have provided guidance and support to their counterparts in the developing world. Idealists, young and old, have travelled far and wide to...

A U.S. report from National Public Radio explains that new local laws, which criminalize people who are unhoused, are supported by local law enforcement in Northern Nevada. The public...

The United States Supreme Court will be starting a hearing this week to consider the rights of people who are homeless. The media is absolutely humming in anticipation. To...

Many countries in Far East are in a tizzy. The cause: their citizens are reluctant to have children. Public health incentives are being deployed everywhereAs one example, try: Waiting...

City councils bring their own values and concerns to their decision-making. When it comes to the homeless, do those values, well-meaning or no, tend to mirror the opinions of...

April 2020 saw the publication of A National Protocol for Homeless Encampments in Canada (the Protocol). It was timely because it appeared at the beginning of COVID when everyone...

We're Canadian and have published posts about Canadian Leilani Farha during the time she held the position of Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing. As such, we've...

Homeless California residents (a contradiction in terms if there ever was one) may once again be forced to rely upon their 'fairy godmother.' That entity would be the Ninth...

The federal Ninth Judicial Circuit Court (the Ninth Circuit) covers most of the U.S. west coast states from Alaska to California. In consideration of those who are unhoused, the...

The world is full of both sane and crackpot human ideals enshrined in national constitutions. Americans, for example have a constitutional right to arm bears. Or have we got...

The year 1984 has come and gone. The novel of the same name lives on as a possible expression of a variety of repugnant futures. Currently, we are looking...

About 1980, this writer attended a presentation by a physician from El Salvador. He talked about practising medicine in a civil war. He spoke about his patient who needed...

The rest of the world slowly adapts to the idea that homeless people are not all depraved junkies, but mostly people who can't afford homes. Not in Missouri, however,...

Last month, we shared the work of FRAPRU, a organization made up of 80+ national, regional and local organizations active in the Province of QuebecFRAPRU aligns with the organization's...

Renting in the United Kingdom? Perhaps you have lived a life summed up by the following: moving through no less than 10 different homes over 15 years, the journey...

This post is about two remarkable women who are reframing how we think about housing emergencies. Yasmeen Lari and Marie McGregor Pitawanakwat are from different parts of the world....

A pressing question for Australia comes from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC): "if housing was considered a human right, would it fix our housing crisis?" One disturbing possible answer may...

A recent post of ours proclaimed: No Shoes, No Shirt, No Home? Still Room For You In West Coast Cities. Our focus was upon the Ninth Judicial Circuit of...

This post offers a perspective on 'The Right To Adequate Housing' and what it might mean as a legal term when a country accepts it as a right as...

There's something useful to be learned about housing in general by considering the health benefits of stable housing for older people. We may not be as adaptable as we'd...

Many countries have looked to America as a world leader. Not surprising then that people expect the United States, as the wealthiest country in the world, would be the...

The author of the following article, Mukta Naik, describes a basic human rights dilemma this way: "We live in a world where the truth has turned into a chimera. It...

In 2019, Canada officially embraced the right to adequate housing, following the language of the United Nations. Homelessness is prima facie (obvious) evidence that the right to adequate housing...

There is a major impediment to the United Nations Right to Adequate Housing. It is a common occurrence everywhere, and a familiar sight to a more mobile segment of...

Does a Human Right to Adequate Housing include education? COVID-19 offered a meaningful perspective on this question when the pandemic schooling shifted away from the traditional 'school-house' approach. Thanks...

Everyone should have the right to housing. The statement is fine as far as it goes, but it doesn't really tell us much about what it means on the...

The 'first world' consists of all those countries which, while pleading poor (don't they all?) consider themselves arrived in the land of advanced civilization. Their self-importance is often iron-clad....

An article in The Conversation about the McKinney-Vento Act set off a lengthy discussion at the editorial table of affordablehousingaction.org: does McKinney-Vento connect with the right to adequate housing...

A right to temporary housing? Sorry, Massachusetts is all full up with its existing responsibilities to locals in distress. There's no room for incomers. The issue at hand in the...

Everyone should have the right to housing. The statement is fine as far as it goes, but it doesn't really tell us much about what it means on the...

Portugal is undergoing an exercise familiar to Americans who followed recent events by West Coast activists: illegal(?) squatting in unoccupied housing. That story focused on the actions of moms...

The National Alliance to End Homelessness (The Alliance) is thinking about the data it collects about homelessness in the United States. The Alliance's data feeds into annual reports to...

It's easier to pay lip service to 'adequate housing' if you can drag the costs down. The issue arises for a government tasked with arranging a young person's care....

The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit continues to influence U.S. West Coast communities with growing populations of people who are homeless. Unlike other judicial circuits,...

When your country needs housing, it is both conventional as well as common to build houses for people who need them. A substantial number of the world's countries are...

This is the final post in a series that looks at housing and homelessness in South Africa and Canada. It might be a source of inspiration/direction for housing efforts...

This is part of a series that looks at housing and homelessness in South Africa and Canada. It might be a source of inspiration/direction for housing efforts in either...

In Canada, there is a certain smug satisfaction that we are handling refugees the 'right way.' By and large (but not entirely) there today remain more than just the...

This is part of a series that looks at housing and homelessness in South Africa and Canada. It might be a source of inspiration/direction for housing efforts in either...

This is part of a series that looks at housing and homelessness in South Africa and Canada. It might be a source of inspiration/direction for housing efforts in either...

This post starts a series about housing and homelessness in South Africa and Canada. South Africa and Canada share a long history. Here are a few sample events: ...

In this day and age, there are three important 'flavours' of affordable housing, all of which need to be considered and addressed in order to tackle national housing crises: ...

Roma are often linked in the English language to wanderers in the British Isles and Ireland, described as 'gypsies', 'travellers', or 'tinkers.' Are they Europe's indigenous people? It's a...

Living in Canada's arctic territories is not easy. Housing is scarce, in poor condition and often very crowded. Housing advocates have been speaking to the government, the media and...

People who experience homelessness have a lot to contend with. Where will they go to eat, sleep, get clean, do laundry? With these basics up in the air, it's...

All right, we are exaggerating slightly, calling New York 'paradise.' But when it comes to that state's legal commitment to a human right to adequate shelter, there are some...

A combination of events makes New York City an excellent example of why every mayor and council of every town and city in every world democracy should think seriously...

Mariana Mazzucato and Leilani Farha have collaborated on a roadmap to achieve the right to adequate housing. The roadmap starts with a mission. Mazzucato and Farha argue that having a...

Jewelles Smith is based in British Columbia. She has deep knowledge of parenting with a disability, through personal experience, disability advocacy and research. In her doctoral research, Smith compares human...

In case you hadn't noticed that your own national housing emergency looks a lot like Australia's, an InSight article by Caitlin Wright describes some conditions that you will probably...

Other countries take note: Canada would seem to be extraordinarily compassionate by allowing 'assisted euthanasia' for any strongly-felt reason. When applying that compassion to a national homelessness crisis, it...

The article linked to this post is about what it's like to experience homeless in two cities in Ontario. It's also about what people experience when they leave homelessness...

Today's post is about housing rights in Canada, where the United Nations' right to adequate housing was affirmed in law in 2019Going forward, this means that Canada's definition of...

Not all that long ago, it was against the law to be homeless in Canada. That changed in 1972, when vagrancy laws were repealed. So, imagine a currently homeless...

Like virtually all North American cities, Thunder Bay, Ontario faces the reality of persistent homelessness. Like a smaller number of cities, indigenous people make up a portion of Thunder...

What is it about the attraction of governments to the almost guaranteed predation caused by funding private-enterprise care homes? The title above reflects a United Kingdom report on dreadfully...

How can a nonprofit or a charity become significantly profitable? Answer: it can't. But non-profits can create a comfortable living for a group of employees. Some of them, with...

Late in life, I'm pleased to learn a little about property guardianship. Seems I was a property guardian and never knew it. So was my daughter, at least in...

With roughly one in three people who are homeless having mental health or drug abuse issues, the growing numbers of people on the streets without shelter is creating antagonism...

While news of yet another collection of 'tiny homes' is becoming more commonplace in North America, they are by no means a standard method of community commitment to housing...

With all of the reports about tent clearances across North America, it is encouraging to learn that there are some places where the rights of people living in encampments...

When you think about tenant organizing in Kentucky, you might visualize Black tenants calling out their housing authority for poor conditions. The article linked to this post tells a...

Here's an update about the government of Australia's Northern Territory and the housing it provides to its tenants. Last year, tenants brought a court case over the definition of adequate...

The lifeguard is no more than a couple of strokes away from the drowning person when... "Stay Back" shouts an officer in the police boat that speeds between the...

Around the world, tent encampments have been a sensible, practical alternative to more permanent housing when none other is available. Search Wikimedia Commons for 'tents' to reveal some of...

Those countries that advertise themselves (or at least believe in themselves) as 'lands of opportunity' are living the lie when they can build battleships but not housing for the...

Well, the State spirit appears willing, but the local flesh seems to be weak. As far as the facts are concerned, even state legislators in Nevada would appear to...

Those of you who follow Scottish politics will have noted the departure of First Minister Nicola Sturgeon from the political stage. The reason for her departure is largely due...

Currently around the world, country after country allows and/or actively encourages a gambler's haven — the use of housing ownership, not (or only incidentally) as shelter, but as chips...

Encouraging as it might superficially seem, America's Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) actually stood up in 2022 to allow Americans with criminal convictions to have access to...

Spain has just passed a Right to Housing law. The law allows rent controls in any and all housing markets that are deemed by local governments to be 'stressed.' This...